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The Absolutely True Diary, A Part-Time Indian By Sherman Alexie

786 Words4 Pages

“To live without hope is to cease to live” – Fyodor Dostoevsky. For the natives that live on the Spokane reservation, life seems meaningless, for they lack hope because they are surrounded by poverty, violence, and alcohol. “The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian” by Sherman Alexie tells of the journey that a young native boy goes through on his journey to a better life. Arnald Spirit Jr. is a 14-yr old boy entering high school when he decides to transfer to an all-white school off the rez. Alexie incorporates many themes into the story, with the biggest ones being resilience, expectations, and cultural identity. Junior's resilience helps him to create new friendships at Reardan High. Being the only native kid at school made Junior stand out and very lonely, yet despite that Junior kept going to school until he eventually gained the guts to make …show more content…

When Junior is talking to Randy about basketball, he holds himself to low standards, saying “I’m Junior varsity all the way” (Alexie 126), and then goes on to play varsity ball as a first-year student. Junior thought that he was not good enough to play varsity basketball, but he ended up defying his own expectations and going on to become a great basketball player, learning that he can defy the expectations that hold him back. Another example of how Junior defie’s other expectations is during the rematch between WellPint and Reardan, where Junior starts the game and Rowdy say’s “You guys must be desperate if you’re starting.” (Alexie 191) Junior then goes on to destroy Rowdy. Rowdy believed that Junior was a bad player and held his expectations low, but then Junior showed Rowdy up, and destroyed Rowdy’s expectations. Junior learning that he can defy expectations helps him to grow exponentially, but his greatest challenge and final goal still lies ahead, cultural

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When Junior is trying out for the basketball team, he doesn’t know what will happen but is following his dream. While in “Superman and Me” Sherman Alexie says Indians do not follow their dreams because an Indian on the “rez” who is smart is very rare. Junior “almost didn’t try out for the Rearden basketball team” because he thought he “wasn’t good enough to make even the C squad” and “didn’t want to get cut from the team”. (Absolutely True Diary 135) Junior ended up trying out for the basketball team because his dad told him to follow his dreams.

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759 Words | 4 Pages

As Junior matures he realizes that he has many obstacles within his life, like the fact that he lives in poverty, a lot of people show racism towards him and his people, and the death of family members and

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703 Words | 3 Pages

In the novel The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, by Sherman Alexie, Junior Adams’s expansion of his own reality has made him aware of other things and has allowed him to find joy in unlikely experiences from those he’s known. From the title onwards, Junior makes it very clear that he himself is a Native American. He indicates how he has spent his entire life on the reservation. He lives on in northwestern Washington, and he mentions how he has never been far from it; he has only been to Spokane. When reminiscing about where he could be, he mentions how “I wish I were magical, but I am really just a poor-ass reservation kid living with his poor-ass family on the poor-ass Spokane Indian Reservation” (Alexie 7).

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992 Words | 4 Pages

He worked hard to make his dreams reality despite of all the things that tried to hold him back. The Spokane Indian Reservation presented our protagonist with

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265 Words | 2 Pages

In the Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie; a poor Indian boy known as Junior is growing up in the Spokane Indian reservation. There is practically no hope for Junior, as his entire family is poor, he suffers from a horrid condition, and he has all but one friend. Determined to make it big in life, Junior sets off to Reardan; a neighboring ‘rich white school’ where he hopes to get the education and lifestyle he has always wanted. Despite being called a ‘traitor, even by his own best friend Rowdy, and facing many tribulations, Junior strives to achieve the best life he can through humor and gallantry. I recommend this book to anyone who wants a good laugh, yet is ready and mature enough to face the dark and sensible

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671 Words | 3 Pages

He realizes that his team has numerous economic and social advantages. Junior’s ability to address topics like poverty, racism and bullying with humor is a significant characteristic of his voice. For Junior, as well as his friends Rowdy and Penelope, part of growing up is recognizing that the world is more complicated than a strict division of opposites, it’s possible to be more than one thing—part of countless different “tribes”—is what enables him to unify his split identity and, as someone destined to travel beyond the reservation, navigate the world both figuratively and

