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Topics of the absolutely true diary of a part time indian
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Topics of the absolutely true diary of a part time indian
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The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian
Opening Paragraph
“We know who we are, but not who we may be.” This William Shakespeare quote perfectly suits the prevalent theme in The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian. Written by Sherman Alexie, The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian is a novel about a First Nations teenage boy whose life changes when he chooses to attend a school outside of the reservation he lives on with his family. He is determined to receive a better education than the school on the reservation can offer so he transfers to Reardan, a ¨white¨ school twenty two miles away. In this novel, Sherman Alexie uses the character Arnold Spirit to show that the true identity of a person emerges once they step outside of their
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comfort zone. Throughout the story, the author displays how poverty, destiny, and the idea of belonging to different communities all play a hand in helping Arnold discover his identity. First Body Paragraph Poverty can have a huge effect on one's sense of identity and their lives in general. For example, Arnold’s parents had huge potential when they were young but, due to lack of money and support, they were never able to realize their dreams and goals. Arnold’s mother could easily have been a college professor and Arnold’s father had the skills to become a professional musician. But they just never got the chance. Seeing this fate to be true to all the other people on the reservation, Arnold comments that “We reservation Indians don’t get to realize our dreams. (...) We’re just poor. That’s all we are” (13). Determined not to walk into the same fate as his parents, Arnold decides that staying on the reservation forever won’t allow him to attain the future he seeks. Since the school on the reservation is only allowing him to receive a subpar education, he makes the decision to go to the “rich white school” that is outside of the reservation. It seemed that leaving was hard for Arnold, but staying would have been even harder. Arnold took the more difficult route and had to step out of his comfort zone but, in the end, it was all worth it. Second Body Paragraph “A person often meets his destiny on the road he took to avoid it” (Jean de La Fontaine). Once Arnold transfers to Reardan, he tries out for the basketball team and eventually gets accepted onto it. Coincidentally, Reardens first away game is being hosted by Wellpinit (the school Arnold used to attend on the reservation). Arnold dreads attending this game for days, and for valid reasons. First of all, Arnold’s best friend (Rowdy) will be playing for Wellpinit. Rowdy thinks Arnold is a traitor for leaving to go to the “white school” and, as a result, is very angry with him. Furthermore, Arnold is afraid of his two lives colliding. On one side of his life, he lives on the reservation and goes to First Nations ceremonies with his family. On the other side of Arnold’s life, he goes to a wealthy school in which he is the only First Nations person. He describes this dilemma perfectly when he says ¨I woke up on the reservation as an Indian, and somewhere on the road to Reardan, I became something less than Indian. And once I arrived at Reardan, I became something less than less than less than Indian” (32). Ultimately, the road Arnold took to avoid his destiny was his choice to transfer to Reardan and when he plays against the Wellpinit team, he sees what his destiny could have been if he had stayed. Going from Reardan (which has a nice gym with polished floors) back to Wellpinit (whose gym could collapse at any given moment) is a turning point in Arnold’s journey to discover who he really is. Regardless of all this stress, Arnold plays a superb game. This experience attests to Arnold’s ever growing strong sense of identity. Third Body Paragraph Communities, no matter how small, give us strength.
Near the end of the novel, Arnold has a huge realization. He has spent the last year confused about his identity, about who he truly is. He says that “I realized that, sure, I was a Spokane Indian. I belonged to that tribe. But I also belonged to the tribe of American immigrants. And to the tribe of basketball players. And to the tribe of bookworms.(...)And the tribe of tortilla chips-and-salsa lovers. And the tribe of poverty. And the tribe of funeral-goers. And the tribe of beloved sons. And the tribe of boys who really missed their best friends. It was a huge realization. And that's when I knew that I was going to be okay. (217)” Arnold finds it so comforting, so empowering, to be a part of all these different communities. Every little part of his personality, every little part of who he is, equates to a “tribe” he belongs to. This is a powerful epiphany because Arnold finally feels at peace with who he is. Though his life has two different “sides” his life is still whole. Pushing himself to leave the reservation school was the best thing he could have done for himself because by doing so, he found out lots about himself and a lot about others as
well. Conclusion Throughout the story, Arnold to demonstrates that the true identity of a person can only be shown once they decide to step outside of their comfort zone. He has shown that poverty can affect someone’s sense of identity greatly and that you can need to face your destiny on the path you took to get away from it. Also, Arnold has also shown that belonging to a community is, in itself, a great sense of identity. In the end, Arnold’s journey shows that the true identity of a person can only come to light if they choose to step out of their comfort zone. Success is always just over the line of where your comfort zone ends so for your life to truly begin, a leap of faith must be taken.
