Ever since Christopher Columbus came to the ‘new world’ in 1492 it has been a problem for the Native Americans. However, their resilience has kept their traditions and culture alive despite of adverse circumstances. The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fist Fight in Heaven by Sherman Alexie describes the lives and stories of different individuals that live on a reservation in Washington State. The book is a collection of short stories and is it is written very well. Native Americans have been oppressed; however, they remain spiritual, community oriented, and traditional, which helps them maintain their identity. The individuals in The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fist Fight in Heaven are very spiritual which follows their past culture. Alexie uses spiritual and religious terms throughout his short stories. This spirituality keeps him in touch with his ancestors and helps maintain the tradition. Alexie …show more content…
Native Americans have always been known for their oral tales and accounts of history. This is demonstrated in the book. Firstly the writing of the book itself is an examples of this. Even though it is not an oral tale, it is still stories of people that can be passed down from generation to generation. In the books there is one person that stands out from the rest in the regard of passing on tales and traditions. Thomas Builds-the-Fire is knows to be the one that tells stories. He is described as having “A storytelling fetish accompanied by an extreme need to tell the truth” (93). While some may consider this dangerous, it is crucial in societies for somebody to keep record of the events that take place. Additionally, there are traditions that are elaborated upon in the book. In addition to Thomas, in ‘A Drug Called Tradition’ they discuss the ghost dances which are a big part of the Native American tradition. Furthermore they discuss crazy horse. Tradition is crucial to maintain identity as a