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340 Words | 2 Pages

Around the 1900’s King George VI gave a speech to his country because of hitler 's pompous lies so therefore the King has to speak to his nation and let them be aware of the situation that they all are facing.. Later on King George VI uses a reassuring and compassionate tone in order to develop the idea that despite the war’s outcome will be in there favor. within this speech which was given on September 3rd 1939 it states “ It is to this high purpose that I now call my people at home and my peoples across the seas, who will make our cause their own. I ask them to stand calm, firm, and united in this time of trial.” this quote exemplifies how King George VI is reassuring the people by showing that he took matters into his own hands but is asking others for help to make sure the go through this war and make it out spiffy clean.

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Faced with many obstacles from poverty to racial stereotypes, Junior must override them if he is to make his life better than that of fellow Indians. Interestingly, rather than letting the obstacles hold him back Junior understands that his destiny is in his own hands and he must celebrate who he is even if it means fighting. In the end, we see a boy who have managed to overcome all hardships to get to the top, even if it means making tough choices such as changing schools, therefore is could be seen that race and stereotypes only made Junior

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805 Words | 4 Pages

Junior parents are considered “terrible” parents in Rearden, and everyone else has “wonderful” parents because they are rich and they aren't alcoholics. Junior's mother was a recovering alcoholic and asked Junior to make a promise to her. Junior makes a promise to his mother to never drink alcohol. Junior believes that his father is an amazing father; he just makes horrible decisions, enjoys drinking alcohol. Junior's father is gone from Christmas to January 2nd.

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716 Words | 3 Pages

In the article American Indian Movement It explains how the government promised many things including good jobs, housing, and vocational training for those who would move. The author then says “As a result, thousands of Native Americans migrated to the cities. But many of them never received the promised funding and benefits”(“American”). The book The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie is about a boy named Junior who is an Indian that lives on a reservation. The book goes through the struggles Junior has on the reservation with his best friend Rowdy when Junior moves schools and the struggles Junior has with his family.

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731 Words | 3 Pages

Roxanne Nivicela Mr. Rodriguez Academic Literacy 21 April 2023 Analytical essay Does your social class define you? People will judge, but not all people are the same. In the novel The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie, the setting takes place on the Spokane Indian reservation near Wellpinit.

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594 Words | 3 Pages

After everyone compliments his suit, he realizes it is okay to be different. Another example of this lesson is when Junior goes to Reardon, knowing he is going to be the only Indian there. Junior knows he will be the only non-white student at reardon, yet he goes anyway. Even though he has to deal with being picked on, and standing out, he learns to cope with it. In conclusion, Junior is not afraid to be different, since he has had a lot of experience as always being different in his life.

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735 Words | 3 Pages

Junior loses a lot of friends and family at the young age of fourteen. He gets bullied because he was born with too much cerebral spinal fluid inside his skull, but he has his best friend Rowdy there to help him. Junior realizes that he needs to leave the reservation to get a better life for himself. He goes to a new school off the

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702 Words | 3 Pages

Overcoming a challenge, not giving up, and not being afraid of change are a few themes demonstrated in The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian. Perhaps the most prominent theme derived from the novel is defying the odds, or in other words rising above the expectations of others. Junior Spirit exemplifies this theme throughout the entirety of the book. As Junior is an Indian, he almost expects that he will never leave the reservation, become an alcoholic, and live in poverty like the other Indians on the reservation—only if he sits around and does not endeavor to change his fate. When Junior shares the backstory of his parents, he says that his mother and father came from “poor people who came from poor people who came from poor people, all the way back to the very first poor people” (11).

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920 Words | 4 Pages

It was not until Rowdy came along that he made a friend no one expected because they were complete opposites. Junior not only faced isolation from his physical characteristic but his background as well. The novel is based

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