Sherman Alexie elaborates on his views of many themes through the experiences of Arnold Spirit in “The Absolutely True Diary Of a Part-Time Indian”. Creating a unique situation Alexie enables himself to touch particularly on the themes of identity and poverty, Arnold struggles through two different lives, the one at the reservation (home) and the one at school he struggles to find himself. After much turmoil in his classroom, his teacher suggests Arnold transfer to the all-white school in the neighboring town. Through the situations of Junior’s life, Alexie uses the setting, symbolism, and tone to describe his views on identity and poverty. Very efficiently Alexie choose uses the setting of the book to be in Wellpinit And Reardan, WA. …show more content…
He puts it likes this “ Back on the [reservation], I was a decent player, I guess. A rebounder and a guy who could run up and down the floor without tripping.” (Alexie__)He continues to tell the reader how he lacked confidence playing basketball at the reservation, and was not expected to be good so he wasn’t. When he went to school, it was different “something magical happened to me when I went to Reardan… my coach and the other players wanted me to be good. They needed me to be good. They expected me to be good. And so I became good.” (Alexie__) When Arnold went to Reardan, his perspective on basketball was changed. Through his coach and teammates made him a star by just believing in him. Alexie shows how believing in people can be a significant role in developing people 's individuality and in this case, he shows this trough Arnold and basketball in a very realistic and convincing way. He makes the reader question themselves and how they have treated others who may be like Arnold. One pivotal scene at the beginning of the novel ends up with Junior throwing his math book at his teacher. He found out that the very same math book he was issued turned out to be the same one his mom used, this infuriated Junior. He felt that part of the reason the Indians on the …show more content…
The first tone is a humorous one; in many situations Arnold his very funny in his diary. He tells jokes often and usually is very straight forward and blunt in his comedy, and this makes the reader relate to Arnold. For example “I grabbed my book and opened it up. I wanted to smell it. Heck, I wanted to kiss it. Yes, kiss it. That 's right, I am a book kisser. Maybe that 's perverted, or maybe it 's just romantic and highly intelligent.” (Alexie__) His word tone here is very conservational and makes you feel like you know Arnold. Alexie does this to be able to explore different topics that would not be effective using another character. The second tone is hopeful. The entire book is about Arnold’s struggle to fight through poverty and find his identity, and every step of the way no matter how dark it can get for the teenager there seems always to be a glimmer of hope. After Arnold went to the new school he meets a girl in a bad situation and tells her “If you let people into your life a little bit, they can be pretty damn amazing,” (Alexie__) and despite no one to this point in Arnold 's life has been amazing. Arnold has come to this realization with very little experience. Alexia can present a character who breaks free of poverty with still maintaining his roots to his family. Sherman Alexie paints an incredible story
Sherman Alexie makes it clear in The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian that Native Americans believe that they are in no control of their financial situation. As a result of believing this, Native Americans will not try to overcome being in poverty. This creates an infinite circle of impoverishment. The main character of the novel, Junior, makes the hardships of being in poverty clear in this statement:
Picture yourself in a town where you are underprivileged and sometimes miss a meal. In the novel, “The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian,” Sherman Alexie wrote the book to show hardships that Native Americans face today. Alexie shows us hardships such as poverty, alcoholism and education. In the novel, Junior goes against the odds to go to an all white school to get a better education to have a better life
Alexie’s purpose is to communicate to the reader not to believe everything you read. He wants us to question and think deeply whatever we read so far. Alexie does this through the details of his story. It’s the details that separate the real writer from the fake. Alexie shows he is the true writer because he talks about personal aspects of his like on the Spokane Indian reservation. Alexie writes “my story, which features an autobiographical character named Thomas Builds-the fire who suffers a brain injury at birth and experience visionary seizures into his adulthood”. The details that Alexie uses to communicate his personal knowledge of a specific situation. His diction and phrasing speaks to understand the people that he was telling the
