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Makah Culture and Heritage
The tradition of whaling is a source of great pride to the Makah People. This brought great wealth to the whaling families. The oil from the blubber was a valued commodity, and the bones were used for many purposes.
To this day, the Makah work hard to protect their heritage. In order to retain Whaling rights, and to protect the health, education, and welfare of their people, the Makah ceded, surrendered/gave up, 300,000 acres of tribal land to the U.S.
A Gift From the Sea - Whaling and whales are central to Makah culture. For the Makah Tribe, whale hunting imposes a purpose and a discipline, which benefits their entire community. It is so importantto the Makah, that in 1855 when the Makah ceded thousands of acres of land to the government of the United States, they explicitly reserved their rightto whale within the Treaty of Neah Bay. Whale gave oil, meat, bone, sinew and gut for storage containers. To get ready for the hunt, whalers went off by themselves to pray and fast. Each man had his own place, followed his own ritual, and sought his own power.
To this day, the Makah work hard to protect their heritage. In order to retain Whaling rights, and to protect the health, education, and welfare of their people, the Makah ceded, surrendered/gave up, 300,000 acres of tribal land to the U.S.
A Gift From the Sea - Whaling and whales are central to Makah culture. For the Makah Tribe, whale hunting imposes a purpose and a discipline, which benefits their entire community. It is so importantto the Makah, that in 1855 when the Makah ceded thousands of acres of land to the government of the United States, they explicitly reserved their rightto whale within the Treaty of Neah Bay. Whale gave oil, meat, bone, sinew and gut for storage containers. To get ready for the hunt, whalers went off by themselves to pray and fast. Each man had his own place, followed his own ritual, and sought his own power.
Title: Ghost Canoe
Author: Will Hobbs
Copyright Date: 1997
Publishing Company: Avon Books, Inc. Location: New York, USA
Main Character - Nathan MacAllister
Nathan MacAllister is the round dynamic protagonist of this novel. Nathan is a dependent, inquisitive, and responsible 14 year-old son of a lighthouse keeper, Zachary MacAllister.
Supporting Characters - Lighthouse George
Lighthouse George, a discreet, respectful, generous, and highly regarded son of a Makah chief, delivers mail and supplies to Tatoosh via dugout canoe. He befriends Nathan while Nathan and his mother are away from their father; he teaches Nathan Makah customs of fishing, whaling, and canoeing. George is a round static character in this novel.
Captain Bim – a round static character; arrogant, sarcastic, secretive, greedy, rude, and the most talkative man Nathan knows and the biggest.
Kane - flat static – manipulative, controlling, sinister, antagonist
Dolla Bill – a flat static character; eccentric, outcast
Zachary MacAllister - flat static minor character – Nathan’s father the lighthouse keeper for Tatoosh
Setting - 1874
· Tatoosh Island lighthouse and Cape Flattery on the most northwestern tip of the United States
· Neah Bay – farther to the east along the northern coast of Washington
Summary
Ghost Canoe is a thrilling historical fiction mystery written by Will Hobbs. Although fiction, the setting and events of the plot are grounded in the geography and historical aspects of the most Northwest corner of the U.S. in 1874. Due to the fact that Zachary tended the lighthouse on Tatoosh Island just off the coast of Cape Flattery, Washington, their family resided there. It was not until Nathan’s mother, Elizabeth, became too sick to endure nature’s elements that Nathan and his mother moved east to Neah Bay near the Makah settlement. Nathan learned and adapted to the customs of the Makah Native Americans with the assistance of a Makah, Lighthouse George. Under the tutelage (guidance and teaching) of George, Nathan was able to see his father via dugout canoe, as it was George who delivered mail and supplies to Tatoosh Island and Cape Flattery.
Nathan possesses a third character trait that carries the reader deeper into the plot of this novel. Curiosity didn’t kill the cat, it kept the story alive. After a sailing vessel wrecked off the rocky, stormy coast of Cape Flattery, the island’s authorities insisted that there could not have been any survivors. Unexplained footprints on a desolate beach, a break-in at the local trading post, and the “glint of metal” (61) accompanied by a burly shadow and glimmering eyes in the dark (62) awaken Nathan’s curiosity. Nathan refused to believe that no one survived that wreck and that there was not something suspicious going on. While running from what could be a clue to the murder and theft, Captain Bim and an eccentric outcast named Dolla Bill add yet another dimension to Nathan’s inquisitiveness; his curiosity may be bringing him closer to the truth.
Author: Will Hobbs
Copyright Date: 1997
Publishing Company: Avon Books, Inc. Location: New York, USA
Main Character - Nathan MacAllister
Nathan MacAllister is the round dynamic protagonist of this novel. Nathan is a dependent, inquisitive, and responsible 14 year-old son of a lighthouse keeper, Zachary MacAllister.
Supporting Characters - Lighthouse George
Lighthouse George, a discreet, respectful, generous, and highly regarded son of a Makah chief, delivers mail and supplies to Tatoosh via dugout canoe. He befriends Nathan while Nathan and his mother are away from their father; he teaches Nathan Makah customs of fishing, whaling, and canoeing. George is a round static character in this novel.
Captain Bim – a round static character; arrogant, sarcastic, secretive, greedy, rude, and the most talkative man Nathan knows and the biggest.
Kane - flat static – manipulative, controlling, sinister, antagonist
Dolla Bill – a flat static character; eccentric, outcast
Zachary MacAllister - flat static minor character – Nathan’s father the lighthouse keeper for Tatoosh
Setting - 1874
· Tatoosh Island lighthouse and Cape Flattery on the most northwestern tip of the United States
· Neah Bay – farther to the east along the northern coast of Washington
Summary
Ghost Canoe is a thrilling historical fiction mystery written by Will Hobbs. Although fiction, the setting and events of the plot are grounded in the geography and historical aspects of the most Northwest corner of the U.S. in 1874. Due to the fact that Zachary tended the lighthouse on Tatoosh Island just off the coast of Cape Flattery, Washington, their family resided there. It was not until Nathan’s mother, Elizabeth, became too sick to endure nature’s elements that Nathan and his mother moved east to Neah Bay near the Makah settlement. Nathan learned and adapted to the customs of the Makah Native Americans with the assistance of a Makah, Lighthouse George. Under the tutelage (guidance and teaching) of George, Nathan was able to see his father via dugout canoe, as it was George who delivered mail and supplies to Tatoosh Island and Cape Flattery.
Nathan possesses a third character trait that carries the reader deeper into the plot of this novel. Curiosity didn’t kill the cat, it kept the story alive. After a sailing vessel wrecked off the rocky, stormy coast of Cape Flattery, the island’s authorities insisted that there could not have been any survivors. Unexplained footprints on a desolate beach, a break-in at the local trading post, and the “glint of metal” (61) accompanied by a burly shadow and glimmering eyes in the dark (62) awaken Nathan’s curiosity. Nathan refused to believe that no one survived that wreck and that there was not something suspicious going on. While running from what could be a clue to the murder and theft, Captain Bim and an eccentric outcast named Dolla Bill add yet another dimension to Nathan’s inquisitiveness; his curiosity may be bringing him closer to the truth.