The Absolutely True Diary Of Part Time Indian Analysis

Home is most often used in relation to a place, but the definition of home is ambiguous; different people have different notions of what home is and where home is. Sherman Alexie in the book “The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian” uses Junior’s experiences to show the readers that home is not defined by the place a person lives, but is defined by the people around you who make you feel wanted. Junior begins with his sense of home being the location in which he lives; he thinks of the reservation as his home because the people who make him feel wanted life within the reservation. “Nobody would miss me if I was gone” (Alexie 16). “But aside from Rowdy, and my parents and sister and grandmother, nobody would miss me. I am a zero on

This was the small group of people out of all the people he knew that made him feel wanted and enjoyed their company. Throughout his journey, he lost many of those people, but gained even more. Once with only a narrow view of what home is now bloomed into something more, something abstract and something with more depth. This all comes to fruition when Junior, while writing what gives him joy, writes the names of the people who have given him the most joy. The list consists of Rowdy, his mother, his father, his grandmother, Eugene, Coach, Roger, Gordy, and Penelope. These are the people who Junior considers a part of his home and while the list is only a few names longer than what it was at the start of the story it contains people from beyond the reservation. Reardon was now a place that Junior could call

“” So, anyway,” he said, “I was reading this book bout old time Indians, about how we used to be nomadic.” “Yeah,” I said. “So I looked up nomadic in the dictionary, and it means people who move around, who keep moving, in search of food and water and grazing land”” (Alexie 229). “You’re the nomadic one.” “Whatever.” No, I’m serious. I always knew you were going to leave. I always knew you were going to leave us behind and travel the world. I Had this dream about you a few months ago. You were on standing on the Great Wall of China. You looked happy. And I was happy for you.” Rowdy didn’t cry. But I did “You’re an old-time nomad,” Rowdy said. “You’re going to keep moving all over the world in search of food and water and grazing land. That’s pretty cool.” I could barely talk. “Thank you,” I said. “Yeah,” Rowdy said. “Just make sure you send me post cards, you asshole.” “From everywhere,” I said.” (Alexie 230). This concept of home and being wanted has been floating around the book since the start, but it is only at the very end that Junior finally understands this too. When Rowdy is talking to him he at first denies the fact that he will be moving around as a nomad would, but soon accepts the notion and realizes that though he will be moving from place to place there will always be someone waiting for him;