The Absolutely True Diary Of A Part Time Indian Essay

Shawn Lawton

Alex Rodriguez

Academic Literature

4/21/2023

Opportunities and success

Do all people have an equal chance in life? No, there are many things that can hold somebody back. In The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, a Novel by Sherman Alexie it speaks about the theme of opportunity and success. The protagonist Junior takes an opportunity to have a better education at a school outside of his community. By doing this he is able to see how the environment and education around someone can impact their opportunities and success in life. Sherman Alexis portrays the animosity that people can face when striving for success such as when Junior is attacked on Halloween, Roger starting problems with Junior, and Junior's realization

This can be due to a multitude of reasons, some being jealousy, hatred,or stopping someone just because they can. In the text it states, “They didn't beat me up too bad. I could tell they didn't want to put me in the hospital or anything. Mostly they just wanted to remind me that I was a traitor. And they wanted to steal my candy and the money.” (Alexie 80), and “Do you know what happens to retards on the rez? We get beat up. At least once a month.” (Alexie 4). These quotes shows how and why Junior has a tough time achieving his goals not only because of the problems in Rearden but also because of his hometown. Junior takes into account that the people who beat him up didn’t do it to hurt him physically but hurt him to convey a message that not only is he a traitor but they will prevent him from getting what he wants in life. This quote shows how the environment around someone can hold them back from becoming

This is due to the fact that people will make assumptions about someone without ever getting to know them. In the text it states, “Did you know that Indians are living proof that ******* **** buffalo?" I felt like Roger had kicked me in the face. That was the most racist thing I'd ever heard in my life. Roger and his friends were laughing like crazy. I hated them. And I knew I had to do.” (Alexie 64), and “And let's face it, most of the white boys ignored me, too. Hut there were a few of those Reardan boys, the big jocks, who paid special attention to me. None of those guys punched me or got violent. After all, I was a reservation Indian, and no matter how geeky and weak I appeared to be, I was still a potential killer. So mostly they called me names. Lots of names.” (Alexie 63). These quotes are about Junior being talked about in negative ways. The joke was meant to be malicious and offend Junior. This quote shows how presumptions or stereotypes can foster problems for someone striving for success as example when Roger says a stereotypical joke about Junior even though they have never met before. These quotes shows when someone is in an environment they don't belong in it can make problems for