Preview

A Part-Time Indian

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
791 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
A Part-Time Indian
Entering a new environment, especially when it comes to being a new student, can be terrifying, however, it can be further alarming when you are a minority. Being a minority in a large school population increases the student's chances of being rejected, bullied, and possibly harassed by their peers. In Sherman Alexie’s The Absolutely True Story of a Part-Time Indian, the difficulty of transferring schools is brilliantly conveyed when the protagonist, Arnold Spirit Jr., decides to break through the confinements of his racial status. Alexie’s work, directed toward minorities, effectively displays the protagonist’s struggle to adapt to a new social environment by utilizing significant visuals, illustrated by Ellen Forney.
The novel contains important
…show more content…
In the sketch, Arnold juxtaposes himself with the people surrounding him; the two races mutually scrutinizing each other on every physical detail. Without the image, the reader is merely given a small excerpt that reads, “Those white guys couldn’t believe their eyes. They stared at me like I was Bigfoot or a UFO” (57). The minimal amount of information revealed in the text draws away from the struggle Arnold is feeling at that moment. However, by utilizing the simple words and interpretive images, the reader is able to fully comprehend how the main character views himself in comparison to his other classmates. While comparing, Arnold advertises the physical differences between the whites and Indians, such as their attire and accessories. In addition, brief statements are composed throughout the entire list of diversities. These range from the cost of pants to differing backpacks, which further impacts the racial gap of the main character’s endeavor, in acclimating to his surroundings. Through the combination of visuals and text, Alexie enhances the overall effectiveness of his novel.
Overall, The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian written by Sherman Alexie encompasses the protagonist’s struggle to adapt to his change of schools. He effectively displays this by using detailed visuals that support his text. The images also give the reader a better understanding of how the main character feels and how he views the situation at hand. Some of the many significant illustrations include Arnold’s portrait, his emotional experience with Rowdy, and his comparison of Indians and whites. If you were a minority, how would you accustom yourself to a new

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Better Essays

    The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie is a book about the struggles that Arnold Spirit Jr. had to endure while living on the Spokane Indian Reservation. With the support of his family, he decided to attend Rearden High School in order to change the path of his life for the better. Along the way, he discovers and loses himself in the process of bettering himself.…

    • 1254 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Trafzer, C. E., Keller, J. A., & Sisquoc, L. (2006). Boarding School Blues: Revisiting American Indian Educational Experiences. U of Nebraska Press.…

    • 2180 Words
    • 9 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Better Essays

    “One of Bird's most serious charges against Alexie is that in Reservation Blues he ‘'prey[s]' upon’ his community and culture in perpetuating damaging stereotypes, including that of the drunken Indian. As she puts it, ‘Stereotyping native people does not supply a native readership with soluble ways of undermining stereotypes, but becomes a part of the problem, and returns an image of a generic 'Indian' back to the original producers of that image’ (49)” (Evans).…

    • 1280 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    1. There are several ways that Mr. P and the white man that showed up at Grandmother Spirit’s funeral are alike. For instance, they both care about Indians and like the culture. Although Mr. P and the white man had a few similarities, they were also different in that Mr. P actually cares about Junior and wants him to be a successful Indian and to motivate others. But, when Mr. P was a younger teacher he used to hurt a lot of Indian kids by beating them if they were rowdy. Mr. P was taught to kill Indian culture he used physical action to do so. Ted honestly did care about Indians he even collected Indian art.…

    • 1138 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    Part-Time Indian Thesis

    • 1330 Words
    • 6 Pages

    The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian is a young-adult novel written by Sherman Alexie. The novel itself is on the list of books banned from some schools and public libraries. A few reasons for the ban include profane language, sexual content, and alcohol use. The novel chronicles the coming of age experience of a teenage boy named Junior. He lives on an Indian reservation where life is less than ideal. Junior’s father is an alcoholic and his family lives in poverty. His mother works as hard as she possibly can to feed her family. Junior is plagued with unfortunate experiences throughout the novel but he keeps pushing forward with a positive attitude and a goal in mind. He chooses to go to school away from the reservation in order…

    • 1330 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    Absolutely True Diary

    • 947 Words
    • 4 Pages

    The novel “The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian” written by Sherman Alexie is an inspiration to the younger generation. The novel targeted young adults when Alexie was writing it; however, she has got a positive response from many people. The fans of the book include students both teens and pre-teens who wrote letters to Alexie expressing the love they have towards the book. It was a surprise to Alexie when she received autobiographical letters written in crayon from young adults (Alexie, page 7). The positive response from the children is the evidence that the book is appropriate for the young adult despite the critics many people present.…

