Interpret/explain/explore the context and significance of the last line of the book.

      The last line of the book was "we didn't keep score." Rowdy and Junior were playing a game of basketball on the last page of the book and the last line was we didn't keep score. In the pages before junior and Rowdy made up with each other and started to become friends again. Junior once again asked Rowdy to join him in Reardan and once again Rowdy denied. Also he accepted a challenge to play one on one with Rowdy. This shows his personality. Back to the part right before the game of basketball Rowdy tells Junior that he is the nomadic one, the one person on the rez that actually does something. He realizes Junior's dreams and believes he can accomplish them. Then Junior started to cry and Rowdy told him to stop and play some ball.

      The last line means that even though the friends had two intense games of basketball, even though there were crushing defeats, even though Rowdy gave Junior a concussion in one of the games, it is only a game. At the end they realize that now matter how important a basketball game, no matter if it is the championship, there will always be more important things. The sentence means that the score of a game doesn't matter in perspective to things like family and friends. It means no matter how important you might think a game is, it is a pin drop compared to other things in someone's life.

Question: Why do you think that after all the games they played, they suddenly decided that they don't care who wins?

What does Junior realize about his own identity, his life and Rowdy (these are all different)?

Identity: Throughout the novel, Arnold was facing the dilemma of choosing between rez Junior & Reardan Arnold. In the final chapter Arnold realizes that he doesn't have to only be rez Junior or Reardan Arnold and he realizes that he doesn't have to choose what group(s) of people he belongs to. This is evidenced on page 217 when he talk about he realized that he was both a Spokane Indian but he also belonged to a "tribe"of American immigrants.

Life: In the final chapter, Arnold finally decides that his decision to leave was the right one for him to make for his life. On page 217, Arnold says that he is going to have a better life in the white world and he realizes that he was not the only one who left their homes to pursue their dreams. This shows that Arnold thinks it was the right choice because he says he is going to have a better life. 

Rowdy: Arnold also realizes that Rowdy supports his decision to leave the rez for the outside world. That is shown on page 229-230 when Rowdy talk about how the Indians were originally nomads and Rowdy says that he is happy for Arnold. That clearly shows that Rowdy supports Arnold, but the one on one ball game that they played also shows that Rowdy supported Arnold because they didn't keep score, showing that they weren't playing to beat each other.

Do you think that Rowdy and Arnold will remain friends in the future (after the book)?

Ho does Arnold eventually find out who he is?

Arnold has always been a bit of a outcast who nobody ever really cared for too well "a nomad" as Rowdy put it. Arnold however finished his year strong and regained his friendship with Rowdy. His identity is truly discovered in the last few pages of the book. At the point where he learns or figures out that he has or fits into alot of groupings. With so much loss Arnold has begun to focus on the important things in life, including his family and his friends. With each loss his appreciation for each thing he still had became exponentially more intense, as shown when he is so happy to find his dad alive.

          Sherman Alexie has been putting Arnold through alot of very tough situations with his family and social life. He put Arnold through all of there things to show how resilient Arnold really is, he pulled through from the very beginning. Through all of his happy moments that pushed him forward and the sad ones that held him back. Arnold grew up, and found that his fitting in depended completely on how he took on his problems. Rowdy returns at the end of the book as a closing scene for Arnold, his friend was back. It presents a very nice scene of basketball where they don't keep score. Arnold finds his identity through his bumpy life, where he ended up being stronger than he ever imagined.
What would you give Arnold as Advice? Who was the most important character? What do you think brought Rowdy back?

In this time of grief, why do you think Junior laughs so much? What are the specific moments where he laughs the hardest?

Junior seems to be one mixed up kid right now. His recent life of such decisive highs and lows has affected his emotions to the point where he does things like laugh for a long time at his sister's death (especially since it was rather gruesome). The grief-storm he has been living in has completely messed up his expectations of life. For example,on page 205, when his father arrives to pick him up, he is only thinking about the fact that his father could die any minute. At that moment, he sees his own mortality very vividly. When everything in the world around him collapses, he is like a twig in a stream. Eventually however, if he rides out this portion of his life he will take root and become like a root in that same stream, battered but immovable. I think this is Sherman Alexie's way of saying that we all have highs and lows in life, and no matter how bad the lows are, just remember that somewhere in the future is a high as high as the low was low. Furthermore, at Arnold's grandmother's funereal ceremony, Arnold realizes that laughter and tears are not so far away, and how quickly they can interchange.

Immediately after, when Arnold stops laughing, his father explains to him how his sister died, Arnold begins laughing again, and even harder this time, and then all of a sudden comes this, "Well, I laughed until about halfway home, and then I fell asleep. Snap, just like that. Things had gotten so intense. so painful, that my body had just checked out for a few repairs (206)." Sherman Alexie is using this as a transition to an in-and-out of consciousness scene, but more importantly to say that after a certain amount of time, that twig in the stream snaps. It is hard to empathize with what Arnold is going through because many of us have not experienced this type of family catastrophe. This is Alexie giving the reader something to empathize with a little more, and that is losing consciousness. Finally, on page 211, Arnold describes something he's never experienced before, which is Rowdy missing a punch. This is because he is crying at Arnold's sister's funereal, but refuses to admit it. And after all this, Arnold laughs like a mad man.

