Mae "Ma" Mires in Indian Burial Ground – Addiction, Family, and Denial

Overview

Mae "Ma" Mires is the mother of Louie and Lula and the grandmother of Noemi in Nick Medina's novel Indian Burial Ground. Her severe alcoholism forms a central thread in the story, illustrating how addiction ravages both the individual and the family. While Ma works a night shift at Roscoe's Get 'n' Go, her true motivation is not to support her household but to feed her dependency. Her decline is marked by car crashes, bitter accusations, and an increasing emotional distance from everyone around her. Ma's character embodies the novel's exploration of generational trauma and the ways denial can prevent healing.

For a full overview of the book, see the Indian Burial Ground book page.

Plot Role

Ma's addiction creates a constant burden for her children, particularly Louie, who takes on a caretaking role far beyond his years. Her reckless driving results in two crashes, one of which leaves her bloody and disoriented. Louie and Grandpa Joe repeatedly try to intervene, but Ma rejects help, choosing alcohol over family stability. Her behavior amplifies the tension on the reservation, where other mysterious events—such as grave robbing and strange occurrences at wakes—mirror the decay happening inside the Mires household. Ma's refusal to confront her addiction forces Louie to make difficult decisions about his own future and the safety of Noemi.

Motivations and Traits

Ma's primary motivation is obtaining alcohol. Though she claims to work for money, Louie eventually realizes that her night shifts at the gas station mini-mart exist solely to buy beer (Chapter 31). She lives in deep denial, insisting that the tribal bingo hall will "fix everything" (Chapter 31). This belief allows her to deflect responsibility onto others, especially Grandpa Joe, whom she accuses of past abandonment (Chapter 41). Ma also displays a volatile temper: when Louie tries to take her brown paper bag of beer, she slaps him across the face (Chapter 31). Yet she is not entirely without vulnerability. In a rare moment, she tells Louie "I'm tired" and allows him to hold her while he cries (Chapter 31). These glimpses of fragility make her addiction even more tragic but do not lead to lasting change.

Chronological Arc

Ma is introduced as a tired nightshift worker who sleeps during the day. Louie assumes she is merely exhausted, but as the story progresses, he sees the truth. After crashing her truck into an oak tree on Old River Road, Ma walks home covered in blood, still clutching a bag of alcohol (Chapter 31). Grandpa Joe tends to her wounds and warns her to stop. At a family dinner, Ma lashes out at Grandpa, revealing years of resentment (Chapter 41). Later, she slaps Louie when he attempts to confiscate her beer. Her addiction worsens: she becomes unresponsive to Noemi's attempts to show her artwork (Chapter 47) and leaves for work each night without a word of care. By the novel's end, Ma's physical and emotional decline is complete, though the exact outcome of her life is left to the ending explained page. Her death, referenced in the author's note, underscores the novel's addiction theme.

Relationships

Louie: Ma's eldest son bears the heaviest burden. He cooks, cleans, and watches Noemi while Ma drinks. Louie tries to connect with her, saying "I'm here" and hugging her, but she rarely reciprocates (Chapter 31). Her slap hurts him more than any physical blow.

Lula: Ma's daughter also struggles with her mother's addiction. During the dinner confrontation, Lula begs Ma to stay home, but Ma ignores her (Chapter 41). Lula later mocks Louie's supernatural fears, suggesting she copes through cynicism.

Grandpa Joe: Grandpa is the tribe's chairman and a moral anchor. Ma accuses him of abandoning her and her mother, claiming his neglect drove her to drink (Chapter 41). Grandpa does not deny it, instead urging Louie to stay because Ma "has been left before." Their relationship is defined by blame and failed reconciliation.

Noemi: Ma's granddaughter receives almost no affection. Noemi shows Ma a drawing of a kitten with purple eyes, but Ma only dips her head without comment (Chapter 47). This neglect reinforces the cycle of trauma that Noemi must later heal from.

Key Decisions and Consequences

• Choosing alcohol over family: Every night Ma walks to work to buy beer rather than spending time with her children. This decision leads to her physical decay and emotional isolation.
• Driving drunk: Ma crashes her truck twice. After the second crash, neighbor Mark Bishop threatens to shoot out her tires if he sees her driving drunk again (Chapter 33). Louie takes away her driving privileges.
• Refusing help: When Grandpa and Louie try to stage an intervention, Ma defiantly leaves for work. Her refusal to admit she needs help sends Louie into despair and forces him to consider leaving the trailer for his own well-being.
• Blaming Grandpa: By making Grandpa Joe the villain of her story, Ma absolves herself of responsibility. This choice poisons family relations and prevents any honest conversation about recovery.

Theme and Symbol Connections

Ma's arc ties directly to several core themes:

• Addiction and family trauma : Ma's alcoholism is both a symptom and cause of generational pain. Louie and Lula are forced to parent their mother.
• Grief and denial : Ma denies her alcoholism, projecting her pain onto the bingo hall and Grandpa. Her grief over past abandonment is never processed.
• Supernatural vs. rational : Ma's physical deterioration parallels the strange resurrections and grave disturbances. She becomes almost ghostlike—present but unreachable—blurring the line between natural decline and something darker.
• Cultural identity and tradition : Ma's addiction contrasts with Louie's commitment to telling the Takoda creation story to Noemi. She rejects tradition while her son tries to preserve it.
• Balance and evil : The novel suggests that imbalance in the family mirrors imbalance in the world. Ma's untreated addiction contributes to a spiritual as well as social disorder.

Symbols that attach to Ma include the brown paper bag (her constant companion), the blood on the steering wheel, and the broken windshield from her crash. Each marks a failure to protect herself or her family.

Questions and Answers

For more discussion, visit the questions and answers page.