Absolutely True Diary Of Part Time Indian Analysis

Generational grief is sorrow that passes on down generations and builds up over time. This anguish is visible in the book The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie. The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian is about a Native American teenager named Arnold Spirit Jr., also known as “Junior”. The book details Junior’s life on the reservation he is living on, which is Spokane Indian Reservation. As well as living a very troublesome life, he is born with hydrocephalus, which makes him smaller than a teenager his age should be. Hating the fact that even his education is effected by pennilessness of the Reservation, Junior leaves the public school he attends at and goes to a school outside the reservation, called Reardan High School. After that decision, death and despair follow his family around like a

He gives Junior a ride to school once on his motorcycle and is best friends with his dad. Sadly, Eugene is shot in the parking lot of a 7-11 in an argument over the last drink from a bottle of beer (Alexie 169). Just a couple weeks before that happened, Junior’s grandmother, whom everyone loved, was struck and killed by a drunk driver. Junior’s personal grief from these two incidents leads him into a depression which causes him to miss school and initiates suicidal thoughts. He slowly overcomes this personal grief by making lists of what his favorite foods are, favorite musicians, favorite books, favorite basketball players, and people who bring him the most joy. This also connects to reality, with its universal theme of personal grief. When people lose something important to them, like family members, pets or sacred belongings, they fall into a depression because of personal sorrow. The more significant or loved that person or thing is, the longer and more rigorous that unhappiness will be. A reason for generational grief is the loss of something