Do you think Arnold's life will settle down a little more in the oncoming weeks/months? Or do you think he will just roll on in this state until his emotions are mixed into unrecognizable blends?

What does Rowdy say to Junior? Why does he say this? Do you think there is truth in this? -Isaac

During Junior's sister's funeral he runs into Rowdy in the woods. Junior realizes that Rowdy is crying and he misses a punch. Rowdy says "It's your fault. It's all your fault." He says this because he thinks that Junior's leaving the rez gave his sister the courage to get married and move to Montana. I think he is right, Junior inspired his sister to leave the rez. She saw him pursuing his dream so she set out to pursue her own. 

I think Sherman Alexie is trying to show that there is always love within death. This exists on many levels, when Junior runs into Rowdy, he sees that he really misses Rowdy and he wants to be friends like they used to be. On another level, when someone you love dies you will always love them and that is love in death.

When Rowdy blames Junior for his sister's death he isn't focused on Junior's sister. He is crying because of her death, but he is also crying for the loss of a friend. Rowdy is mad at Junior and he runs away because he can't face the one challenge he can't solve with a punch.

Questions: Will Arnold ever be able to fix his friendship with Rowdy? Will Arnold's personality start to fade because of all the death? Will Arnold be able to up hold his life on the Reardan side of things? Below are some quotes about love and death.

http://www.funeralhelper.org/funeral-quotes/love-and-death-quotes.html

Summarize the outcome of the game. Why does Junior cry at the end? What does he realize?

Arnold's victory in the game brought him mixed emotions. "Coach and my teammates thought I was crying tears of happiness. But I wasn't. I was crying tears of shame". In another quote, Arnold describes how all the white kids on his team were well off and how they had futures outside of Basketball, but for his tribe members, that was all they had to strive for in their lives. Unlike the white kids, they were confined to their depressing surroundings. And when they got home, they knew that some of the parents would beat them for not winning the game whereas if the Reardan kids lost, their family's would be far more accepting and supportive.

When Arnold realizes that he has taken away something that mattered dearly to his old friend, he had a fit of remorse. He ran off into the bathroom and started vomiting and crying. He teammates assumed that this was simply out of excitement and happiness, but it was truly out shame that he had rid the rez kids of hope from accelling in life. This goes to show that Arnold's inner dispute between moving on in life or staying at the rez even applies to Arnold's basketball games.

How do you think Arnold's Parents feel about the game?

In the end Arnold's dad was looking at the Wellpinit kids as though he had some sympathy for them but does this pose any further complication to the plot?

If Arnold could have changed the outcome of the game, do you think he would have?

Summarize the outcome of the game. Why does Junior cry at the end? What does he realize?

     After the disappointing loss at the beginning of the season, Reardan come back strong to beat Wellpinit. Not only do they beat Wellpinit, but they win by forty points. Arnold is overjoyed, thinking that Reardan, the underdog, was able to come out on top. Because of this, he is happily celebrating with his teammates. All of this stops when he realizes that "my team, the Reardan Indians, was Goliath.... Ok, so maybe my white teammates had problems, but none of their problems was life threatening (p.195)." This realization brings things back in to perspective for Arnold. He goes on to think about all of the life threatening situations the boys on the rez were in (hunger, fathers who were drunks or drug dealers). After this he starts to cry, ashamed of his reaction because he's been on the other side of that defeat before. 
     All of his Reardan teammates have lots of material possessions, are going off to college, and have stable situations at home. The Indian boys don't have any of that. Although Reardan felt like the underdog because of the loss early in the season, they were actually favored just because of the situations they live in. This simple fact makes Arnold regret his reaction to the win, and he even cries what his team thinks are tears of happiness, but are actually tears of shame. How should Arnold have handled the victory? Do you think his reaction was justified, or do you think he should have been more considerate because of the living situation on the rez?

Why does Arnold Become a Man? Shayan

In this reading Arnold has to play Wellpinit in a basketball game. He is nervous to play because of what Rowdy did to him last time the two schools played each other. When Rearden plays Wellpinit this chapter, Arnold takes the ball from Rowdy when he tries to dunk it. He embarrassed Rowdy by taking the ball from him and scoring a three. Rearden wins the game and they are all happy. Now Arnold has become a man. He denied his best friend who had been better then him for fourteen years, but why? It was because of support.

Arnold got support from from so many people in his life. His grandmother, Eugene, and his parents all supported him. Eugene and his grandmother are dead now, but Arnold thinks of what they would say to support him. The book says "I looked up in the crowd into the crowd to see if my dad was in his usual place, high up in the northwest corner. And there he was. I waved at him. He waved back." Even though his dad is a drunk and forgets to pick him up from school, Arnold's dad supports him. So does his coach, Penelope, and his teammates. 

Question: Why does Arnold become a man in this reading?

2. In the last sentence on page 167, Junior says: "And all of us laughed as we walked and drove and rode our way back to our lonely, lonely houses." What is the irony in this? Why is this such a powerful moment for Junior? What is he saying about his tribe?

