“The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian” from Sherman Alexie is a novel which shows a normal native American boy’s life, author tells the story as the first person, Arnold. In the book, it shows the life of Arnold’s teenager time and his life between the reservation full of Indians and a little full of white people. Like the name of the book, the way author writes down the story is like the diary, they are in chronological order, the only difference is that there is no date shows on the book. The reason that author uses the word “part-time Indian” is because protagonist, Arnold was studying in Reardan, “Reardan is the rich, white farm town that sits in the wheat fields exactly twenty-two miles away from the rez”, but he was studying …show more content…
It is hard to tell if the author of this book is an historian, journalist or an expert of some area, if this book is the only source for me to judge. Yet, after doing the research of Sherman Alexie, the author of “The Absolutely True Diary of a Part- Time Indian”, there are many of books wrote by him, like “Reservation Blues” (1995) “Indian Killer” (1996) and so on, Alexie is a Native American, who grew up on the Spokane Indian Reservation (Poetry Foundation). It is not hard to see, the background and the experiences are must affect author a lot on his work, it gives him inspiration and sources of the book, which also makes the audiences feel real after reading “The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time …show more content…
The book for today can tell the current Indian situation, for future can use as the historic source for the researches. The amount of the audiences is one of the values of a book, and the audiences of this book could be anyone who can read. The words were used in the book are easily to understand, and there is no negative thoughts in the book either, which is good for the teenagers to read, and help them to know about the Native Americans. In the book, Arnold might have had some negative thoughts of his life, but he always found the way to solve the problems, never show it to the public. In addition, author not only see the world as a Native American, but also a student of a school which full of white students, Arnold never fights because his group want him to, he fought for himself, for the hope, which also is another point of this book. People should fight for themselves, for their hope, not just follow their tribes, we should have our own faith, not just follow the
Indian culture has been disappearing for centuries since the Native Americans were forced to migrate from their original homes. In the book, The Absolutely True Diary of A Part-Time Indian, an Indian boy displays 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. The Native American boy Arnold is able to show toughness, courageousness and the capability to overcome obstacles, by illustrating comics and playing basketball. For Arnold, drawing comics and playing basketball is a way to build his character and self-esteem. Without the freedom in writing comics and the self-confidence builder in playing basketball, Arnold would act
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.
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.
Adjusting to another culture is a difficult concept, especially for children in their school classrooms. In Sherman Alexie’s, “Indian Education,” he discusses the different stages of a Native Americans childhood compared to his white counterparts. He is describing the schooling of a child, Victor, in an American Indian reservation, grade by grade. He uses a few different examples of satire and irony, in which could be viewed in completely different ways, expressing different feelings to the reader. Racism and bullying are both present throughout this essay between Indians and Americans. The Indian Americans have the stereotype of being unsuccessful and always being those that are left behind. Through Alexie’s negativity and humor in his essay, it is evident that he faces many issues and is very frustrated growing up as an American Indian. Growing up, Alexie faces discrimination from white people, who he portrays as evil in every way, to show that his childhood was filled with anger, fear, and sorrow.
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
Sherman Alexie’s comedic novel, The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, tells the story of a boy, Junior, living on a Native American reservation with his best friend, Rowdy. Rowdy grows up in an abusive
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.
According to Explore Campaigns more than 1.3 billion people in our world live in extreme poverty. In The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie, Arnold Spirit has to prove that he can break the never-ending circle of hardship that is present on his rez. The struggles associated with stepping out of his comfort zone are clearly shown throughout the novel. As the book progresses Junior chooses to go to a rich white school in hopes of a better future, and when he gets there he is treated differently than the other students because he does not look or act the same as them. Middle school is a difficult time for a normal kid, but coming 22 miles everyday from a reservation makes life even more challenging. Arnold
Alexie, Sherman. The Absolute True Diary of a Part-Time Indian. New York: Hachette Book Group, 2007. Print.
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.
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.
Sherman Alexie explores equality by showing the opposite of it through his character Arnold Spirit’s life and by showing readers inequality in average life as well. The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian is about a Native American named Arnold that decides to go to school off the reservation that he lives in, causing people from the rez and at Reardan to dislike him for what he does and who he is.
The title of the novel, The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-time Indian written by Sherman Alexie tells it like it is. The story addresses the journey of Arnold Spirit (Junior) who faces physical, social, emotional and psychological changes in the world of poverty and how he finds the inner strength in himself to follow his dreams. Arnold Spirit is born in the Spokane Indian reservation – the "rez" located in Wellpinit suffering from too much cerebral fluid in his brain which results to brain damage. Throughout the novel, Sherman Alexie effectively exhibits how various relevant people and the Reservation impact Arnold's life positively by showing him that at the end of very dark tunnel there is light. The Spokane Reservation and what the Native
This book, The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, written by Sherman Alexie, is about a young Indian boy living on a reservation. This boy experiences many things in his life. Just a few being, changing schools, losing family members, and potentially losing a best friend. He experiences a lot of change and some of it is are pretty painful.