Indian culture has been disappearing for centuries since the Native Americans were forced to migrate from their original homes. In the book, The Absolutely True Diary of A Part-Time Indian, an Indian boy displays how to escape the poverty of his Indian Reservation by going to a wealthy white school, as well as keeping his Indian Culture alive when living on the reservation. The Native American boy Arnold is able to show toughness, courageousness and the capability to overcome obstacles, by illustrating comics and playing basketball. For Arnold, drawing comics and playing basketball is a way to build his character and self-esteem. Without the freedom in writing comics and the self-confidence builder in playing basketball, Arnold would act
Encountering struggles in life defines one’s character and speaks volumes about their strength, ambition, and flexibility. Through struggles, sacrifice, and tragedy, Junior in The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, by Sherman Alexie, adapts to survive difficult situations and faces his problems head-on. As he makes life changing decisions, adapts to an unfamiliar culture, and finds himself amongst misery and heartbreak, Junior demonstrates resilience to overcome adversity and struggles.
In the fictional story, The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian written by Sherman Alexie, a Native American author, describes the problems of a teenager living between two different cultures; one Native American, and the other white. Alexie uses figurative language elements to convince teenagers to be aware and support people living between two worlds in The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian. By using these literary elements, Sherman Alexie guides the audience to respond emotionally and act upon about the book’s message. Throughout the story, Alexie uses juxtaposition to show the differences between the two worlds the protagonist lives in.
Can you imagine growing up on a reservation full of people with no hope? The character Arnold in the book The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie did. In the beginning of the book, Arnold was a hopeless Native American living on a hopeless reservation. In the middle of the book, Arnold leaves the reservation and finds out that his sister left too.
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
Have you ever wanted something really badly, but couldn’t afford it? This is a common occurrence, but what about food? Have you ever went to be hungry because you couldn’t afford to eat? Unfortunately, Junior, the main character in the book, The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, felt exactly this way for food. Even though Junior didn’t have as many resources as the other “white kids,” he still chose to look at the positives. This novel shows that even in times of great hardship, people can still choose to have hope and look at the good in their lives.
Growing up on a reservation where failing was welcomed and even somewhat encouraged, Alexie was pressured to conform to the stereotype and be just another average Indian. Instead, he refused to listen to anyone telling him how to act, and pursued his own interests in reading and writing at a young age. He looks back on his childhood, explaining about himself, “If he'd been anything but an Indian boy living on the reservation, he might have been called a prodigy. But he is an Indian boy living on the reservation and is simply an oddity” (17). Alexie compares the life and treatment of an Indian to life as a more privileged child. This side-by-side comparison furthers his point that
Establishing an identity has been called one of the most important milestones of adolescent development (Ruffin, 2009). Additionally, a central part of identity development includes ethnic identity (ACT for Youth, 2002). While some teens search for cultural identity within a smaller community, others are trying to find their place in the majority culture. (Bucher and Hinton, 2010)The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian chronicles Junior’s journey to discovery of self. As with many developing teens, he finds himself spanning multiple identities and trying to figure out where he belongs. “Traveling between Reardan and Wellpinit, between the little white town and the reservation, I always felt like a stranger. I was half Indian in one place and half white in the other” (p.118). On the reservation, he was shunned for leaving to go to a white school. At Reardon, the only other Indian was the school mascot, leaving Junior to question his decision to attend school he felt he didn’t deserve. Teens grappling with bicultural identities can relate to Junior’s questions of belonging. Not only is Junior dealing with the struggle between white vs. Indian identities, but with smaller peer group identities as well. In Wellpinit, Junior is th...