“In any moment of decision, the best thing you can do is the right thing, the next best thing is the wrong thing, and the worst thing you can do is nothing” ("Theodore Roosevelt" Xplore Inc). This is not the first occasion where he encounters a bad experience at Reardan and demonstrates that he ultimately volunteers to sacrifice himself as a scapegoat because he does not leave. To finish off, peers at Junior’s new school find many ways to identify his flaws and are remarkably rude and judgmental. In fact, a classmate at Junior’s school yells, “Did you know that Indians are living proof that niggers fuck buffalo” (Alexie 52)? Thankfully, Junior defends himself by punching his classmate, Roger, in the face, but feels very guilty afterwards (Alexie 52). Despite that Roger is white, seven feet tall and three hundred pounds, he does not intimidate Junior and is horribly racist (Alexie 52). These kids give Junior a very difficult time, which justifies all the reasons to return. In summary, it is essential for Junior to transfer back because he perceives to be a disgusting creature that meanders around the halls of Reardan by teachers, adults and his
He goes through the struggles of deciding who he wants to be and who he is. He lived on a reservation with his family and attended the school there. He decided one day the only way he would go anywhere in life was if he were to attend Reardan, an all-white school. Here, Junior was forced to find who he really was. Junior experienced more struggles and tragedies than any white student at this school. He had to fight through the isolation he first experienced to building up the courage to play in a basketball championship. I believe that every event Junior wrote about throughout the novel had an important purpose, and even more importantly, could be related to sociology. As I read the novel, I constantly thought about questions such as the following: What importance does he have to write about this? Could I relate this to my life? Who is Alexie’s audience? Could anyone read this novel and learn something from it? By the time I completed the novel, I could answer all of these questions without a
Alexie begins the essay by telling the audience some background information about himself and his family. He tells of how they lived on an Indian Reservation and survived on “a combination of irregular paychecks, hope, fear and government surplus food.” (Page 1, para. 1) Right from the start, Alexie grabs the emotions of his audience. Alexie then goes on to talk of his father and how because of his love for his father, he developed a love for reading. “My father loved books, and since I loved my father with an aching devotion, I decided to love books as well.” (Page 1, para. 2) He talks of how he taught himself to read and that because of the books he began to thirst for more knowledge. Alexie says that once he learned to read, he began to advance quickly in his schooling. However, because of his thirst for knowledge, he got into much trouble. “A smart Indian was a dangerous person, widely feared and ridiculed by Indians and non-Indians alike.” (Page 2, para. 6) This statement is one of the most powerful statements in the entire essay. The reason for this being that Alexie knows that trouble will come but he was not going to let it ...
The Absolutely True Diary of a Part Time Indian is a first person narrative written by Sherman Alexie in 2007. It is a story about hope and how hard life can be when it leaves and takes you on a journey of both heart rendering and also uplifting moments. The novel is written in diary form to give the reader a direct insight to Junior’s life and his daily struggles. It also uses humour to soften the tough and emotional story and cartoons drawn by Junior because he believes “words are to limited” (pg. 5) The story is one that is funny and very relatable to many people in different ways. It could relate to someone of another race who is struggling with discrimination or poverty, or even teenagers who are finding it hard to fit in at school. Junior describes himself as a lanky weirdo, with an overly large head, too many teeth, a lisp and goofy glasses who gets beaten up daily. He comes from a very poor family with parents who are alcoholics and feels like he will never quite fit in. Race, poverty, discrimination and self-esteem are all themes that are present throughout this novel and play a role in Juniors life.