This line in the book is probably THE STRANGEST SENTENCE IN IT. It is DEFINITELY ironic because Arnold's grandmother, whom everyone loves, just died, and everyone is laughing DURING HER FUNERAL! This is also ironic because right after the word "laughing" is "as we walked and drove our way back to our lonely, lonely houses. This is a very powerful moment for junior because he has just lost his widely loved grandmother and yet not only is he laughing, but his whole tribe is laughing too (and for once not at him)! What this says about his tribe is that although they give him a lot of crap, they respect him and his grandmother and even feel open enough to laugh with him. They are good spirited, sane (when sober), and respectful (when sober) people.

Question: Why did they start laughing (other than that rich guy just embarrassing himself)?

1.What do Juniors lists on pages 176,177, and 178 tell about him at the moment?

      When Junior is listing the things in his life that "give him the most joy in his life," Sherman Alexie sets in a very intentional order. For the people at the moment he has Rowdy listed at number one. I believe even though Rowdy hates Arnold's guts, and even if they never repair their severed ties they will always have the time they did spend together. There is  an old Billie Holiday song titled It had to be you, and there is a line in the song that goes "I would be glad just to be sad thinking of you." I could not have said it better for Arnold and Rowdy's relationship. Even when Arnold misses Rowdy he still is glad to remember the times they did spend together, and those memories are a signal of hope for Arnold when he needs to have the most hope.  Rowdy comes before the family as pointed out by Arnold on page 24, "I think Rowdy might be more important than my family. Can your best friend be more important than you family?". Next  on the list is his parents, who he still, even though sometimes is disappointed with he always respects. After that are the two dead people, but their memories still bring joy to him. Then are the Rearden people. The one that surprised me the most was Penelope being last. Penelope accepted him for who he is as a poor Indian, she brought him up the social scale, and helped his loneliness level drop way down. I just think Arnold does not think that she actually fully loves him, even though she has given him no reason not to.

      The next list is about the music that brings him the most joy. On the top of the list he talks about his mothers band being number one, and his being last. The music that brings him joy is not his favorite music but that of his mother. His is last This really shows a lot about Arnold's character and his care for other people.

   The next list is about his favorite books. The number one is The Grapes Of Wrath. It is about an impoverished family and focuses on economic issues. The number two book is Catcher in the Rye. It is about teenage angst. These are the two things that show his conflicts. Just trying to be a kid and being limited by the money issues that surround his everyday life. He shows this on page 119, "My parents gave me enough money so that I could pretend to have more money than I did. I lied about how poor I was."

    The last list is his favorite basketball players. Basketball is one of the most important things in Arnold's life at the moment. It gave him a support group more or less. For example on page 175, "And then Roger stood up and dropped his textbook. WHOMP! Then the other basketball players did the same.WHOMP! WHOMP! WHOMP!" This is a time when Arnold needs other people to stand up for him , and he has the team at his back. They are there when he needs people there.


Questions: 1. Imagine you are Arnold, in all he has been through. Who would be at the top of your list  (characters). Why?

2.  Is Sherman Alexie foreshadowing with any of these lists?

3. Why does Roger come before Gordy on his list? Is Roger a more important person to Arnold?

And all of us laughed as we walked and drove and rode our way back to our lonely, lonely houses.

 In the last sentence on page 167, Junior says: "And all of us laughed as we walked and drove and rode our way back to our lonely, lonely houses." What is the irony in this? Why is this such a powerful moment for Junior? What is he saying about his tribe?

      On page 167, when Junior says, "And all of us laughed as we walked and drove and rode our way back to our lonely, lonely houses", there is definitely some irony in that statement. The irony in this passage is that all the Indians are laughing at a funeral, and then after the laughing, they don't say another word, and they just drive back to their houses, their former ways, where there will be no more talking. Also, after they laugh, everyone goes back to getting drunk and living sad lives. This is a powerful moment for Junior, because he sees that one moment you are happy and laughing and the next your sad and crying. Junior notices that he can connect with the rez people and laugh with them when they aren't trying to bully him. He knows that he will never be able to laugh with the Indians on the rez, as long as they keep being very mean to him. At the funeral, everyone is connected.  As they returned, the houses are "lonely," because they return to their regular lives, where they are not strong in a group. Junior won't get the chance to connect with his tribe if they can't get over the fact that Arnold is different. 

      Sherman Alexie made Junior experience this because this is making the plot move forward, in a way that Junior actually connected with his tribe, and he wasn't being bullied. Junior was able to laugh with his community, but Junior may never experience that again. Sherman Alexie chose this scene to happen, because it shows that after all the laughing that was done during the funeral, when it ended and when everyone was going home, everyone went back to being depressed again. No lesson was learned. This moment was significant because it makes Junior realize that at the rez, there is one emotion at one second and another  emotion the next second. Nothing has or will change. Do you think that Junior will get to experience the laughter again? Will the death of Junior's grandmother interfere with Junior's time at Reardan or his social life?