“The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian” is a humorous and intuitive novel written by Sherman Alexie. The reader gets an insight into the everyday life of a fourteen year old hydrocephalic Indian boy named Arnold Spirit, also referred to as Junior Spirit. He is living on the Spokane Indian reservation and is seen as an outcast by all the other Indians, due to his medical condition. Against all odds Arnold expands his hope, leaves his school on the reservation and faces new obstacles to obtain a more promising future at a school off the reservation. The novel is told through Arnold’s voice, thoughts, actions and experiences. Alexie incorporates one point of view, different themes and settings, such as poverty, friendship, Spokane and Reardan within Arnold’s journey to illustrate the different hardships he must overcome to gain a higher education.
The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie is a novel about Arnold Spirit (Junior), a boy from the Spokane Indian Reservation who decides to attend high school outside the reservation in order to have a better future. During that first year at Reardan High School, Arnold has to find his place at his all-white school, cope with his best friend Rowdy and most of his tribe disowning him, and endure the deaths of his grandmother, his father’s best friend, and his sister. Alexie touches upon issues of identity, otherness, alcoholism, death, and poverty in order to stay true to his characters and the cultures within the story. Through the identification of the role of the self, identity, and social behavior within the book, the reader can understand Arnold’s story to a greater depth.
“I’m never going to act like my mother!” These words are increasingly common and yet unavoidable. Why is it that as children, we are able to point out every flaw in our parents, but as we grow up, we recognize that we are repeating the same mistakes we observed? The answer is generational curses: un-cleansed iniquities that increase in strength from one generation to the next, affecting the members of that family and all who come into relationship with that family (Hickey 13). Marilyn Hickey, a Christian author, explains how this biblically rooted cycle is never ending when she says, “Each generation adds to the overall iniquity, further weakening the resistance of the next generation to sin” (21, 22). In other words, if your parents mess up you are now susceptible to making the same mistakes, and are most likely going to pass those mistakes to your children. In The Absolute True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, Sherman Alexie shows the beauty of hope in the presence of a generational curse. Even though the elders are the ones who produce the curses, they are also the ones who attempt to break Junior from their bond forming mistakes. The curses that Arnold’s elders imprint on him lead him to break out of his cultural bonds and improve himself as a developing young man.
Ever wondered what gets readers hooked on a book? In “The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian” by Sherman Alexie, the authors have many ways to grab the reader's attention by using many techniques from humor to emotional and traumatic suspense. In the book, the main character named Junior is an Indian boy growing up on a reservation. By growing up on the reservation junior makes a choice to leave the reservation and go to a white school which gives Junior obstacles in his life. There are many obstacles that happen even before Junior decided to go to another path with his life.
Every day, people live their lives without deep thought about the health and wellness of their community. When faced with harsh living conditions or situations, it is easy to become stuck in a negative mentality which doesn’t allow room for positive thoughts in order to create positive change. In The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie, it explores the areas and factors of public health that ordinary people may or may not be aware of. The main character in the story, Junior, says “There’s always time to change your life”, a statement that can be true for anyone who is still young, has a decent amount of support, and hope to pull them through tough situations.
Stereotypes are a dangerous thing. Within today's culture, it is very easy to get wrapped up in a single story mindset and a power struggle, only resulting in stereotypes and generalizations being created about different cultures. A single story is described by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie as a story of one aspect of a single person’s life, used as a basis for how everyone within that culture lives all of the time. This idea of a single story shows up all over the place, including in the book Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexi. The kids at Reardan School judge the main character, Arnold Spirit Junior, on his first day attending a school that wasn’t on the Indian reservation.
Imagine walking 22 miles to school every single day. The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian is a book by Sherman Alexie following the life of Arnold, also known as Junior, and his struggles as a poor Native American boy going to a wealthy white school. Being poor throws challenges at Arnold in and outside of school, and he must hold onto hope, new friends, and perseverance to escape the cycle of poverty.