of 2005, the city of Seattle faced an urgent problem. The Alaskan Way Viaduct, an inner city elevated highway which carried over one hundred thousand cars and trucks every day, was beginning to show signs of structural failure. The 2001 Nisqually earthquake had put visible cracks into its concrete façade and it had started to sink further into the ground. On March 2, 2006, the Seattle Times ran a troubling editorial: “Shut Down the Viaduct,” read its headline. The article, written by several Seattle
Can it be Redeemed? Sherman Alexie’s short story “What You Pawn I Will Redeem” brings to light some of the issues that afflict the Native American society. Consequently, he manages to illustrate these issues through the twenty-four hour behaviors of the protagonist and the events that take place in his mission to recuperate his long-lost grandmother’s ceremonial regalia. The social issues that the author presents are not individual or stagnant; hence, are all part of a vicious cycle that can be