A review by freewaygods
The Rifles by William T. Vollmann
adventurous
informative
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
The Sixth Dream is a further experiment in Vollmann’s blending of historical fact and fiction, narrative and autobiography, all melted and frozen together in an Arctic hallucination in a haze of rifle-smoke.
The way that Vollmann weaves his stand-in, Captain Subzero, with the historical Sir John Franklin together is as fascinating as it is skillful. And the way that the novel is structured, framed as it is with the more recent experience of the indigenous peoples in modern Canada (most notably the establishment of Resolute and the forced relocation to Grise Fiord), works to cast the Franklin narrative in a light that reveals it as absurd as Franklin’s soul-twin Captain Subzero is— vainglorious Europeans continually making poor decisions resulting in their deaths. And this is as biting as the ice-winds that ripped across the tundra, because those Europeans and Canadians who make of the Franklin expedition a tragedy rather than farce are the very ones who at best ignore or at worst did and continue to orchestrate the destruction of the indigenous peoples on this continent, particularly those in the areas the novel is concerned with.
I also think the shorter length, in comparison to Fathers and Crows, did a service to The Rifles; it’s exactly as long as it needs to be, with no seal-fat to keep it warm. All in all, the Sixth Dream shows the continued maturation of Vollmann as a writer, as he continues to pioneer his own unparalleled and unique style.
The way that Vollmann weaves his stand-in, Captain Subzero, with the historical Sir John Franklin together is as fascinating as it is skillful. And the way that the novel is structured, framed as it is with the more recent experience of the indigenous peoples in modern Canada (most notably the establishment of Resolute and the forced relocation to Grise Fiord), works to cast the Franklin narrative in a light that reveals it as absurd as Franklin’s soul-twin Captain Subzero is— vainglorious Europeans continually making poor decisions resulting in their deaths. And this is as biting as the ice-winds that ripped across the tundra, because those Europeans and Canadians who make of the Franklin expedition a tragedy rather than farce are the very ones who at best ignore or at worst did and continue to orchestrate the destruction of the indigenous peoples on this continent, particularly those in the areas the novel is concerned with.
I also think the shorter length, in comparison to Fathers and Crows, did a service to The Rifles; it’s exactly as long as it needs to be, with no seal-fat to keep it warm. All in all, the Sixth Dream shows the continued maturation of Vollmann as a writer, as he continues to pioneer his own unparalleled and unique style.