Who Is Junior Alienated In The Absolutely True Diary Of A Part Time Indian

According to merriamwebster.com , alienate is to “ cause someone to feel that she or he no longer belongs in a particular group,society,etc.” This is expressed in factors used in the texts American Born Chinese by Gene Luen Yang and The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie. In American Born Chinese the main characters are the Monkey King and Jin. In the graphic novel, these characters prove to be alienated through wanting the be different and feeling isolated through race. While in The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, the main character Junior is faced with alienation through switching schools, but he is staying with his tribe. In the books The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie

and the graphic novel American Born Chinese by Gene Luen Yang the author prove that the factors that cause alienation are when people make decisions for themselves, stereotypes,and being different from people around them.
Alienation can start from one choice to another but based on a person it can be one decision to change what people think and soon isolate them. In the book, The Absolutely True Diary a Part-Time Indian Mr. P, Junior’s teacher gave him a lingering idea to inspire him for a change, therefore he has to decide to give a hope for acceptance or to deal with giving up on perseverance. He wants to go to a school called Reardan, but it is going to get complicated for him. The main character’s mom says, “ You’ll be the first one to ever leave the rez this way,” Mom said.” The Indians around here are going to be angry with you.” While Junior responds, “ Shoot, I figure my fellow tribal members are going to torture me” (Alexie 47). The author is trying to let us see the insight of how two sides are based on his decision, therefore there is controversy between his culture and who he is supposed to be. The author is using an internal and external conflict as a revelation of the difficulty in Junior’s situation. The difference between indians and a white race is so far away, yet it comes to Junior’s choice for a chance of hope. He is facing a battle of wanting to stay in his culture versus giving up for the use of hope. Junior has been accepted by his family, but on the outside the shame from the Indians upon him can alter who he is. Conflict is caused by choices through decisions from an individual, but triggers alienation. As Junior experiences decisions to make it is compared similarly to the Monkey King in American Born Chinese by Gene Luen Yang. Yang creates a choice for this character on who he really should be based on the opinion on his form of a monkey. In panel 1 on page 56, the Monkey King starts to isolate himself from distractions and decides to change himself as a real king. The caption states,” He locked himself deep down the inner bowels of his royal chamber, where he studied Kung - Fu more feverently than ever” (Yang 56). The Monkey King had transformed himself into a fake human being because of the way he looked. The author had made the page consist of dark and dreary colors to represent how his decision is impacting his thoughts of himself. It made the Monkey King feel isolated as he feels that he shouldn’t act like a monkey. He made the decision to change for his people and others. The gutters on the page represent how his character is growing far apart from his original form. It shows the time it took for him to be not only the Monkey King but another form of sophisticated human or leader. He serves a different form to his monkeys which creates a barrier for self actualization. One risky decision can change a person’s form into chaos and leads a direction of self doubt in alienation. Many decisions are made by people or in this story a monkey, therefore they have been impacted on various reasons of stereotypes.
Stereotypes and being different from others can compare people to others and over state generic factors of a single person.

It creates a statement that is made of judgement and changes the overall feeling of an individual, therefore resulting in alienation. Junior, an Indian who transferred for his own hope into a new perspective. He is facing prejudice as he enters into Reardan,a white school as someone from a different tribe. He was overseen by who he is by looks and opinions of others.In the book The Absolutely True Duary of a Part-Time Indian, the main character says,”After all, I was a reservation Indian, and no matter how geeky and weak I appeared to be, I was still a potential killer. So mostly they called me names. Lots of names” (Alexie 63). Alexie shows how Junior is defined as someone who isn’t like his peers and he was affected through the use of their one word descriptions. Junior is described as “geeky and weak” to the point whene he believed he was this label. He made himself be let down for what he is and the remarks being made. He thought he was someone that influenced people to what they think he is. Junior saw that he was a target of stimulating stereotypes based on him, yet he wasn’t able to cope with these. His feelings overlapped with getting through a school day at Reardan. Junior is being weighed down by the stereotypes implied to him that causes him to be divided. Jin who is chinese in relation to Junior’s experience has a stereotype against him.

He was made to feel as no one can accept him as a chinese. Jin wanted to date Amelia, but Timmy who is Amelia’s friend thinks that Jin has no right to have her. In panel 2 on page 179, Amelia’s friend, Timmy says, “ Can you not ask Amelia out again? Jin responds as if he was affected by his comment and Timmy continues saying on panel 4, “It’s just that she’s a good friend and I want to make sure she makes good choices, you know? We’re almost in high school. She has to start paying attention to who she hangs out with.” (Yang 179) Through this scene, Yang has made Timmy have a stereotype against Jin in which makes an effect on how he feels. In panels 3,4, and 5, the artist wanted to emphasize how Timmy looked compared to Jin. The artist made Timmy slightly bigger during the conversation as though he was a bully and Jin was a target. The artist then zoomed into Timmy’s face to visualize his appearance, reactions, and expressions towards Jin. Then in panel 5, the background was low and dreary compared to a minimal of how tiny Jin was. The artist used this to show how hurt Jin was about Timmy’s thoughts about him for Amelia. Jin’s reactions and initial appearance show how isolated and alienated he was about Timmy’s comments as if it were an offensive threat. Jin feels as if he should act invisible to Amelia in order to make Timmy have his favor he is asking. How tiny Jin seemed illustrated shows how fractured he was from that favor that initially his a threat to who he was. Opinions are more damaging to other races if it is verbally expressed just like how Timmy did, therefore this stereotype of being chinese is directed to Jin just as he feels lowly of himself which causes alienation.
Alienation is made to make people feel outcasted and left out for they are misunderstood.

Jin,the Monkey King,and Junior has made stories understandable about what people with alienation experiences. The books The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian and American Born Chinese how alienation is created by how others interact and what changes are made to themselves. These factors change the perspective of alienation on individuals as everyone is impacted from it all over the world. A fictional type of story can change the thinking of a generation to step up and make sure alienation is never a topic society has to face. People should know that by changing stereotypes and other affiliations to making people feel different as they are gives the world rest from separation of loneliness on the outside. As society grows alienation is impacting many people, therefore giving a chance to connect to others will change alienation in our world

forever.
People are affected in society to become alienated of making their own decisions , over stated opinions,and feeling different from others. An individual can feel isolated through life choices and features of appearance and being civilized. People are always affected by what people think toward them that it changes the way their feeling on themselves. No one can feel normal as they are judged on how every feature on their appearance varies and this creates such an offensive remark about them. Alien Nation is created in many more other possibilities, therefore as a reader to alter opinions on others gives the world an open door for adjustment.