Why does Junior say he would always love his tribe? What do you think this reveals about Junior? -henry

In this chapter a lot of people in Arnold's life die. First his grandmother dies then Eugene dies. These deaths cause him to miss school for around 20 days. During this his tribe stops giving him grief about going to rerdan.  The tribe mourns his grandmother with him and attends her funeral without giving him trouble. When Ted the billionaire shows up with the powwow costume that doesn't belong to that tribe the whole tribe laughs with him and the whole tribe buries her together. He gets confirmation that the tribe doesn't hate him but they are nice.
             This reveals that Arnold has proved his point. He has proved that even through struggle and injury you can still achieve your dreams. It also shows that the struggles have all been part of the learning process. He figures out that all of his struggles are all for his learning and that all of his problems will help him further in life. This can be seen because when he is in a situation where he is being hated on he starts to laugh and realize that he is doing something good.  It shows that he has gained self confidence and is willing to try something and stand up for himself.

How do you think that Ted helped bring the tribe closer?

How did Junior make the basketball team? In what ways was this related to his conversation with his dad earlier?

Junior made the team because he made the shot when he was doing a one on one drill against the best player on the team- Rodger. The first time Junior did this drill against Rodger he was on offense, he had the ball and was dribbling down the court when Rodger stuck out his and and took it from him. The second time Junior was on defense and Rodger ran right over him and made it to the basket while Junior was still on the ground. By this point the coach had approached Junior and asked him if he wanted to take a break or give it another shot. Junior knew from experience that taking a break meant not making the team so he gave it another shot. This time he noticed a bad move Rodger had made and used it to his advantage, rolling around Rodger, Junior stopped at the three point mark and shot. Sure enough he made it in! After that Junior knew he had made the team.

I think that one of the reasons Junior decided to give the drill another try as opposed to taking a break was due to some advice his dad gave him on page 136, he said "You have to dream big to get big." Arnold knew that the chances of him making it around Rodger and let alone making the shot were slim. Though I think that during the drill his fathers words were ringing in his head saying "You have to dream big to get big." "You have to dream big to get big." I think that Sherman Alexie added this passage into the book as an inspiration to the reader. Even though Arnold was the runt of the players he knew that he was not going to make the team if he did not even try so he did and look where that left him.

Who is the first game against? How is he treated by the crowd at the first game? How does the team (and coach) react/support him? How does this impact him?- Bobby Tearney

The first game of the basketball season, of course was against Wellpinit. This game definitely gave Arnold pressure. When he walked into the gym at Wellpinit, everyone turned their backs. This symbolizes that no one from the Rez has and never will forgive Arnold for what he did. Oddly enough, though this made Arnold and his team laugh. The crowd really hates Arnold. Even though the crowd hates Arnold, his team and coach really boosted his confidence. The coach even says "You don't have to play this one." His coach and teammates know that this is going to be a hard game for Arnold and it was.

Arnold was impacted by his coach and team. If you walk into a game and everyone hates you, you feel like you are nothing. But, with the coach and team Arnold feels like somebody. Arnold needed a boost and he got it. This is also an important part in the book because it shows that he was able to make friends who really care for and about him. This part also shows how Rowdy and Junior's relationship is going. Though the main reason why this chapter is in the book is to show that Arnold made it somewhere. He was the only brave person in the Rez, and the only one with hope. Sherman Alexie really emphasized how much Wellpinit hated Arnold for a reason. Arnold has made friends and have people to rely on.

Question: After this basketball game, how much do you think that Arnold's confidence was boosted?

Who is the first game against? How is he treated by the crowd at the first game? How does the team (and coach) react/support him? How does this impact him? - Ben Blackburn

When Reardan went into their first game against Wellpinit Junior was worried and scared.  He was worried that all of the kids in the gym were taunting him when he walked in and it continued into the game.  Junior was hated by all of the people in the gym that day.  His friends and his teammates tried to help him by laughing when all of the people turned their back on him.  Although his friends tried to help him and boost his spirits it wasn't enough.  It was a pretty devastating game for Junior.  He had gotten things thrown at him and got bumped around in the game.  All of the people at the gym wanted to kill him.  Even Rowdy. "And then I noticed that the only Indian who hadn't turned his back on me was Rowdy... He wanted to kill me, face-to-face."  The author shows how hostile the Indian environment is on the rez.  Sherman Alexie is really stating the fact that once you leave your tribe you cant go back.  I think that this is especially hurtful to Junior because he thought that he had a slight chance with Rowdy.  But once he was knocked out that chance disappeared.  This re-enforces his appleness.  Even though he's an Indian on the outside he's white on the inside.  At least that's what all of the people on the rez think.  Junior may not want to be an apple but the Indians are making him one.

Who is the first game against? How is he treated by the crowd at the first game? How does the team (and coach) react/support him? How does this impact him?

