Native American Literature
Author: Sherman Alexie
Date: 09/03/19
Setting: 1993 Washington, U.S.A
Event: Native Americans' Life
Characters: Victor, the graveyard-shift worker, the police officer, Victor's ex-girlfriend
Memorable Quote: "How do you talk to the real person whose ghost has haunted you? How do you tell the difference between the two?"
In this story, which takes place in the U.S, Victor (the protagonist) shares his intimate thoughts and ideas of what to be a Native American living in modern times is while talks about his failed relationship and attempt to live outside of the Spokane Indian Reservation along with being stereotyped as a failure and a delinquent due to his roots as he expressed in the line "He knew this dark skin and long, black hair of mine was dangerous. I had potential." After finishing the story, I felt a mixture of emotions because the story portraits the life of a person who is going through a rough patch and at the same time belongs to what is considered a minority group which complicates his life even more; the encounters with the police officer and the cashier are evidence of it.
Besides, we have Victor's breakup with his "white" girlfriend which is the reason that triggers all the other events from the story. They lived together in Seattle, but they used to fight a lot; indeed, the girlfriend once said that she was afraid of Victor because he would get angry easily and that he was as drunk as his brother. It was clear that they loved each other, but in those fights, Victor's roots were the big elephant in the room. Then, after one last fight, Victor returns to the place of his childhood. The fact that the people of the reservation are not surprised when they discover that Victor had moved in again was really sad because it demonstrates how they truly believe that they cannot succeed in life or aspire to be more. Victor even mentions that not knowing what to do in life is common for other Native Americans but not for him because he had graduated from college and lived in the city, so he is kind of a hero for his people; therefore, it is really disappointing and hard for him when he has to move back into the reservation.
Throughout the piece, there were lines that triggered me such as "I wanted to tell him that I didn´t really fit the profile of the country but I knew it would just get me into trouble." I can truly imagine many Native Americans feeling that way in real life in a country that once belonged to them because they have suffered from discrimination and stereotypes for many years and actually live in lands that were stolen from them. However, since the media tends to focus more on other minority groups, we do not really think about their struggle until we read stories like this one, and this is why these stories are important and need to be read because they are wake-up calls for us that tell us there are other realities besides ours, and that, in today's world, there are still groups of people struggling with their demons from the past.
Besides, we have Victor's breakup with his "white" girlfriend which is the reason that triggers all the other events from the story. They lived together in Seattle, but they used to fight a lot; indeed, the girlfriend once said that she was afraid of Victor because he would get angry easily and that he was as drunk as his brother. It was clear that they loved each other, but in those fights, Victor's roots were the big elephant in the room. Then, after one last fight, Victor returns to the place of his childhood. The fact that the people of the reservation are not surprised when they discover that Victor had moved in again was really sad because it demonstrates how they truly believe that they cannot succeed in life or aspire to be more. Victor even mentions that not knowing what to do in life is common for other Native Americans but not for him because he had graduated from college and lived in the city, so he is kind of a hero for his people; therefore, it is really disappointing and hard for him when he has to move back into the reservation.Throughout the piece, there were lines that triggered me such as "I wanted to tell him that I didn´t really fit the profile of the country but I knew it would just get me into trouble." I can truly imagine many Native Americans feeling that way in real life in a country that once belonged to them because they have suffered from discrimination and stereotypes for many years and actually live in lands that were stolen from them. However, since the media tends to focus more on other minority groups, we do not really think about their struggle until we read stories like this one, and this is why these stories are important and need to be read because they are wake-up calls for us that tell us there are other realities besides ours, and that, in today's world, there are still groups of people struggling with their demons from the past.
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