50 pages • 1 hour read
Craig JohnsonThe Cold Dish
Fiction | Novel | Adult | Published in 2004A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Symbols & Motifs
Guns
Throughout the novel, various firearms play a key role in developing characters and themes. Walt’s personal gun is a Colt 1911A1 pistol that he used in Vietnam; he describes the weapon as “heavy, hard to aim” with a “slow rate of fire” (37). The fact that Walt used the gun in Vietnam links his current career with his wartime experiences, showing the formative effect of the former. Meanwhile, the gun’s awkwardness suggests that Walt is not particularly keen on using it any more than he has to. Otherwise, he would likely have replaced it with something more sleek and modern.
Several characters express differing views of firearms in general. A professional hunter by trade, Omar is the most enthusiastic about his guns. Walt, by contrast, has a more neutral outlook that he adopted from his father, a blacksmith, who viewed guns simply as tools. Vonnie, on the other hand, demonstrates a strong revulsion to guns when Walt brings one into her home, and she asks him to leave it outside. It is later revealed that she used her father’s buffalo rifle to shoot Cody and Jacob, but this doesn’t necessarily mean that she is disingenuous when she makes her comments to Walt. Rather, she sees her use of the weapon as a necessary and legitimate exception to the rule. As instruments of death, guns are closely related to Johnson’s examination of The Pursuit of Justice.
The Cheyenne Death Rifle plays a particularly significant role in the novel. A relic from earlier territorial wars between Indigenous people and federal troops, the rifle is haunted by the spirits of dead Cheyenne warriors, who are liable to invite others to join them in the Camp of the Dead at any time. Walt has firsthand experience with these spirits and finds them honorable and compassionate, supporting the broader theme of Finding Strength in Community.
Feathers
Feathers appear in the narrative as a recurring motif and provide an apt—if unintentional, from the murderer’s perspective—insight into the nature of the crimes. When what appears to be an eagle feather is found on Cody’s body, Walt guesses that it is a calling card left by the killer. Later, a similar feather is found on Jacob’s body, confirming his hypothesis. In investigating the feathers, Walt learns that they are actually turkey feathers modified to resemble eagle feathers. This complicates Walt’s initial theory that someone belonging to an Indigenous nation may have perpetrated the crimes. His theory is further called into question when Walt learns that owl feathers, not eagle feathers, are associated with death.
After learning that Vonnie is the killer, Walter informs her of these jarring inconsistencies regarding her use of feathers, and she reflects that this unintentional outcome is, in a way, appropriate. Her misuse of the feathers reflects her decision to take on the role of a vigilante on Melissa’s behalf, essentially posing as an agent of the Cheyenne community without their knowledge, invitation, or permission. The feather thus exemplifies the disconnect between Vonnie’s misguided attempts at procuring justice for Melissa and the way that Melissa’s case is handled within her community, where the emphasis is on restoring Melissa’s well-being rather than taking revenge on those who wronged her.
Vehicles
Several vehicles play important roles in the novel, offering insights that enhance themes and characterizations. Walt refers to his car as the Silver Bullet, or, more often, simply the Bullet. It serves his needs well as an officer of the law and takes on a symbolic tilt by associating him with both the Western genre and folklore. In old westerns such as The Lone Ranger, silver bullets symbolized the shooter’s pure intentions. In folklore, silver bullets can kill mythological monsters like werewolves. Both associations cast Walt as a hero.
Henry’s pickup, which he refers to as Rezdawg, plays a more personal role for him. It reminds him of his identity as a member of the Cheyenne nation and signifies the value he derives from maintaining his place in that community. Turk’s car, meanwhile, is a Pontiac Firebird that Walt jokingly refers to as the Thunder Chicken. Driving a muscle car symbolizes Turk’s desire to be considered powerful and masculine; Walt subverts this by changing the bird to a chicken. It is covered with stickers, many of them political, which leaves Walt to conclude that “there wasn’t anyone that could look at this car and not be offended. It was a lot like Turk” (41). Later, when Walt attacks Turk, he slams his body into the Firebird, as if taking out his anger on both of them. This demonstrates Walt’s own weakness and propensity for administering vigilante justice to others, just as Vonnie does, though to a lesser extent. Finally, Omar’s helicopter demonstrates his wealth and his mastery over the terrain, although he, too, has his limits, as the oncoming storm forces him to retreat.