The title of the novel, The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-time Indian written by Sherman Alexie tells it like it is. The story addresses the journey of Arnold Spirit (Junior) who faces physical, social, emotional and psychological changes in the world of poverty and how he finds the inner strength in himself to follow his dreams. Arnold Spirit is born in the Spokane Indian reservation – the "rez" located in Wellpinit suffering from too much cerebral fluid in his brain which results to brain damage. Throughout the novel, Sherman Alexie effectively exhibits how various relevant people and the Reservation impact Arnold's life positively by showing him that at the end of very dark tunnel there is light. The Spokane Reservation and what the Native
Sherman Alexie's comic novel, The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, follows Junior, a 14 year old Indian boy, who lives on a Spokane Indian Reservation with his two parents and his sister, Mary. Junior, a young cartoonist, was unfortunately born with many medical issues and is picked on by many people on the Rez, except his best friend Rowdy. At first, he seems to be this shy, little boy who would do anything to not be made fun of. The novel shows him getting beat, teased and tormented on his Reservation. Eventually, he takes a stand in his life and decides to better his education by enrolling in an all white school in Reardan. Despite being called a traitor by his own kind, Junior continues to live a double life, balancing both
This book, The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, written by Sherman Alexie, is about a young Indian boy living on a reservation. This boy experiences many things in his life. Just a few being, changing schools, losing family members, and potentially losing a best friend. He experiences a lot of change and some of it is are pretty painful.
As one develops maturity, the valuable mentor and mentee relationship is critical for the mentee to overcome barriers and to move towards success. In the novel The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, Sherman Alexie proficiently portrays the integral role of mentors and their influence that allows the protagonist to prosper and mature. First, Junior’s parents mentor Junior through their immense love by making sacrifices to allow Junior’s life to blossom with hope. Next, Mr. P, Junior’s teacher directs Junior towards hope through his forgiveness. Furthermore, during Junior’s toughest times at Reardan, Junior’s coach teaches Junior about the rewards of life with perseverance through his encouragement. Thus, in the novel The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie, Junior’s mentors are instrumental to Junior overcoming his struggles through their unconditional love, forgiveness and encouragement, ultimately assuring his success.
Alexie discusses bullying, abuse and racism. Junior deals with bullying everyday in the novel. Racism is tied into that also. Many people at Junior’s new school bullied him because he was indian. He dealt with that not only there but everywhere outside of the reservation. Sherman Alexie wrote about the reason behind his books in his letter responding to Ms. Gurdon’s article, “now I write books for teenagers because I vividly remember what it felt like to be a teen facing everyday and epic dangers.” (Alexie, par. 27). He narrates these stories to relate to teenagers and their struggles.
Alexie Sherman, a boy under an Indian Reservation that suffers from bullying since the 1st grade, who would have a hard time being around white people and even Indian boys. US Government provided him glasses, accommodation, and alimentation. Alexie chose to use the title "Indian Education" in an effort to express his internalized feelings towards the Native American education system and the way he grew up. He uses short stories separated by the different grades from first grade to twelfth grade to give an idea of what his life was like. He seemed to have grown up in a world surrounded by racism, discrimination, and bullying. This leads on to why he chose not to use the term Native American. He used the term "Indian" to generate negative connotations
Adjusting to another culture is a difficult concept, especially for children in their school classrooms. In Sherman Alexie’s, “Indian Education,” he discusses the different stages of a Native Americans childhood compared to his white counterparts. He is describing the schooling of a child, Victor, in an American Indian reservation, grade by grade. He uses a few different examples of satire and irony, in which could be viewed in completely different ways, expressing different feelings to the reader. Racism and bullying are both present throughout this essay between Indians and Americans. The Indian Americans have the stereotype of being unsuccessful and always being those that are left behind. Through Alexie’s negativity and humor in his essay, it is evident that he faces many issues and is very frustrated growing up as an American Indian. Growing up, Alexie faces discrimination from white people, who he portrays as evil in every way, to show that his childhood was filled with anger, fear, and sorrow.
In conclusion, Sherman Alexie created a story to demonstrate the stereotypes people have created for Native Americans. The author is able to do this by creating characters that present both the negative and positive stereotypes that have been given to Native Americans. Alexie has a Native American background. By writing a short story that depicts the life of an Indian, the reader also gets a glimpse of the stereotypes encountered by Alexie. From this short story readers are able to learn the importance of having an identity while also seeing how stereotypes are used by many people. In the end of the story, both Victor and Thomas are able to have an understanding of each other as the can finally relate with each other through Victor's father.