Blog #7 The Absolutely True Diary of a Part Time Indian pp. 178-229

Throughout the last few chapters of Alexie's book, many significant events occur which move the plot of the story along and contribute to the prominent themes of the book. To start, Junior's basketball team at Reardan has yet another match against Wellpinit where Coach places Junior to guard Rowdy. Starting the game out Junior plots revenge, still angry about the prior concussion he received from Rowdy and possessing a fire for the need to prove himself. But after actually winning the game against his reservation's team, he has a change of heart realizing that Indian team members needed this win more than he did, as losing is likely going to result in a Rowdy's beating from his father. Due to his change of perspective of the meaning of this game, Junior begins to feel guilty and ashamed of himself as all the feelings come flooding in. In the next chapter, he apologizes to Rowdy and they have a conversational exchange which makes Junior feel better about the situation despite not being in the best place of their friendship. One event which plays a large role in the theme of alcoholism present throughout the story, is the death of Junior's sister Mary. Junior is so overwhelmed by the whole situation that he becomes hysterical. Later on in the chapter, Junior has a conversation with Rowdy in which Rowdy blames Junior for Mary's death claiming that her leaving the reservation was Junior's fault. The next chapter includes a grieving period for Junior in which he cries for everything bad that has ever happened to him and his tribe, as he comes to conclusion that regardless of all of the terrible things he is going to be okay because he has aspiring dreams and because he is going to learn from everything that has happened to him. At the end of the story, Junior and Rowdy play a basketball game together and Rowdy tells Junior that he is happy for him and tells him about a dream in which Junior was standing on the Great Wall of China.

Overall, the last few chapters of The Absolutely True Diary of a Part Time Indian really capture the complexity of the story. The basketball game between Readrdan and Wellpinit seems to parallel the internal conflict within Junior regarding his life on the reservation and his education with the Whites of Wellpinit. Though he begins the game thinking only about himself, his perspective changes when he actually wins which is something I can relate to in that I often remind myself that I need to step back and take a look at the bigger picture when I'm mad about petty things. Although it is not the most important theme of the story, one which did stand out to me is Rowdy and Junior's friendship which changes frequently throughout the story. In the end, Rowdy and Junior's bond stays strong and it helps you see that they are able to see past the differences they have in terms of leaving the reservation because they know that their friendship is so much more than that and they can still support each other. Another idea which stood out to me is although Junior did move to Wellpinit, he never truly assimilated to their culture. He saw how different lifestyles and cultures were and although he did try to lie many times, he also stood up for his beliefs and to his own morals in not running back to the reservation to please others. In the end, I wholeheartedly can say this that this has to be my favorite book that I have had to read for school and maybe even one of my favorite books in general. Although Junior and I are completely different people, it is still so easy to find his character and his issues relatable because despite going through the struggles of the Indian community, he is just an awkward teenager going through life. I feel like this is one of those books where you can read it over and over again and always find something new to latch onto or some fresh perspective that changes how you view it. As I said in the beginning, Alexie's book pulled me in with its sarcastic nature and comedy and now finishing the book I can say that it was compelling from start to finish.

Blog #6 The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian pp. 1-53

In pages 1 through 53 of Sherman Alexie's The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, we are introduced to the character of Junior, a young Indian teenage boy growing up on a reservation dealing with the awkward stages of life as well as the difficulties of being an Indian. Junior begins the story explaining his birth defect and how that affected his childhood, causing him to have frequent seizures, a lisp, and a stutter. This lead to him becoming the class ridicule including name calling and regular beatings. Consequently, Junior became an introvert and an avid cartoonist making it his dream to become a rich artist. In these chapters, Junior also talks about how being poor has played a significant role in his life causing him to lose his best friend, his dog Oscar. Additionally, these chapters talks about Junior's best friend Rowdy who he also views as his protector due to Junior's scrawny size and constant bullying. Junior and Rowdy have a strong bond and many things in common such as their love for comics and cartoons. Junior also recalls an incident in which his frustration caused by an outdated textbook led him to throw the book at his teacher. Despite the trouble he made, the conversation with Mr. P following the incident opened Junior's eyes to how restricting the reservation was, particularly holding him back from his dreams because of the lack of proper education. Junior realized if he wanted to succeed he needed to get out of the harmful and constraining environment of the reservation which only resulted in bringing him pain and discouraging his sense of hope.

So far, The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian has been such an entertaining and fast read. It pulled me in from the very beginning with the sarcastic nature of the tone and the comical sketches placed throughout the chapters. I love that it is so different from typical books required for school reading in that it has themes present which are extremely relatable for students our age. The story has themes of hopes and dreams, friendships, family problems, and making difficult sacrifices which I think not only we as students but everyone can relate to. I also really enjoy the flow of the writing and how much of Junior's character and personality comes through Alexie's writing. In addition, I appreciate that despite the apparent struggles Junior is facing, the story is told through in a humorous way but it also doesn't lose focus of the serious problems it is trying to get across such as the discrimination against Indians and the inadequacy of education. Alexie also tells the story in a way where you can grow and face the experiences with Junior's character. Considering it is told in somewhat of a "diary" format, the experiences are told very vividly and all of Junior's first reactions and feelings are easy to connect with.

Chapter 8 Exemplification

In Chapter 8, Kirszner and Mandell define the process of exemplification which utilizes cases, or examples to illustrate and explain a general point or an abstract concept. Exemplification can be used in all situations and is an effective way of explaining and clarifying, adding interest, and persuading an audience but only when used appropriately. Examples used to explain should directly pertain to the topic and should clarify information which aids in understanding the essay. To add interest, examples should be specific and intriguing in that they pull the reader but not distract or confuse them from the purpose of the essay. When trying to persuade readers, examples should indicate reasons why they should consider the perspective and convince them of the credibility of the author to build a sense of trust. In addition, all examples should center around and support the thesis statement. These examples throughout the essay should work to reinforce the main topic and the point being made. Besides carefully choosing examples based on their relevance to the thesis, it is important to consider the number of examples included. Although there is not a set number, there should be enough examples to support the main idea but not so much that it takes away from the writing or fails to stay relevant to the topic. Furthermore, a good range of examples is necessary to persuade readers. It is not effective to provide only one example as readers cannot assume this can represent the outcome of all situations which is why it is necessary to provide an adequate amount of examples which properly develop the thesis. Likewise, it it necessary to consider the structure of an exemplification essay such as whether to arrange the essay chronologically, by order of increasing complexity, or by order of importance.

After reading Chapter 8, I felt that I had a better grasp of exemplification in regards to how to use in and what factors to consider when including examples. Although this chapter did provide further insight, I did have prior knowledge of the importance of examples as a way to get the main point across. When writing essays, I've found that examples are a highly effective way of convincing readers of your perspective as well as the credibility of yourself as an author. For example, if examples are used which lack development and do not support the topic properly, readers can assume the author has not done sufficient research and will be less likely to agree with the author's perspective. I found the tip of going back to revise the thesis, as stated on page 202 to be particularly helpful because I usually restrict myself to having to find examples which directly support the thesis and sometimes it's difficult to do this. This often leads me to include examples which do not precisely support the thesis, making it difficult for readers to see my perspective when I could simply go back and change my thesis. Additionally, the paragraph which talks about providing enough examples stood out to me because I've always used three as a rule of thumb and I've gotten used to this method of writing when three examples does not always apply to the situation and the essay might require just one example or five examples. In particular, I also found the revision and editing checklists to be useful and made a mental note to come back and use them because I usually do not know where to start when going back and reviewing my writing.