The first basketball game for Reardan is against Wellpinit High School, which happens to be the school that Arnold used to go to. Everyone in the rez currently thinks of Arnold as a traitor.  The crowd at Wellpinit expresses their hatred towards Arnold by turning their backs on him.  They chant "Ar-nold sucks!" which is what Arnold is greeted with as he enters the gym.  This doesn't make Arnold feel especially sad in the moment, he feels mad and wants revenge.  The most unexpected part is that he begins to laugh at his old school. His team is supportive as well as the coach of the team and join his laugh.   The coach of the Reardan team seems to understand Arnold very well and even asks if him if he would like to sit out for the game.  An important passage when Coach shows he believes in Arnold is right before the game, "If you care about something enough, it's going to make you cry. But you have to use it. Use your tears. Use you pain. Use your fear (p.144)".  Even Coach is accepting an Indian kids from the rez. The community of Reardan is definitely changing and accepting him step by step.

Having support from his team mates clearly gives Arnold a boost of self esteem.  He just wants to play and beat Wellpinit.  In this chapter you can see a clear change of Arnold's attitude which shows his competitive side.  The author wants to show that the new Arnold has taken over the old rez Junior.

Questions: Do you think that the new Arnold is better than the rez Junior? 

Junior says that the night of the Winter Formal was one of the "best nights of his life." Why? Explain. Do you think it could be a great night, but also confusing for Junior at the same time? Why?

          The winter formal was one of the best nights of Arnold's life because he felt accepted by everyone else. At the beginning of the chapter he was worried because he didn't have enough money and he had to wear his dad's hideous suit. He was worried that people would make fun of him. Penelope yelled that the suit was beautiful which not only made him feel better about himself but it made everyone else jealous of him. When he said that the Winter Formal was one of the best nights of his life, he didn't have to spend any money yet so nobody found out that he was poor, making the night better. The fact that he was with Penelope and they were having fun dancing together made the night even better. I think that it was a great night overall for him but I think it was a little confusing for Arnold because he thought it was going to go horribly wrong and everyone would make fun of him but at that point, everything was perfect. He thought that everyone one would make fun of him for having a suit from the 70's but instead all the guys were jealous of him and all the girls were jealous of Penelope. Even Roger was was nice to him although Arnold punched him. The night didn't go the way he expected it to which must have been surprising and confusing but it was unexpected in a good way.

Do you think that Arnold would have said that the Winter Formal night was the best night of his life at the end of the night (after he got home)? Why?

"Life is a constant struggle between being an individual and being a member of the community."

           When Gordy says "well, life is a constant struggle between being an individual and being a member of the community," it perfectly describes Arnold in his current situation. The quote means that to be a part of your community, you have to be like everyone else. If you are not like everyone else than the other people in the community will just ignore you or treat you as an outsider. When you try to find your identity you might have to break the similarity in the community. It's a struggle because you can either chose to have friends within in your society or find your identity somewhere else. You cannot chose both. Gordy also says "Weird people still get banished." This means that even in today's society people who are different or have different ideas are still treated as an outsider. People still do not like differences.

        These two statements directly connect to Arnold's life because his community is the rez and the people on the rez. When he leaves the rez to find hope and a new life where he knows what he can do in life and who he can become, everyone back on the rez treats him like an outsider. He is an outcast at his home. He is an outcast because he tried to find his identity in an all white place. Now he struggles between his choices. 

        Should he find his identity and live as an outcast among his friends, or live at his house where he is treated as a friend and not have any hope?

What are the implications of Arnold's discussion with Rowdy's father?

After the Spirit family thanksgiving dinner, Arnold goes to deliver a cartoon to Rowdy which he thinks will help mend their friendship. He meets Rowdy's dad at the door (drunk as usual) who tells him that Rowdy is not home. When Arnold asks Rowdy's father to deliver the cartoon, Rowdy's dad looks it over and smirks, saying on page 103, "You're kinda gay aren't you?" The character of this man explains a lot about Rowdy's anger at the world at large, because he presumably treats his son in the same manner. When Arnold is walking away, he looks back to see that Rowdy is in fact home, and is looking at Arnold's cartoon. Rowdy seems sad, and somewhat lonely, presumably missing Arnold as much as Arnold misses Rowdy.

Arnold continues to think about this after, later on page 103, he waves to Rowdy and Rowdy responds with "the finger" from his window. He realizes that even though Rowdy didn't respond positively, he didn't tear the comic up. This means, Arnold hypothesizes, that Rowdy still has some respect left for Arnold, or maybe for the Arnold who was Junior, who was his friend. Counterpoint to this, and further complicating the situation, is the fact that Rowdy's father lied about Rowdy's whereabouts. This could possibly be a signal that Rowdy has decided to try to move on without Arnold, who he feels, and not totally unjustly, has betrayed him.

Question: What do you think is going to come out of this clash of societies in terms of Arnold's friendship with Rowdy?

Page 1116 "Your just as racist as everyone else" Do you agree with Roger? How does this make Arnold racist?

On page 116, Roger explains that Arnold is "Just as racist as everyone else" When Arnold asks for help about his white girlfriend ("How can i get a white girl to love me?"). Do you agree with Roger? how does it make Arnold racist if he treats Penelope as a "bowling trophy"? I agree that Arnold is racist, the first white girl he ever met or talked to, he instantly fell in love with. He is inspired by the new race, and treats them like they are better, as he was told in his household.
 Also on page 110 Arnold explains that being with Penelope made him feel "new" as the school and white people felt. how do you think Penelope makes him feel new? Do you think Dawn and Penelope have a close relationship?
Also, when Arnold says on page 112 "We both wanted to fly" What is flying a symbol of? How will Arnold fly? I think Penelope's big "goofy" dreams will have an impact on what Arnold wants to do. Even though Arnold is extremely intelligent I think Penelope will slow him down, since he is so focused on being popular in his Rearden.

