Louise Erdrich's short story "The Red Convertible- tells of how the toils of war transform Henry Junior into a quiet man, and how a red convertible and a loving brother named Lyman can make him want to live life again. Erdrich starts with two brothers who have a carefree summer ahead of them and a shiny red convertible to take them wherever they desire. As they head back home after a summer of fun, they find that Henry has been called into service by the army draft. When Henry returns home, after the war, Lyman finds that his brother no longer has a desire to talk or have adventures like he did before the war. One fight over the convertible changes it all. The brothers make up, and Henry keeps the convertible for the rest of eternity, in a grave nature has made for him.
In the first paragraph, Erdrich uses foreshadowing of Henry's death when Lyman says, "We owned it together until his boots filled with water on a windy night and he bought out my share- (407). He then tells the story of how it happens. Lyman is a successful young man by the time he is sixteen. He has full ownership of a cafe and is on his way to the top. One day, a tornado blows into the small town of Chippewa and destroys the café. That summer, Lyman and Henry leave the Chippewa reservation, with their life savings, to enjoy a summer filled with excitement. The first stop they make is in Winnipeg, where a shiny, red convertible awaits them. Erdrich uses imagery by showing the color of the convertible. She uses red for several reasons; we all associate red with a convertible, and we also associate it with fun and excitement. This allows the audience to understand the excitement of having a sports car, especially a red convertible. After they buy the red convertible, they find themselves somewhere in Montana where they meet a girl, whose name is Susy and drive to her family's home in Alaska. This is a summer with no boundaries, a summer when they can go wherever the wheels of the red convertible lead them.