Character Relationship Map: Eskimo

Characters

• Constable Balk (uncredited) (played by Edgar Dearing) — protagonist

  Royal Canadian Mounted Police constable who accompanies Sergeant Hunt to track down Mala. He survives a blizzard, pursues Kripik across the ice, and ultimately acknowledges the traders' crimes, allowi...

• Captain (uncredited) (played by Peter Freuchen) — supporting

  White trader ship captain who arrives at the village. He trades goods for animal skins and repeatedly sexually exploits Aba, ultimately leading to his own death at the hands of Mala.

• Captain's Mate (uncredited) (played by Edward Hearn) — supporting

  A crew member on the trader ship disgusted by the captain's actions. While hunting seals, he mistakes Aba for an animal and accidentally kills her, triggering the main tragedy.

• Sergeant Hunt (uncredited) (played by Joe Sawyer) — supporting

  Royal Canadian Mounted Police sergeant tasked with arresting Mala. He is saved by Kripik, learns of the traders' crimes, and ultimately refuses to shoot Kripik during the final chase, allowing his esc...

• Iva (uncredited) (played by Lotus Long) — supporting

  A hunter's wife who moves in with Mala to help care for his children after Aba's death. She eventually forms a bond with him, becomes his second wife, and escapes with him across the breaking ice.

• Mala, aka Kripik (uncredited) (played by Mala) — supporting

  The central protagonist, an Eskimo hunter and family man. After his wife Aba is killed and he murders the ship captain, he changes his name to Kripik. He struggles with grief, builds a new family, and...

• Inspector White (uncredited) (played by W.S. Van Dyke) — supporting

  A rigid and rule-bound RCMP inspector who arrives at the outpost. He orders Kripik to be chained at night and forbids him from hunting, directly triggering Kripik's desperate escape.

• Aba, Mala's first wife (uncredited) (played by Lulu Wong) — supporting

  Mala's first wife who longs for white traders' goods. She is repeatedly sexually exploited by the ship captain and mistakenly killed by the captain's mate, an event that triggers Mala's profound grief...

Canonical Relationships

Family, romantic, and professional connections based on plot evidence.

• Mala, aka Kripik (uncredited) → Iva (uncredited) (Family Husband) — Mala marries Iva to help care for his children.
• Mala, aka Kripik (uncredited) → Aba, Mala's first wife (uncredited) (Family Husband) — Mala and Aba are married with two children.

Story Dynamics

Alliances, conflicts, and narrative interactions that evolve throughout the story.

• Mala, aka Kripik (uncredited) → Constable Balk (uncredited) (Conflict Pursuer) — Balk pursues Kripik alongside Hunt.
• Captain (uncredited) → Captain's Mate (uncredited) (Conflict Disgusted Associate) — The mate is morally opposed to the captain's actions.
• Mala, aka Kripik (uncredited) → Inspector White (uncredited) (Conflict Oppressor) — Inspector White imposes harsh rules and chains Kripik.
• Mala, aka Kripik (uncredited) → Sergeant Hunt (uncredited) (Alliance Rescuer) — Kripik saves Hunt and Balk, leading to mutual respect.
• Sergeant Hunt (uncredited) → Constable Balk (uncredited) (Alliance Partner) — Hunt and Balk work together as Mountie partners.
• Captain's Mate (uncredited) → Aba, Mala's first wife (uncredited) (Conflict Killer) — The mate accidentally kills Aba while hunting.
• Captain (uncredited) → Aba, Mala's first wife (uncredited) (Conflict Assailant) — The captain sexually assaults Aba.
• Mala, aka Kripik (uncredited) → Captain (uncredited) (Conflict Archenemy) — Mala kills the captain in revenge for Aba's death.

Story Analysis

The story follows an Arctic family's struggle against exploitation, grief, colonial law, and the unforgiving environment.

Plot Progression

1. Trade and Violation — A village community encounters traders near Tjaranak Inlet while seeking rifles and manufactured goods. Exploitation aboard the trading ship transforms a commercial journey into a personal catastrophe...
2. Whale Hunt Tragedy — The hunters conduct a successful bowhead whale hunt and butcher the carcass. Afterward, violence aboard the ship leads to sexual assault, a fatal misidentification, and revenge.
3. Grief and Renewal — The bereaved man returns to hunting and struggles with grief. Dance, prayer, a new name, and changing domestic relationships provide a fragile form of renewal.
4. Law in the Arctic — Years later, a Canadian police post seeks to enforce colonial law and arrest the man for the ship officer's death. The search exposes both legal pressure and the earlier abuses committed by traders.
5. Flight Across the Ice — Confinement threatens a starving family, forcing a desperate escape through blizzard conditions. After rescue, pursuit ends with an ice-floe escape and an uncertain journey home.