                                                  Penelope, Unable to be scared (Pg 98-117)


         Junior says, "...she's scared all the time, but nobody will let her be scared...". this is Penelope's great secret. She is bulimic which is an eating disorder where one will eat alot and then purge their system by vomiting or other laxitives. However she is also the "queen" of Reardan and can't show her weaknesses hence the line "...but nobody will let her be scared...". This shows really how reality deals an equal hand to everyone. Even someone like Penelope. Her character seems to represent the impossibility of perfection, this isnt the usual nerd gets the girl kind of story. This is stark reality, and Arnold knows how to deal with it the best. Society is portraited in this book as the other kids at Reardan. They don't let you be yourself or show your real feelings. Since Junior is really a newcomer to this society he hasn't completely lost his sense of caring for somebody. The lack of caring however reflects on both Arnold and Penelope, Arnold having been bullied onthe Rez and Penelope being unable to show her true feelings and/or trust others with her secret.

          From a analytical view it seems that Sherman Alexie is trying to put reality on spotlight, he brings in newer and newer examples of how reality, often harsh, changes the lives of people no matter what background. His examples of losing a friend, a girlfriend with bulimia, physical and mental disease, and losing his dog all surround this line in the sand that limits the dreams one can acomplish, especially Arnold. Do you think the school sudden acknowledgement of Junior's existance will last? How about Penelop and him?
Are Rowdy and Arnold on the track back to friends? Was it a one time occasion?

In response to question 3:

Gordy and Junior's friendship plays a major role in preventing Junior from completely isolating himself at Reardan. He has already earned the respect of Roger and some of the tough kids, but has failed to get the attention of Penelope, even after he did the trick-or-treating for charity. Eventually, however, even Roger's respect faded and Arnold was completely disregarded by his peers and even by the teacher. It was only when Arnold aggressively made himself friends with Gordy that he was able to interact with someone.

Arnold and Gordy seem to by a very good match for friends. Both are outliers and relatively "geeky" compared to the other kids in their grade. But Gordy is also another important figure in Arnold's life. We can see that he teaches Arnold how to dissect the little aspects of life and how when looking into detail, one can discover many different mysteries. He provides Arnold with a positive role model to follow and teaches him many valuable lessons. But a big question would be how does this relationship rival the one with Rowdy and which one is more beneficial to Arnold.

On pages 82-84, Junior explains how alone he feels. Why does he feel this way? How does what happens in science class reinforce this feeling?-Isaac

Arnold feels alone because he is excluded. He thought once he had a connection with Penelope and that he would be noticed, but not at all. Arnold is lonely. He doesn't talk to anyone. He doesn't socialize with anyone. 

When Arnold is lonely he grows a zit. Sherman is trying to show that people are often judged on physical appearance. People judged Arnold and ignored him. Now they are even more likely to ignore him because he has a giant zit. Arnold is an outcast within an outcast.

In science class, Mr. Dodge, the science teacher, is talking about petrified wood and how wood could turn into rock. Junior raises his hand and proves him wrong. (pg. 85) Dodge stared at me. He was dangerously angry..."Gordy," Dodge said, all happy and relieved and stuff. "I'm sure you can tell us the truth." Mr. Dodge doesn't trust Arnold. He doesn't trust the Indian, but when Gordy raises his hand he is relieved because he trusts Gordy, the white kid. Sherman is trying to show that racism still exists today in our society. People trust the white people more than the minorities.

Questions: Will Arnolds sister leaving effect Arnold in the future? Will there be negative or positive effects? Will Arnolds friendship with Gordy help Arnold not feel depressed?

Why is Junior Ignored? Shayan Olumi

Junior tells Penelope that he will collect money for the poor and pool it with each other to send to charity. Junior wants to try to get closer to Penelope by doing this. In the beginning of the chapter it seems that they might become friends but, they don't. Penelope ignores him as usual. Junior was back to being a disregarded Indian at a white boy's school.

I think Penelope ignored Junior so she would not be caught hanging out with the outcast. If she was seen by her friends then that would look badly on her, so she ignores him. "I thought she'd start paying more attention to me and that everyone else would notice and then i would become the most popular dude in the place, but nothing much changed." Do you think that Arnold is being ignored because it would look bad for Penelope to hang out with him, or because Penelope truly doesn't like Arnold?

