Arnold Junior Character Analysis

A father can have the greatest impact on his son, acting as a role- model and has a strong influence. Arnold Junior was named after his father who took a larger part in his life. If somebody read this book once and just skimmed through it, they would probably just think of his father as a crazy alcoholic who sometimes forgot about his son. There was more of a role that Junior’s father played in the book. The small details Sherman Alexie expressed really helped us see the impact Junior’s father had on him. For example, Junior wore his father’s suit to the Reardon dance, and that made him feel more confident and better about himself. In the book, there is this theme about how the young and the old have their own different takes on hope.

There is a point in the book where Junior was talking about his father and said, “Whenever my father isn’t off on a drinking binge, he spends most of his time in his bedroom, alone, watching TV. He mostly watches basketball. He never minds if I go in there and watch games with him. But we never talk much. We just sit there quietly and watch the game's. My dad doesn’t even cheer for his favorite teams or players. He doesn’t react much to the game's at all. I suppose he is depressed.” This quote helps us learn about how Juniors father didn’t have much knowledge in the topic of basketball, and no hope for the future. He grew up thinking that his race affected his purpose in the world and his future as an Indian individual. The way Juniors father and him can exchange I love you’s and how just a few sentences from his father can make him feel stronger and better about himself is truly astonishing. It really shows the impact that Juniors father has on his son. Junior has a disadvantage in the world because of his race and background. I still believe that Junior wouldn’t have evolved from a small, unconfident Indian boy to a still challenged, but stronger without his father and his small memories that he had with his father.

When you think of somebody, there are certain things that help you distinct them from other people.

Maybe it is their appearance, or special memories that you’ve had with them. If I was put into Arnolds shoes and had to think about my father, I would think about the moments where I learned a lesson from my father. For example, on page 55, there is a small moment that made a big difference in the relationship between Junior and his father. Arnold’s father was trying to prepare his son for his new begining at Reardan High School. Arnold’s father quotes, “Those ;;;≥white people aren’t better than you. This is a great thing. You’re so brave. You’re a warrior.” This was a special and very important memory in the text. Arnold's dad had always been unhopeful, and these small phrases made a big difference in his character. It also benefited Arnold and helped him boost his confidence. Aold definitely expressed that he knew his dad didn’t mean what he said, but the fact that he did say those special, motivating words was the turning point in that small car pep talk. . It really helped him focus on himself and the people who love him. Arnold then quoted, “I felt stronger so I stepped out of the car and walked towards the door.” Junior wouldn’t of been the character he was at the end of the book if it wasn’t for that small conversation he had with his

father.

An evolution is a gradual development of something, or somebody. Throughout the book, Junior’s father evolved from an unhopeful alcoholic to a loving father who learned to have hope for his son and his son’s future. In the beginning of the book, when Junior’s very good friend Oscar had to be killed due to a severe sickness. Junior quoted,” I wanted to punch my dad in the face. I wanted to punch him in the nose and make him bleed. I wanted to punch him in the eye and make him blind. I wanted to kick im in the balls and make him pass out. Dad just looked down at me with the saddest look in his eyes. He was crying. He looked weak.” Junior’s father was completely hopeless, and as Junior said, weak. If you can picture your father looking down on you, crying, and not knowing what to do you would feel pretty discouraged and disappointed. Junior’s father came into the book introduced as a weak and unhopeful parent. Then there was a moment towards the end of the book where Junior was waiting for his father to pick him up. Junior quotes, "I prayed to God that my father would come up driving in his old car. Please God, don’t kill my daddy. Ten, fifteen, twenty, thirty minutes went by. I was freezing. My hands and feet were big blocks of ice. My ears were burning cold. Oh man, I was a absolutely convinced that my father was dead, too. It had been too long. And just when I’d thought I’d start screaming, and run around like a crazy man, my father showed up. I started laughing. I was so relieved, so happy, that I LAUGHED. And I couldn’t stop laughing. “ “Junior,” he said. “What’s wrong with you?”
“You’re alive!” “But your sister-,” he said. “I know I know,” I said. “She’s dead, but you’re alive. You’re still alive!” This long quote really helped show how Junior and his father’s relationship evolved over the course of the book. After Eugene died, then his grandmother, and then his sister, Junior felt that his father was dead. That amount of joy and happiness Junior displayed when he saw his father’s car approach Reardan was the point where their love for one another was shown. Junior was so happy to see his father and to see him alive and Sherman Alexie really showed how much Junior loved his father just in that small moment. I think that Junior’s father as a character overall didn’t evolve as much as Junior and his father’s relationship did throughout the book. Junior and his father had a strong bond and they both needed each other in their daily lives. I think that the beginning of the book showed Junior and his father as two different people and not how they connect together, but throughout the book Alexie incorporated little moments where they learned a lesson, and expressed their love for one another.

After I read the book, I thought that we were just going to write this essay and be done with the whole thing. However, we worked on a project that expressed our artistic sides and got into the perspective of another character in the book. I really enjoyed creating cartoons about Junior’s dad because I think that I expressed his hopeful and unhopeful sides very well. It helped me take a closer look into the book and deeper into Junior’s father's character overall. I went into the project thinking that he was an important character, but not as important as I learned. When I looked into each chapter that involved Junior’s dad more closely, I payed attention to the things that he did for Junior and how Junior reacted to those things. I learned about Junior and his father’s bond and brought that to the thought of how you may have friends, or special ones who you care so much about that might leave you. But your family are the only people who are always going to be there no matter what and you cannot get rid of them. I believe that Junior wouldn’t of evolved throughout the book without his father by his side. I think that the importance of family was a strong theme throughout this book and it was the core that brought Junior and his father closer.