Amusements By Sherman Alexie

Twisted Reflections From Oppression

In his short story entitled Amusements, Sherman Alexie resignedly explores the impact discrimination against Native American people has in everyday life through the main character Victor’s experiences at an amusement park. Alexie portrays a young boy, Victor, who narrates his time spent with his friend Sadie and drunken “Dirty Joe” at the carnival. The two put “Dirty Joe” on a rollercoaster but soon regret their prank when they are faced with hate, making them oddly aware of how their presence as indigenous people is viewed from the outside perspective of white people. By focusing on social situations in which Native Americans are treated as lesser than white people, Sherman Alexie in his short story Amusements,

Victor recalls the reactions he and Sadie received in response to putting “Dirty Joe” on a rollercoaster. The mention of specifically white people laughing, gathering around, then staring wide-eyed at Victor and Sadie’s soon retracting smiles, prompted Victor to compare the observers to a “jury and judge for the twentieth-century fancydance of these court jesters who would pour Thunderbird wine into the Holy Grail” (Alexie 56). The contrasting language used to describe the dynamic between white people and indigenous people emphasizes the unequal distribution of power in which Native

He accomplishes this through Victor’s retelling of being chased by an amusement park security guard after they learned he was associated with “Dirty Joe”. The young boy tries to escape the microaggressions and blatant racism by running into the funhouse when he approaches, “Crazy mirrors… the kind that distort your features…The kind that make a white man remember he’s the master of ceremonies… the kind that can never change the dark of your eyes and the folding shut of the good part of your past” (Alexie 57). Describing the differences in how a distorted self image can impact the oppressed and the oppressor underscores that constant prejudice can make someone view themself in a negative way yet the identifiable traits used to target marginalized people, will always be a part of them. Crazy mirrors can distort your proportions by enhancing some aspects of your reflection and hiding others. Some mirrors can shrink peoples reflection to make them feel short and small or make someone appear taller or bigger. For instance, describing a white man as “the master of ceremonies” suggests that when he looks into this twisted mirror of self perception, he sees a ruler, a ring-leader standing up on its podium, controlling the circus acts below. This false sense of supremacy