Why is Junior hesitant to tell Rowdy? Why does he tell him? How does Rowdy react? Why does he react this way? Oliver Resnick

                 
                      Rowdy has been Junior's best and only friend for fourteen years. He is the only person Junior can feel safe around and he is Junior's protector. Junior is terrified that when he tells Rowdy of his change Rowdy will flip, and all that time, all that commitment that they put into becoming best friends will be wasted. Junior knows he has to move on. He knows that he might have to make some sacrifices to find hope and a better life, but rowdy is the hardest sacrifice that Junior will have to make. Junior tells Rowdy because " I'm not trying to get you mad, I want you to come with me ( pg.49)." Junior knows that Rowdy would never leave the rez in the back of his mind, but some part of him still thinks it as a possibility. It is wishful thinking. The real and main reason he tells Rowdy is he respects him to much to lie and he knows that Rowdy deserves to know. Rowdy takes the news as expected. He has absolutely no control over his emotions. He screams in pain, because no matter how many times he has been beaten black and blue, he never really shows emotion. He is always just angry, but through this angry scream, he is begging Junior to stay. He is down on his needs pleading, he needs Junior. Rowdy has no one else, his dad beats him and his mom doesn't care. Everyone is terrified of him, but Junior. He is even more alone than Junior, without mental handicaps.


Questions:  1. Do you think Rowdy and Junior will ever repair a broken friendship? If so can it ever be as strong as it was before?

2. Will Rowdy branch out and meet other people or as Junior said he wanted to, become a hermit-like being?

3. If you were Junior would you pick your hopes and dreams over your loyal best and only friend?


Sorry I'm late

What Forces Impact Arnold’s Identity? (Guiding Question Response)

Arnold, even early in the book, has had many struggles with his identity. These are especially prevalent when he begins thinking about his transfer to Reardan and during his first few days there. Arnold believes that he will be judged and hurt by the other Indians for “betray[ing] your tribe (p.55).” It is extremely uncommon for an Indian to leave the rez and make an effort to break the cycle of poverty. This will cause Arnold to stand out even more, putting him in a position to be physically and verbally abused.  When he arrives at Reardan, Arnold is subject to hurtful and strikingly overt racism. They make fun of him for everything from his heritage to his name. These are both qualities that did not make Arnold strange or different on the rez, but he now has to deal with cultural changes in addition to his disabilities and differences in appearance.

Arnold is stuck in the middle because he is not as “Indian” as the Indians on the rez want him to be, and at the same time he is nowhere close to the whites at his new school (shown in diagram p.57). This relates back to the title of “The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian” because Arnold is living partially in the sad, hopeless, and tough world on the rez but he's been thrown into the extremely different society at Reardan. Arnold’s identity struggle centers mainly on trying to hold on to his Indian side but at the same time trying to conform to the norms at his new school. Because of this, the main forces impacting Arnold/Junior’s identity so far have been his heritage, his desire for acceptance, and his struggle to balance the two. Do you thing Arnold will be able to hold on the two sides of his life? How? If not, which one will he let go of?

Junior tells Rowdy about Reardan- Kayla Duran

Junior tells Rowdy about Reardan

   

   Junior had a tough time telling Rowdy that he was going to Reardan, because Rowdy is Junior's best friend and only friend, and he was unsure how Rowdy was going to act. Junior was scared and nervous because he didn't know how Rowdy was going to act. Junior decided to tell Rowdy that he was going to Reardan because Junior wanted Rowdy to come too. Also, Junior didn't want Rowdy to be surprised and mad that he was leaving. Junior was trying to make Rowdy more comfortable in this situation.

      Rowdy acted the opposite of how Junior thought he was going to act. Rowdy was furious. Rowdy thought Junior was joking at first, but after he realized that Junior wasn't kidding he lost his temper. Junior's best friend started to fade away, as Junior kept telling Rowdy that he was going to leave to Reardan. Rowdy started to think of Junior as a white lover. Rowdy acted negatively about this idea because Rowdy was an all star in every sport, and every sport he played Reardan crushed him in every game. Rowdy also thought of Junior as a traitor because Junior caught Rowdy off guard. Finally, Rowdy thought that Junior was leaving him for other people. Rowdy was not ready for this situation, and Junior and Rowdy may never talk to each other again. Do you think this situation with Rowdy changed Junior's idea of going to Reardan? Will Rowdy become just another person who picks on Junior?

Interpret/explore/explain the context and the significance of the quote “Every white person on this res should get smashed in the face. But let me tell you this. All the Indians should get smashed in the face, too.” (42) (Jack Deford)

While explaining and confessing to Junior about his past, Mr. P says that “Every white person on this res should get smashed in the face. But let me tell you this. All the Indians should get smashed in the face, too.” (42). He says this because everyone on the reservation has lost all hope. The only person on the reservation who still has a little bit of hope left is Junior. The reservation sucks the hope out of everyone, including whites, so that is why the next thing Mr. P says is that Junior needs to leave the reservation. FOREVER. (It's the "forever" that gets their attention!) If he does not leave the reservation then the reservation will suck all the hope he has left out of him. That is why he must leave the reservation: because if he does not then there will be no hope left for any Indians in Spokane. So I leave you with these questions: Why do you think he must leave forever? Can he ever come back? How do you think Rowdy will react?

What is Mr. P's advice to Junior? Why does he give this advice?

