Flight Patterns

692 Words2 Pages

The story “Flight Patterns,” which was written by Sherman Alexie was about the severe problems people in this world have with profiling. It doesn’t matter if you’re White, Black, Indian, Spanish, rich, or even poor everyone does it. The one character I would like to focus on in this story is called William. William was the main character in the story “Flight Patterns,” he was of Indian descent. William was married to his wife who he loved dearly named Marie, and had a baby daughter named Grace. William’s attributes were described as a small dark Indian male, who had a ponytail and braids. He was a very well groomed man who loved his job as a salesman. As Sherman describes him,” William was obsessive about his mane, tying and retying his ponytail, knotting and reknotting his braids, experimenting with his shampoo and that conditioners “ (5). He was an Indian who didn’t smoke, drink, or eat processed sugar. He lifted weights three days a week, ran every day, and competed in four triathlons a year. William’s home and family were based in Seattle. William’s job as a salesman consisted of always leaving his family behind, and constantly going on business trips for weeks on end. William was the true definition of a workaholic. Sherman described, “He hated to leave, but he loved his work. He was a man, and men needed to work” (16). With him constantly leaving his family he knew he was an adequate husband, but he often wondered if he was a bad father to his child. Sherman describes, “During these mornings, he felt generic and violent, like some caveman leaving the fire to hunt animals in the cold and dark. Maybe his hands were smooth and clean, but he felt bloody” (26). These types of feelings led ... ... middle of paper ... ...cally speaking taxi drivers do not have degrees from Oxford, especially black taxi drivers. To Williams surprise he was actually very interested Fekadu’s life story. As Sherman describes, “William wondered how this poor man could be capable of such happiness, however temporary it was” (175). After taking that taxi ride William saw a true example of a lonely man without his family, and finally realized that he was going to do anything he could to ensure he wasn’t going to lose his. WORK CITED Alexia, Sherman. “Flight Patterns.” The Norton Introduction to Literature. Eds. Alison Booth and Kelly J. Mays. 10th ed. New York: Norton, 2010 Print. Works Cited Alexia, Sherman. “Flight Patterns.” The Norton Introduction to Literature. Eds. Alison Booth and Kelly J. Mays. 10th ed. New York: Norton, 2010 Print.F

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