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Theme Of Forgiveness In Sherman Alexie's Flight

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Forgiveness “We must develop and maintain the capacity to forgive. He who is devoid of the power to forgive is devoid the power to love. There is some good in the worst of us and some evil in the best of us. When we discover this, we are less prone to hate our enemies” (Martin Luther King, Jr.). Why is it strenuous to forgive? Humans are thought to be “hard-wired” meaning that when someone detris our pride, vivitates our self-esteem, or desecrates our dreams, we lose something valuable to us. We want to compensate for the damages. We either want revenge or hold a frozen grudge. When someone does us wrong, we relive the situation over and over again. They may have only hurt us one time but we think about it consistently and the …show more content…

Zits underwent a troubling lifestyle full of betrayal, shame, and hate. These degradations made him struggle with identity and forgiveness. The novel Flight by Sherman Alexie illustrates forgiveness throughout. Zits is very aggressive and is typically in trouble with either his foster parents, the school he is attending, or the police. Zits acts out for the attention he craves but never receives. “But I want them to pay attention to me. I want everybody to pay attention to me. So I shoplift candy and food and magazines and cigarettes and books and CDs and anything I can fit in my pockets” (page 7). He is unapologetic about his behavior. He sees little hope for his future or for himself. Because of this, he does not have the desire or expectation of forgiveness. “But who cares right? It's not like I'm going to be here much longer. I'm never in any one place long enough to care” (page 8). Throughout the book Zits goes through transformations in many different bodies. Through these transformations, he realizes that hatred and shame only grants you unhappiness. Every human is capable of betrayal, he learns. This allows him to empathize with others similar to his father. Once Zits begins to forgive others, he finds peace within himself and uncovers a better life. “But I'm beginning to think I've been given a chance. I'm beginning to think I might get unkindly. I'm beginning to think I might have an almost real family” (page

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