The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-time Indian, is a tale of a young Native American boy who has a struggle with poverty, a need for support in his decision making, and a show of courage when times seem hopeless. Junior is not a typical Native American boy. He wants to succeed in life and the only way to do that is leave the reservation for better schooling. The story takes place in times of great despair as well as happiness.
On every reservation there is poverty. On every reservation there is alcohol abuse. On every reservation there is domestic abuse resulting from alcohol abuse. Every day there are victims on the reservations around the world, and this story is a sneak peek into one young boy’s life. Poverty is very common among Native American’s living on reservations. Income is small if any, and is spent on alcohol or drugs. Junior’s parents drink, his mother not so much, but his father does quite frequently.
At one point Junior claims on Christmas his father goes on a drinking binge until January 2, and when he arrives home he pulls a crumpled five dollar bill out of his boot. Junior is touched by this action, knowing his father is an alcoholic and was able to save five dollars was touching. Juniors ex-best friend is a victim of domestic violence due to his father drinking alcohol. When it comes to making choices, Junior seems to look for help. Since Junior’s grandmother was hit by a drunken native and killed, he lost on person he could talk with.
Junior loses people he cares about, whether it is from death or from him leaving the reservation. Mary, Junior’s only sister moved out and got a life of her own, only for it to end in a house fire and leading to her death. Junior has lost another close person, and his ex best friend blamed him for her death. As a result Junior would need confidence in himself to keep him going, and not want to give up on his schooling, and family. When Junior arrives to Reardan he is nervous and scared. Junior quotes “The only other Indian at the school, after all, is the mascot. In order to succeed one must take on challenges, and endure them. In Reardan Junior is called names but no real physical damage is being done, so Junior punches the jock of the school after being told a racist joke. The jock was shocked and had respect for Junior after this event. As the story progresses Junior shows bravery by confronting his ex-best friend, his old town, and the loss of two family members. He shows that being a warrior does not just mean being strong physically, but also mentally. The story to me was a fairly easy read.
The Essay on Native American Story Telling
Story telling was the heart of Native American culture. The way natives executed everyday tasks and their way of thinking came from what they heard as children from stories that were passed through multiple generations. When White Settlers started tearing tribe by tribe apart and claiming Native American land as their own, a dwindling effect on the rich Native’s culture became noticeable. The ...
In a way I could relate to some of the events. Growing up I was not effected by poverty, but I know plenty of families that are. The story has plenty of messages, but I am not fully sure what they all happened to be. What I received from this story is, in order to succeed a person may need to endure struggles that are not necessary but are in order to succeed. Overall I enjoyed the story and would like to read it again. Sherman Alexie’s novel, The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-time, Indian is a comical, dramatic, and heart felt story.
Throughout the story Junior matures, and learns how to better handle situations. Junior also learns to cope with poverty, a need for support in his decision making, and a show of courage when times seem hopeless. As Junior matures he realizes his reservation is beautiful to him, as it maybe to anyone passing through, and he takes the little things in life into account. This story is a wonderful tale and may give you a life or a ‘feel-sorry’ mood. This is a story that I will quite possibly read again, and quite possibly get a differen t meaning out of it.