    • 947 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Superman and Me

    • 474 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Sherman Alexie applies hyperbole strategy. “Our house was filled with books. They were stacked in crazy piles in the bathroom, bedrooms, and living room.” Using his exaggerated speech it shows the reader how much Alexie read growing up. The stacked up books all over the house shows what a tremendous role books had on his life. “We lived on a combination of irregular paychecks, hope, fear, and government surplus food.” For Alexie growing up was not easy living on a reservation and desperately wanted to escape. This hyperbole emphasizes how hard life is for most Indian children, ultimately wanting all children to leave the reservation and not be a stereotypical Indian.…

    • 474 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    This film is not an ordinary Native American film that many are used to viewing. It has very little examples and scenes of religion and it competely modernizes the life situations of Indians. Daily radio broadcasts, basketball teams, house parties and casual everyday clothing are a few examples of how Alexie portrays the modern Indian. Besides the blunt cultural clues and skin color, one could say that these behaviors and activities were of the everyday American. Of course, the life on the reservation is clearly seperated from other communities. This is apparent in the scene where two young women pick up the main characters Thomas and Victor and give them a ride out of the reservation. They exclaim how they should "have their passports" and their "vaccinations" in order to leave the reservation. Another scene includes two white men who steal Thomas 's and Victor 's seat on a bus. Alexie clearly shows the cultural conflict and seperation, but his purpose to connect all cultures is shown strongly in other ways.…

    • 877 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    All people are different and the characters in “The Absolutely True Diary of A Part-TIme Indian” demonstrate this. The main character Arnold “Junior” Spirit shows that even though you may be born in the same place and time as others you are different. This is the case with Junior and his best friend Rowdy, while they were born in the same town at the same time Junior’s drive to get more out of life set him apart from Rowdy. This was demonstrated by his push to change schools, his determination not to remain poor, and accepting the help of others around him.…

    • 1808 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Sherman Alexie

    • 1084 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Sherman Alexie was born in 1966 and raised on the Spokane Indian Reservation in Washington. Although born with a severe case of hydrocephalus, he astonishingly recovered and learned to read at an early age. Alexie used his social rejection to concentrate on his studies. In 1985, he was awarded a scholarship to Gonzaga University where he regrettably began abusing alcohol. His college years can be described as depressing and inspiring. His alcoholism compelled him to convey his feelings on paper. Prompted by Alex Kuo, his poetry professor, Alexie engage in writing using his somber encounters as subject matter. Since his years at Gonzaga, he has published several stories and poems pertaining to Indian culture and life on the reservation. He has been presented with prestigious awards for his screenplays and novels and was named one of the twenty best young American novelists by The New Yorker. Using melancholy tones and woeful themes, Alexie broadcasts his people’s despair and brings light to the ignored feelings of a lost generation. Perpetual alcoholism, fragmented families, and racial alienation are major issues present in Sherman Alexie’s three short stories.…

    • 1084 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Alexie Indian Education

    • 913 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Sherman Alexie’s Indian Education tells of the hardships, such as bullying and racial discrimination, that Alexie faced in reservation grade school; I, on the other hand, faced minimum hardships since I went to private grade school. The rules of the private school I went to are based on the Bible, and this created a friendly Christian environment among the students, so bullying of any sort was scarce. Alexie faced constant bullying in the reservation schools he attended. My elementary school life was peaceful and violence was uncommon, whereas Alexie’s elementary school life was traumatizing for him, facing problems with bullying and racism.…

    • 913 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    In the novel The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, by Sherman Alexie Arnold’s relationship with Rowdy influences the novel because it helps drive the theme of adversity. Arnold leaves the reservation in order to obtain better education. Also, Arnold use to rely on Rowdy to protect him, but now he stands up for himself. By staying on the reservation they lose hope and cannot overcome adversity. Arnold learns to cope with adversity while Rowdy struggles to.…

    • 548 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The short story "Class" by Sherman Alexie tells of the struggles of an American Indian man and tries to demonstrate how he reacts to his contrasted feelings and diverse world around him. The central theme of Alexie's short story is contrast, and this theme is evident throughout the story, even in the smallest of details. The actions, emotions and even the language of the characters contrast and these contrasts clearly illustrate the difference the characters have in class.…

    • 1008 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    After reading the book The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, I got a much better understanding of what that title means. When you think of part-time you normally think of having a part-time job when you only work some days but not all the time. Well that is a lot like the life of the main character in this story. Throughout the book, Junior manages to be “half Indian” and “half white.” He says “ It was like being Indian was my job.” How could someone be “half Indian” and “half white?”…

    • 799 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    “If you let people into your life a little bit, they can be pretty damn amazing” (129). This is just one of many insightful quotes that Arnold Spirit has to say that makes him and Victor Joseph very similar. Sherman Alexie is the American novelist who wrote The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian and the film Smoke Signals. Both of the main characters in each of these pieces are modern day Indians who have had a tough upbringing. While Arnold (Diary) and Victor (Smoke) are different in many ways such as how they handle bullies, they are similar in their love of basketball and experiences with alcohol.…

    • 600 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays