In Farley Mowat's "Walk Well, My Brother," he makes a great contrast of values between Lavery and Konala. Lavery is angry, resentful, and self-absorbed, thinking only of himself and not at all of Konala and her needs. Moreover, he is prejudiced against her based on her primitive culture, viewing her as beneath him. When she offers him raw fish after the plane crashes, he shouts at her, "Eat it yourself...you animal!" (Mowat 138). She then builds a fire and roasts the fish, sensing that he does not want it because it is raw, but Lavery is inflamed with stubborn pride and eats his own can of cold baked beans instead of her aromatic roasted fish. In this midst of the disasters in the story-the plane crash, and his getting lost in the tundra-Lavery is fearful.
Konala poses an excellent contrast to Lavery in terms of values. Instead of his anger, she demonstrates placidity, even in the face of his provocative and insensitive behavior. She is never resentful and never self-absorbed, refusing to respond in anger or selfishness and always seeking to provide service to Lavery as a friend would. She harbors no prejudice against Lavery, either, although he gives her many good reasons to hate white men. She exhibits no false pride and no stubbornness, only obeying him humbly when he barks his fierce orders at her. When she asks him "We walk?" he explodes at her and yells, "You bloody well stay here!" She remains where he leaves her, and he trudges off on his own, only to become lost and injured. He abandons her, but he is overcome by the elements, with his cartridges lost, his gun is useless, his sleeping bag soaked, and he is desperate (Mowat 140). This would have been the perfect opportunity for Konala to try to gain the upper hand, to nurse him back to health in exchange for a price, but she does not do that. She nurses him selflessly and asks nothing in return. She tends to his wounds, fixes fires, collects and prep<...