''Mountain Man'' is a 1965

novel A novel is a relatively long work of narrative fiction, typically written in prose and published as a book. The present English word for a long work of prose fiction derives from the for "new", "news", or "short story of something new", itsel ...

written by

Vardis Fisher Vardis Alvero Fisher (March 31, 1895 – July 9, 1968) was an American writer from Idaho who wrote popular historical novels of the Old West. After studying at the University of Utah and the University of Chicago, Fisher taught English at the Uni ...

. Set in the mid-1800s

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

, it tells the story of Sam Minard, a hunter/trapper living and wandering throughout Montana, Wyoming and Idaho. The book is separated into three parts: Lotus, Kate and Sam. The novel is largely a fictionalized retelling of the experiences of the real mountain man

Liver-Eating Johnson John "Liver-Eating" Johnson, born John Jeremiah Garrison Johnston (July 1, 1824 – January 21, 1900), was a mountain man of the American Old West. Biography Johnson is said to have been born with the last name Garrison, in the area of the Hick ...

. The book was adapted for

Sydney Pollack Sydney Irwin Pollack (July 1, 1934 – May 26, 2008) was an American film director, producer and actor. Pollack directed more than 20 films and 10 television shows, acted in over 30 movies or shows and produced over 44 films. For his film ''Out ...

's 1972 film '' Jeremiah Johnson''.

Synopsis

In "Lotus", Sam stumbles upon the grisly scene of an Indian massacre. A lone woman is left alive, mourning the deaths of her two sons and daughter, and the scalping and kidnapping of her husband. Sam helps the distraught woman bury her dead, and even builds her a cabin, putting the word out to other "mountain men" to watch out for her and supply her with necessities of life. Sam takes a wife from the Flathead Indian tribe, eschewing her difficult Indian name in favor of the name Lotus. Lotus becomes pregnant, and Sam leaves her at his cabin for the winter months, unwilling to subject his pregnant wife to the rigors of sleeping outdoors while he plies his trade of trapping for furs. Upon returning to the cabin in spring, Sam finds his little family had been slaughtered just 10 days before his return. The sign left by the murderers indicates that members of the Crow tribe are responsible, and Sam sets out on a path of vengeance, vowing to kill every member of the tribe that killed his family. The story focuses on the lives of mountain men, those who have forsaken big city living in favor of the harsher, more violent, yet to them more rewarding lives spent communing freely with nature.

References

{{Reflist 1965 American novels American novels adapted into films Novels about Native Americans English-language books Novels about revenge Western (genre) novels Works about mountain men Novels set in the 19th century Novels set in Montana Novels set in Wyoming Novels set in Idaho