Code Talker Sparknotes

Code Talker by Joseph Bruchac is a historical fiction novel that follows the story of a Navajo character, Ned Begay. This is powerful and interesting novel that successfully captures a deep topic in American history based on a true story. The story begins with Begay on his home Navajo reservation, preparing to leave for boarding school. At the boarding school, he meets other Navajo children who were also sent there, and they become friends. However, the white teachers are cruel and try to strip away all of their Navajo heritage, but Begay refuses to let go of his language and culture. "I held on to my sacred language while learning the words and ways of the whites. But I had no idea, even in my wildest dreams, that the very language those bilaagnaa teachers tried to erase--the way you wipe words from a blackboard--would one day be needed by important white men" (Bruchac, 27). Begay's decision to hold on to his language and culture later pays off when he becomes a

History and U.S. Government by providing insight into World War II and the role of the military. World War II was a major event in the history of the U.S. and is a big part of this book. During the book Begay is sent to fight in the Pacific against the Japanese, and this gives the reader a good look at what it is like to fight in a war and what can happen during it. The book depicts the experiences of a Navajo code talker who uses his language to help the Marines in their fight against the Japanese in the Pacific. The military, part of the executive branch, has to do with the U.S. government which also plays a role in this book. The Marines that fought were all in the military, and they were the ones fighting the Japanese in the war. The author places himself within the existing scholarship on this topic by emphasizing the unique role that Navajo code talkers played in the war effort, and their contributions to the ultimate victory of the United