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?
*think
ReplyDeleteTo me, It seems that later in Arnold's life, he's going to have to make a choice between staying on the rez and embracing his family and heritage, or leave and move to the "real world" where he has a chance of becoming successful and would be able to escape his poverty. But if he does choose to stay on the rez, he will be throwing away the opportunity of a lifetime and would have wasted all the risks he had taken to go to Reardan and abandoning his tribe. So it basically boils down to what he values more in life. His heritage or his Prosperity.
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ReplyDeleteI think Arnold will not be able to hold onto both of his sides. Furthermore, the longer he goes to school in Reardan and sees the attitude of hope and accomplishment, the more he will look back on the poverty and depression of Wellplinit with a condescending air. He cannot keep both sides, and if he is forced to choose, I think he will choose his white side, his future. It is a problem for Arnold because he could possibly accomplish coexistance if he is offered no outside opinions, but that clearly isn't going to happen. He is caught in a collision of Arnold and Junior, and only one side can eventually emerge victorious, excluding extraordinary circumstances where they can coexist. How do you think he will handle the fact that he may eventually have to choose
ReplyDeleteWell I think that Rowdy will change his attitude about rerdan. I think he will see that it is actually for the better but I don't think he will show that on the outside. On Arnold's side it was the right decisions because he is now respected by the white people because he only has expectations to exceed which he has. Now that he is respected he will have a better attitude and he will have more motivation and help from other people. While his family might not respect him the white kids of his age do and that might help him move further in life because the white people are better off.
ReplyDeleteI agree that Arnold will eventually realize that all he gave up in the reservation is definitely worth it. Reardan is a better school for Arnold. It fits him better and he doesn't get beat up by other kids. He is on a stranger basis with everyone and no one bothers to socialize with him. He doesn't have anyone in Reardan or really at home who can motivate him to go to school everyday. This is why sometimes he can't even go to school because his parents can't afford gas for the car. Hopefully he will soon realize that Reardan is a better choice because if he doesn't realize this soon enough, then it won't be long before he just quits. Who/what do you think will motivate him?
ReplyDeleteI think that Arnold will eventually look back on these days and say that he made the right descision. He turned in a bad education for a good one. Through this choice he makes his future a whole lot brighter with the better opportunities in the new school. The only thing that Arnold regrets is leaving Rowdy. Rowdy has been his best friend for 14 year and can he really just leave him out to dry? Will Arnold ever regain the friendship that he once had?
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