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Luc Nguyen 8 purple Humanities The Part-Time Absolute Truth In The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, a book by Sherman Alexie, a young Spokane Indian boy named Junior writes about his life. Junior's story demonstrates "absolutely true" elements through the reality of death and grief, the humanization of all characters and the style of writing, and is "part-time" in how multiple characters live double lives. Junior's story, though fictional, evokes a truth of life through the depiction of death and its aftermath. Many characters die in the story:Junior's dog, ("Oscar died," pg 15), grandmother, ("she [grandma Spirit] died during emergency surgery." Pg 157), uncle, ("Eugene was shot and killed..." pg 169) and sister ("'Your …show more content…
sister, she's dead.''' Pg 201). The presence of death is not disputed and the characters reacts with visceral pain. Junior at first denies his sister's death, becomes angry, and starts bargaining with God and Miss Warren, then he becomes depressed, and finally he accepts it. The stages of mourning death, known as the Kübler-Ross model of grief, sum up the gradual acceptance of death. Junior's way of dealing with death is relatable, his emotions feel raw. Through this brutal and true way of looking at death, the story demonstrates qualities that mirror real life and in that way is "absolutely true". Another way in which this story was "Absolutely True" is how all the characters are humanized.
In real life, nobody is definitively evil, but often in fiction characters are vilified for no reason. In this story, there are no real villains. Roger, at first, seems to be an antagonist, but he turns out to be nice. Penelope first seems like a shallow pretty girl, but she has dreams and fears. '"I want to go to Stanford and study architecture.... Because i want to build something beautiful. Because I want to be remembered.'" Most heartbreaking is the development of Rowdy's character. Originally just an angry kid, it becomes clear he fears that Junior will abandon him. The emphasis on character development makes this story "absolutely true" because the readers can relate to the genuine …show more content…
emotions. Multiple characters can be considered living "part-time".
Junior lives as a part-time Indian, going to the white school Reardan, and returning home to an Indian reservation. Junior sums it up himself when he says "Traveling between Reardan and Wellpinit, between the little white town and the reservation, I always felt like a stranger." Penelope also lives as a part-timer, though in a subtler way. When she is alone with Junior, they talk heart to heart about their dreams and their problems. However, in the presence of her friends, Penelope is cold and rude to Junior. "She looked at [him] and sniffed... 'Do I know you?'" Gradually, she becomes more open about her friendship with Junior and reveals that she cares about him when "she kissed [him]" after he tells her he was poor. This shows that Junior was her friend regardless whether he was poor or rich. By giving many characters two sides to their life, the story shows people living
part-time. The writing style reflects the telling of an absolutely true story. It appears that Junior himself wrote the book. His own emotions are woven into the narration. "I HATED THAT SIGH! I WANTED TO PUNCH THAT SIGH IN THE FACE!" It is hard, perhaps impossible, to have an objective perspective, and everyone feels like they are the own story teller. By having Junior tell the story, it makes it all the more real. Junior also supplements his writing with his drawings. People are drawn in realistic details and but his own image has a mocking tone. Junior’s drawing reflects how he feels about himself. He believes that everybody is better and that he is a complete mess. The only realistic drawing of Junior is seen at the end of the book, of him and Rowdy jumping into the lake. This change in styles depicts Junior’s true self when he is with Rowdy. The writing style mirrors Junior's own personality, making it very "absolutely true." The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian stays true to the "Absolutely True" and "Part-Time"parts of its title. The story discusses these qualities through death and grief, character humanization, the double lives of characters, and the writing style itself . Everyone has a Absolutely True and a Part-Timer self. Through all of this, The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian truly is art reflecting life.
The novel The Absolutely True Diary of A Part-Time Indian and the movie Smoke Signals both originated from the mind of a man named Sherman Alexie. The novel and the movie have some similarities, but each similarity has a subtle difference. Some subtle differences between the topics in the novel The Absolutely True Diary of A Part Time Indian, and the movie Smoke Signals is the emphasis the author puts on each of the topics. There are a few topics that are shown in both the novel and the movie such as racism, identity, and loss. These topics are expressed very strongly in the novel but are vague in the movie.
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.
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
It is said by Jeb Bush that, “Our children can achieve great things when we set high expectations for them”. Well, Arnold (Junior) Spirit in the book The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie, doesn’t have high expectations, if anything he is expected to fail, in life and in school. But Junior has ambition like none other, that is why he decides to break away from his reservation and attend the racist school Reardan. During his time in Reardan and on the Reservation, Junior rises above the life he was expected to live; he demonstrates ambition through perseverance and finds his identity, which proves humans ability to rise above expectations.
Vast majority of Indian reservations are suffering from chronic poverty. According to American Indian Relief Council, the reservations have been cited as, “Comparable to Third World”, in terms of living conditions. In the novel written by Sherman Alexie, entitled, “The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian”, the main character, a fourteen year old, Native American teenager, which belongs to the Spokane tribe named Junior; stated that, “Poverty does not give you strength or teach you lessons about perseverance. No, poverty only teaches you how to be poor.” This indicates that poverty can turn an individual to become a pessimist. On the contrary, poverty is not a destiny. Instead, it is a source of power, an encouragement that through hard work, patience and dedication, a person can succeed in every aspect of 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.
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.
“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.
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.
Alexie, Sherman. The Absolute True Diary of a Part-Time Indian. New York: Hachette Book Group, 2007. Print.
With the obstacles that happen to Junior, it creates an emotional and traumatic impact on Junior as well as getting the readers hooked to turn the page and keep reading. To begin, in “The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian” Sherman Alexie describes a moment in Junior's life before he went to the white school. From comparing the death rates and even mentioning the deaths, Alexie shows an emotional impact on Junior from the deaths he has to go through. Alexie writes about how Junior being an Indian has impacted his life.
Sherman Alexie grew up on a Spokane Indian reservation, in fact Junior and the story as a whole is based on his childhood; as he also struggled with the effects of poverty, alcoholism, identity, and social injustice. The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian is follows the life of Junior; a fourteen year old, Spokane Indian boy, who lives on an Indian reservation filled with poverty and addiction. The story begins when Junior decides transfer to a high school called “Reardan,” which is located outside the reservation in a rich white farm town. At first, Junior is a misfit at his new school; he has trouble making friends, mainly because he’s Indian. His transition to Reardan also causes a fight and other conflicts between him and his best friend, Rowdy, who feels betrayed by Junior. In fact, the whole reservation sees him as traitor.
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.
Living in a place where nobody ever makes enough to do anything special with their lives really tests one's hope. In The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, an unlikely hero's courage is put to the test as he searches for s brighter future. Arnold's rising and falling hope can be seen through the comics he draws throughout the book. Some say you can get to know a person through what they draw better than through their words. This essay will explore how Arnold's comics show what he feels, and how his dream for a better future grows with him.