When Thomas Black Bull was found, eleven years old and living alone in the wilderness, his entire life was flipped upside down. In the book When the Legends Die, the young boy was forced to convert to new ways and new identities, unfamiliar and new to him. His past, origins, and true identities were chopped off, and chained to the bottom of the forgotten sea in his mind. In the process he lost a companion, …showed first 75 words of 1200 total…

…showed last 75 words of 1200 total…a label they find appropriate, but may have nothing to do with that persons real self. Instead of having others attempt to do this to one, a person must resist. Thomas chose his own name and returned to his true identity in the end of the novel, instead of letting others mask his true origins anylonger. It may be culture, heritage or tradition, but if one does not have his identity, then who is he?