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The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-time Indian essay
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The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, by Sherman Alexie is a book about an American Indian teenager named Arnold Spirit Jr. He lives on an Indian Reservation, but chooses to transfer to a ‘white’ school named Reardan. It is a decision that gets him a lot of attention, but not in a good way, as even his best friend becomes his worst enemy. One lesson this novel teaches us is that going through difficult moments in life can really help you figure out your identity. One moment that really helps Arnold figure out his identity is when his sister dies. However, even after that happens, he still goes to school the next day. “How do we honor the drunken death of a young married couple? HEY, LET’S GET DRUNK! Okay listen, I’m not a cruel
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.
To conclude, in the book The Absolutely True Diary of A Part-Time Indian an Indian boy shows 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.
She uses her attractiveness to flirt with boys at the local restaurant behind their backs as a form of rebellion. She feels as though her family does not appreciate her; her father does not pay any attention to her and her mother constantly compares her to her sister, criticizing her every move and asking why she cares so much about her appearance. On one of her outings, she sees a boy who she vainly chooses to ignore. Later he shows up at her house posing as her friend, calling himself Arnold Friend, and talking to her as though he is another boy she flirts with down at the diner and pretending to be her age. She subtly flirts with him at first, only realizing the danger when it is too late.
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
Adolescents experience a developmental journey as they transition from child to adult, and in doing so are faced with many developmental milestones. Physical, cognitive, social and emotional changes are occurring during this tumultuous stage of life, and making sense of one’s self and identity becomes a priority. Sherman Alexie’s The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian addresses the challenges of adolescence in an engaging tale, but deals with minority communities and cultures as well.
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 entire novel is written from the point of view of the main character Arnold. The reader would feel as though they are having a conversation with a close friend and is then better able to relate and sympathize with Arnold’s struggles and accomplishments. For example, Arnold begins telling the reader his story by stating, “I was born with water on the brain.” (Alexie, 1) Explaining his medical condition at the beginning of the novel allows the reader to easily understand why Arnold may react differently to certain social situations.
Alexie, Sherman. The Absolute True Diary of a Part-Time Indian. New York: Hachette Book Group, 2007. Print.
Often at time’s society forces us to make choices we would rather not make, mainly because one is different or a different color. The Absolutely True Diary Of A Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie, is about how a teenage Indian who lives on Spokane reserve moves to a white school and gets shamed for being Indian, for making this decision his tribe has disowned him for leaving the rez and moving to the city. The main ideas are the rez, school, and family/friends. Jr’s dad is a drunk, but he loves his son. He has never missed a basketball game,Dad is an alcoholic who will disappear for days to drink. Rowdy is the toughest kid on the rez and all the other kids are afraid of him, but he always protects Junior from bullies. In return Junior helps
In Sherman Alexie’s The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, the main character Arnold, also known as Junior, has many health issues, and notably stands out in the crowd. It does not help that he is a poor Indian boy that lives on a reservation, and that he decides to go to an all-white high school. Many of his experiences at school, and on the Reservation, impact his identity. Experience is the most influential factor in shaping a person’s identity because it helps gain confidence, it teaches new things, and it changes one’s outlook on the world.
“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
"The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian" by Sherman Alexie is novel that provokes a perceptive view through a Spokane Indian boy. Arnold Spirit Jr, the main character is on the hunt to better his future despite the tease for his medical conditions and deformities. Arnold lives on a reservation filled with lost hope, it is common to see a drunk, addicts, and abusers. But these are Arnold's least worries when he makes the life-changing decision to leave school on the reservation to attend Rearden. The backlash Arnold receives from his tribe of the reservation is unimaginable. Junior's identity develops through his experiences, interactions, and interests.
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.
The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-time Indian is light hearted, very enjoyable and an authentic coming of-age-story. Sherman’s fresh and engaging style of writing is very lively and exuberant (Shmoop, 2014). The young-adult novel is written in the first person narrative perspective of Arnold Spirit Jr, who is a fourteen-year-old boy with a passion to draw cartoons (Noone. K, 2010). Arnold, detailing his life and the decisions he makes, writes the novel in the first person format. The novel explores various themes such as, identity, race, poverty, hopes, dreams and plans. The protagonist in this novel has a unique sense of humor.
Racism, stereotypes, and white privilege are all concepts that affect all of us whether we believe it or not. If an adolescent of a minority can distinguish these concepts in his society then we all should be aware of them. These concepts are all clearly demonstrated in “The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian”. Anyone and everyone could clearly understand this novel but the intended audience is middle school to college level students. The novel’s goal is to help white students understand the effects of white privilege in an easier, more understandable way. Concepts are easier to understand when someone feels like they are connecting to someone they have things in common with, which is exactly what this novel does. I, for one, was always
People need to create a balance of stories and tell them from many different perspectives so that a more accurate picture can be shown of what is actually happening in today's society. In Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie, the main character Junior is automatically judged as soon as he gets into school his first day at Reardan, the closest school off the rez. This teenage character is made fun of because of his skin color, background, abilities and culture. Arnold Spirit Junior has to overcome challenges with people assuming things about him because he is an Indian from the Spokane Reservation.