Content Warning: This section addresses themes of racism, cultural erasure, and violence against Indigenous people.

One of Wind From an Enemy Sky’s central themes is the clash between Indigenous cultures and Western ideologies, a theme that manifests in various conflicts, tensions, and interactions among the characters. The novel explores the divide between Indigenous beliefs regarding their history and traditions and the encroaching influence of Western values driven by industrial progress and colonization. The physical landscape itself serves as a metaphor for the cultural divide, with Indigenous families residing in the foothills and white settlers occupying the flats.

This clash appears not only between the Indigenous and white characters but also within the Little Elk tribe, as portrayed by the tension between Bull and Henry Jim. The brothers represent different approaches to dealing with colonialism’s encroachment. Bull embodies resistance to assimilation, fiercely holding onto traditional values and rejecting the influence of the white man. His anger toward the dam built by white settlers symbolizes the frustration and helplessness felt by Indigenous peoples in the face of the cultural erosion and environmental degradation imposed by Western development. On the other hand, Henry Jim represents a more pragmatic approach, having embraced aspects of the white man’s world in an attempt to adapt and survive.