The advice Mr. P gives to Junior (on page 42) is that he should leave the reservation.  I believe this is very good advice to give to an Indian child living in this environment because of all of the people he sees give up around him every day just because they were born into the circle of poverty. A quote given by Mr. P says "The only thing you kids are being taught is how to give up. Your friend Rowdy, he's given up. That's why he likes to hurt people. He wants them to feel as bad as he does." 

The reason he gave Junior this advice is because he is one of the only people on the reservation who has not given up hope. There is a quote on page 43 where Mr. P is explaining this to Junior "'But not you' Mr. P said. 'You can't give up. You won't give up. You threw that book in my face because somewhere inside you refused to give up.'" Mr. P also says that Junior is one of the smartest kids on the reservation and that he's the only one who has a chance. Mr. P mainly gave Junior the advice because he does not want him to turn into the rest of the people on the reservation. He wants Junior to make it in life.

Question: Do you think Junior should leave the reservation to find hope?

"We killed the indian to save the child" Henry

There is a lot of racial discrimination against Indians. The government brought in many white teachers to the reservations to help change the Indians to what they believed as real people. They ruined all of the faith in Indian society so that the Indians started to have faith in whites or "real people." A quote form the book is "we must kill the Indian to save the child." I believe that this quote is saying that they must kill the mental aspect of the Indian so they don't know what to think and become a little slave. 

        The part about saving the child in the quote above means that they must change the Indian into a white so that they are a real person. Its like how the Spanish had to convert all of the Indians into Catholics so that they were real people and how they didn't believe that blacks were real people so they could use them as slaves. Manifest destiny also had a part in this. The whites belived that every one not white wasn't human and it was their god given right to make everyone white. That is what I think the quote "we killed the Indian to save the child" means. What do you think? 

On What Does Junior Blame Their Poverty?

Junior has had a tough life growing up.  He's a poor child and has little to look forward to as he believes that he and his family don't have a bright future.  Junior blames his poverty on his parents and his family's past history.  Junior has been tightly wound family that has dreams but the dreams never come true.  When you live on a reservation you have no future.  Junior thinks this because of his parents.  His parents had huge dreams, his dad a jazz musician and his mom a professor.  But in the end they couldn't make them come true.  Junior's family has been stuck on the reservations for generations and from his eyes there is no way out.

Junior's whole life has been revolved around the dreams and failures so much that now he believes that there is no way out.  "We're just poor, that's how we are."  Junior has seen so many bad things go on on the reservation.  Dreams collapse and best friends loss.  Junior has so much depression going on in his life that he really has just given up.  He believes that an Indian isn't made like a white person.  He has accepted this as part of his identity.  He has adopted this thought as a part of himself.  He has given up simply because he is a poor Indian.

Why does Junior say “it sucks to be poor…” (13)? What does “poverty teach you”?- Yuji Chan

Junior lives a tough life at home and outside because he is constantly being bullied about his physical appearance.  Then on top of that, his family- like most in the reservation- are in poverty and very poor.  When Junior says "it sucks to be poor on page 13, he's saying that being poor isn't fair because he feels that he deserves to be poor. It's not fair to be poor because he can't accomplish his dreams, just like his parents.  His dreams will never meet the expectations to escape from being in poverty.  "It's an ugly circle and there's nothing you can do about it (p. 13)".  His family's history is exactly the same as his, he is reliving the circle of being poor.  Alexie, the author, tries to explain an Indian's life in a reservation like Junior's.  He highlights how dangerous the neighborhood is and how the reservation is too poor.

Poverty doesn't teach anyone anything. In this case especially because Junior is stuck in the cycle. Junior absolutely hates being in poverty and he wants to be an artist and not be bullied.  To him all poverty does is teach how to be poor and it doesn't make you stronger.  Poverty is just part of his life and he thinks there is nothing he can do about it.  The author puts the characters in poverty to show how hard it is to survive.

Questions:  Do you think there is something that Junior can do to possibly get out of poverty and help his family? Do you think poverty teaches anything helpful besides being poor?

On what does Junior blame their poverty?- Bobby Tearney

   The main time that Junior blames poverty for his life was when he was describing his parents. Juniors parents had big dreams. Junior said that his mother and father both would have ended up being rich and famous if they had not been born into poverty. A main quote that Junior had about being poor was on page 13 when he said " But we reservation Indians don't get to realize our dreams. We don't get those chances. Or choices. We're just poor. That's all we are." Junior is making the point that reservation Indians just will never have a chance to pursue a dream because nobody will listen to a poor person with big dreams. Junior states that for many many generations his family had been in poverty. He also says that the reason that his family is not rich is because his parents never had a chance. The author is trying to show the reader that poverty can really hold people back from their dreams.
 
   His mom, who practically has a photographic memory, most likely would have been a college professor. His dad would have been a jazz musician. Junior says that if his parents both had a chance and people believed in them, that they would not be in poverty. Sadly though, his parents were born into poverty so they did not have a good chance of pursuing their dreams. Had they been able to pursue their dreams, Juniors life would have been completely different. I think that the author is saying that reservation Indians have never and will never have a chance. Like the quote says, "We're just poor. That's all we are."

Question: Do you think that poverty will someday affect Juniors dream? If so, how?