Well, it has been a while since there was a reading or movie which left me smiling and feeling good about becoming a teacher. While we haven't left the themes of Indigenous education, life and society, at least this weeks novel, The Absolute True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie brought some joy and laughs into my life. Now, don't be deceived, it's also a heartrending story, learning the situation of Spokane and countless other Indian people's, the realities of reservation life and how so many will never escape the cycle of poverty, violence and substance abuse. Those realities are there with all their blemishes, warts, vomit, boners and pimples. Nothing is held back, and that's what makes Alexie's novel so brilliant and captivating.
It contains the guilt, history and racism that plagues both the United States and Canada. The main character, modeled after Sherman Alexies own youth and experiences, suffers from all the plights of a normal adolescent growing up, crushes, masturbation, poverty, feeling isolated, but magnified 100 fold by his health problems from birth, his impoverished lifestyle, the reserve he lives on, his parents and families addiction problems, the stigma of being a smart, ambitious member of the tribe, and thousands of other influences. His will, his drive, and his honesty are inspiring. The adversity, hardship and cruelty life deals Arnold are more than most of us could bear. But life has also blessed Arnold in other ways, it blessed him with good (and flawed) friends, a family who supports and loves him unconditionally, an appreciation for life, a will to live and a drive to improve himself, and even a sense of justice and beauty. Life has made Arnold Savage strong enough and brave enough to face all those obstacles, and fall and stumble, but ultimately keep moving forwards. Now, there is something I will say that some people might find surprising. I did love the book. I did enjoy it thoroughly. But it was also not something new to me. What I mean is the writing style, the way it's presented, was not something that surprised or even really impressed me. I'm not saying this as a negative aspect, more as a positive one in fact. In truth this book reminded me A LOT of my favorite American author of all time, Kurt Vonnegut, who I believe pioneered this kind of bizarre, brutally honest, quick witted style that carries us through the novel so effortlessly. It's also the exact same style with the small cartoons and illustrations sprinkled throughout the novel. Again, I don't mean this as a negative detraction, just as an observation, and hey, the more Kurt Vonnegut inspired work out there, the better! If anything, using that style and tone made this novel into something unique. It is a story that Kurt Vonnegut, if he was here, could never tell himself, because it needed to be an honest account. Writers, at least the good one's, write about things they know, and Sherman Alexie knows the hardships of being a Native American in the United States. He knows the pain and suffering from growing up on reserves, from being a second class/third class citizen, he knows the shame and embarrassment that haunts people. Vonnegut wrote about the war, he wrote about being old and white and American, because that's what he knew. This is the new voice that needs to be heard now, and more and more, we need to get these varied voices out there. To expose youth and young adults to material which challenges them, opens their minds, exposes their preconceptions and bias'. Vonnegut for me was someone who revolutionized what a novel could be, he changed the role of storyteller from someone imparting information to someone opening a hole in their chest, and putting the contents on a page and letting you walk through it all with him. So in the end, this story was not just a challenge in life for one person, it is a challenge for us all to get out of our comfort zones, to shake off the preconceived notions of what we should be doing. Whether its being stuck on a reserve, or being a privileged person making fun of Native Americans, either way, we need to stop being assholes and dicks to each other (sorry, but I'm using language that Alexie would appreciate), because that's the bottom line now. We're educated enough to know what is fair. We are educated enough to know how people should be treated, what they should have, that hope is something Universal, and it's not just for white people or rich people. So let's stop letting the world continue that way. Let's stop being jerks and building invisible walls that separate Indigenous or poor people from the middle class. Let's stop filling our schools with stories about how great our European forefathers were, and tell stories about real people struggling today. About those trying to undo the wrongs of the past, which we ever so conveniently hide and mask. I will definitely be using this novel if I can as a teacher, and I encourage anyone who hasn't read it to try.
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