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The Absolutely True Diary Of A Part-Time Indian

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Sherman Alexie's "The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian" presents a novel centered around Arnold Spirit Jr., a young Native American boy who must grapple with his dual identities as a member of the Spokane Indian Reservation and as a student at a predominantly white high school. Arnold refers to himself as a "part-time Indian," which serves as a critical commentary on the current condition of Indigenous peoples of the US, particularly those living on a reservation. This term emphasizes the way in which Indigenous peoples are often forced to straddle two worlds, leading to a sense of displacement and alienation. As I continue my essay, I will explore the idea of why Alexie believes he is a part-time Indian, and what this shows about …show more content…

This quote highlights the idea that Arnold is not fully accepted in either community, as his biracial identity creates a sense of otherness that is exacerbated by the cultural divide between the reservation and the white town. Arnold's struggle with his identity is a recurring theme throughout the novel and is a common experience for many people who grow up with a mixed racial identity. It is a feeling of not quite belonging to either community and feeling like an outsider. Furthermore, this quote also demonstrates the alienation and displacement that Arnold experiences as a result of his mixed identity. He is constantly forced to navigate the complicated cultural and social norms of both the reservation and the white town, and this struggle takes a toll on his mental and emotional well-being. Arnold's story is a powerful reminder of the challenges that individuals with mixed racial identities face in a world that often operates in black and white. Alexie's novel offers a glimpse into the complexities of identity and the challenges faced by those who do not fit neatly into one box. Arnold's journey is a testament to the strength and resilience of those who are forced to navigate the murky waters of racial

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Alexie uses this characterization to show that home is essential in shaping one’s identity. If Arnold had not been affected so negatively and had not felt such tremendous pain due to the effects of alcohol, he might not have put such a large emphasis on sobriety. His home gives Arnold the experience and perspective needed to decide how he wants to live his own life. Additionally, Alexie mentions “in the white world,” to imply that Arnold

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The book focuses on a young boy named Arnold Spirit who shows persistence and bravery as he defies all odds and strides towards a happier more successful life than his parents and ancestors before him. Arnold is a bright, inspiring young boy who grows up with little fortune and is destined to continue down the path of a poor, misunderstood Indian. However, his fate changes for the better when a spark lights the fire inside of him to strive to pursue a better, more flourishing life as he makes an extraordinary decision to transfer to an all-white school for a worthier education. However, the drastic change of schools puts a burden on his family to get him to school as well as leads to extreme bullying from not just kids at his new school but also from his fellow Indians in his hometown. In The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, I learned that it doesn 't matter what your situation is and what you are expected to accomplish in your lifetime or what standards have already been set for you because you can be whoever you want to be with hard work, ambition, and confidence.

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In his double life in Reardan and on the reservation, he feels “like a magician slicing himself in half, with Junior living on the north side of the river and Arnold living on the south,” (p. 60-61) “I was half Indian in one place and half white in the other. It was like being Indian was my job, but it was only part-time.” (p.118) Just as his absolutely true identity includes both Junior and Arnold, the divided extremes he describes often turn out to be hazy. Roger, the Reardan student who greets Junior in the schoolyard with a cruel racist joke, becomes a sympathetic friend and role model; Rowdy is both Junior’s greatest friend and his worst enemy, and hates him because he loves him so abundantly. Things like the basketball game Reardan wins against Wellpinit becomes both a glorious victory and a shameful moral loss for Junior.

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In his book the Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, Sherman Alexie portrays a teenage boy, Arnold Spirit (junior) living in white man’s world, and he must struggle to overcome racism and stereotypes if he must achieve his dreams. In the book, Junior faces a myriad of misfortunes at his former school in ‘the rez’ (reservation), which occurs as he struggles to escape from racial and stereotypical expectations about Indians. For Junior he must weigh between accepting what is expected of him as an Indian or fight against those forces and proof his peers and teachers wrong. Therefore, from the time Junior is in school at reservation up to the time he decides to attend a neighboring school in Rearden, we see a teenager who is facing tough consequences for attempting to go against the racial stereotypes.

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A Spokane Indian reservation in Wellpinit, Washington is the setting of Alexie’s book. The Indian reservation gives us a firsthand look of a poverty stricken community. The main character in the book Arnold and his family and mostly all other families living on this reservation are poor. Their community is isolated from society; the main character feels that “the reservation is meant to be a prison” in the sense that they are isolated from the real world (Alexie 216).

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“In the middle of a crazy drunk life, you have to hang on the good and sober moments tightly.” (The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie page 216) This is a quote from the book that shows how Junior learns how to appreciate the good moments in life. The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie the character Junior faces problems caused by drinking. The book starts off with his family living on the Indian reservation suffering from poverty and death.

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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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