Shell Shaker

Shakbatina is a Choctaw Inholahta, or peace maker, in the 18th century. She sacrifices herself to save her daughter and to preserve peace. However, Shakbatina is also realistic; she knows that violence cannot always be prevented and is sometimes necessary, as in the case of Redford/Red Shoes. Though Shakbatina is not the main protagonist of the novel, she is a guardian spirit watching over all other characters. It is her efforts, both when she is alive and in the afterlife, that eventually lead to peace and the reconciliation of the Choctaw people.

Shakbatina is a complex character; she is not an all-knowing, all wise stereotype. She admits that she was just as attracted to war as she was to peace, an impulse she began fighting when she was just a child. Furthermore, her efforts do not always work, especially at first. Koi Chitto notes, after the bone-picking ceremony in which he released Shakbatina’s spirit, that her spirit “does not know yet how to help us; she is still learning to be a spirit, and patience has never been her friend” (loc 3530-3541). This explains why it takes centuries for Shakbatina to corral Redford/Red Shoes’ spirit and reunite her people.