Blog #4 The Magic in "3"

In Three Day Road there are three main characters figures, and everything in the book seems to be in three's.

Source: https://thedailydigi.com

Xavier talks a bit about the symbol three once he starts looking at the world differently while he has some time in the war “It seems to me that everything these wemistikoshiw do is in threes.” (pg. 245)  "wemistikoshiw" meaning white people. Xavier goes on to say how their work parties are made up of three men, the army is divided into three groups (infantry, artillery and cavalry), all their military patterns are done in threes and people even die in threes. Which is a reference to the actual meaning of the term three day road which is the journey from this world earth and the journey to the afterlife. The last reference Xavier speaks is of the Son the Father and the Holy Spirit before he says “I too have begun to see the world in three's... I think that my life has been divided into threes for me by these wemistikoshiw. There was my life before them and their army, there is my life in their army, and, if I live, there will be my life after I have left it and returned home. They must have some magic in their number three. I know that you, Niska, taught me that we will all someday walk the three day road, and now I'm left wondering what connection there might be between their world and mine.” (pg. 245-246). The symbol three and everything comes in three's is really apparent in this book, and I think Boyden meant it to be that way, because of the important concept of the three day road to the aboriginal people. When Xavier kills Elijah after being attacked by him he sends him on the path of the three day road which is probably the biggest reference to the title of the book which also relates to the magic number three. There are so many other references to this "magic" number in the book, but to stop myself from being repetitive the main concept Boyden is trying to throw at us is that everything is connected, and he does this by using the number three.