Importance Of Grandmother Spirit In 'The Absolutely True Diary Of A Part-Time Indian'

936 Words2 Pages

According to an unknown author, “A grandmother is a little bit parent, a little bit teacher, and a little bit best friend.” This statement proves to be a reality for the main character in The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, written by Sherman Alexie. In this book, Arnold, (also known as Junior), has a grandmother called, Grandmother Spirit, who shapes his life indefinitely despite being seen rarely throughout the book. Grandmother Spirit is a significant presence in The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, as she functions as both a teacher and an example to follow for Junior, affecting his development and thus creating many themes. First and foremost, Junior’s grandmother is an incredible teacher for him from the very …show more content…

An example of her passing wisdom on to Junior can be seen after Junior gets into a fight with Roger, an older boy who goes to Reardan High School with him. Junior was confused to as why Roger did not hit him back during their fight, and Grandmother Spirit offered him a wise piece of advice, saying, “‘I think it means he respects you’” (Alexie 68). She took a minute to think before expressing her opinion, putting thought into her views before sharing them with her grandson.When Junior starts to doubt her, she says, “‘...You see, you men and boys are like packs of wild dogs. This giant boy is the alpha male of the school, and you’re the new dog, so he pushed you around a bit to see how tough you are’” (68). Her words turn out to be true when the next day at school, Roger compliments Junior before leaving him alone. Grandmother Spirit’s ideas about why Roger did not continue the fight led Junior to eventually seek out a friendship with Roger, which eventually leads to them being close enough for Roger to lend Junior money, give him rides home, and play on the same basketball team. Junior’s …show more content…

She teaches Junior how to turn the other cheek and excuse the habits of others that they cannot control, yet also how to avoid those issues in his own life. An example of this would be following the motif of alcoholism in this book. Many residents of the Spokane Indian reservation are alcoholics, including Junior’s father, but Grandmother Spirit never drank in her entire life. She explained it by saying, “‘ Drinking would shut down my seeing and my hearing and my feeling...Why would I want to be in the world if I couldn’t touch the world with all of my senses intact?’” (158). Grandmother Spirit uses herself as an example for Junior to follow; she does not want him to become dependent on alcohol like so many other people on the reservation. This also affects his development, as he becomes weary of alcohol. Junior’s grandmother also manages to impact Junior with her unfortunate passing towards the end of the book, when she is struck by a car with a person under the influence at the wheel. A doctor at the hospital talks about her last words by saying, “‘She said, ‘Forgive him’...I think she was referring to the drunk driver who killed her’” (157). Grandmother Spirit had forgiven the man who took her life from her, and wanted her family, (including Junior), to do the same. Her influence as a whole in his

Open Document