Summary
Coulombe, Joseph. “The Approximate Size of His Favorite Humor: Sherman Alexie’s Comic Connections and Disconnections in The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven” American Indian Quarterly 26 (winter 2002) : p. 94-115. Project Muse. Ohio University Lib. Athens, OH.
Columbe's article is a good interpretation of the message I believe Alexie was trying to give to his readers. he discusses different topics that show up in the novel such as the different ways humor is used to construct different social behaviors and also show that sometimes that humor can used be positive and negative ways. Coulombe starts his essay looking at what other critics had to say about Alexie's writings. many think he is disrespectful to Indian's and are making fun of the stereotypical Indian. Coulmbe thinks this is not the case. he believes Alexie's humor is used as a cover for the Indian pain and suffering by the hands of whites. he says that Victor uses humor because he is confused about his identity as many Indian people are. he sees the way whites have divided Indian land and forcing them to disconnect them fro their heritage. He also laughs at the fact that the big companies give his friends money for using their land. this cuts both ways, Coulmbe says. Victor corrects this "problem" and somewhat uneasily accepts the importance of traditions. Story- telling is one of those traditions that are used to increase some understanging.
the next point he shows how humor is used to mask real threats that a person may go through. he gives the example from the story "The Approximate Size of My Favorite Tumor". the character in the story, Jimmy, finds out he has cancer and when he goes home to his wife, he cracks joke after joke about it. from reading the story we can see that Jimmy is a funny uy who is always telling a joke. Jimmie uses the humor as a coping mechanism to cover the fears and sadness he may feel from the notion that he will eventually die from this disease. Coulmbe also sees Jimmy's humor as a form of denial.
the most important point I believe Coulmbe makes is the use of humor that stems from hundreds of years of persicution by white society. His example is from "Amusements" the story where Victor and Sadie put a drunk bum named Dirty Joe on a rollercoaster. the people in the crowd, white people, see this cruel joke and laugh and some are disgusted. many critics view this chapter as the epitome of any stereotype because Indians looking stupid and being side shows is what white want. Victor soon realizes his mistake and immediately feels guilty because he knows that this is what whites want to see Indians doing.
Application
According to Coulombe, white culture has influenced the home setting of Indians. and example would be from the chapter titled, "The Fun House". the protagonist is a wife and mother who is tired of the misogynist joked her husband and son are directing toward her. this is one of Alexie's bigges issues according to Coulombe. the one thing Indians didn't resist assimilation to was sexism and misogyny.
"I bet when that mouse ran up your pant leg, he was thinking, What the hell kind of mousetraps do they got now?" her husband said. (77)
the narrators aunt, who is the protagonist, is so dissappointed in her family that she decides to take herself away from the family for a while. when she returns, she puts on the beaded dress that is extremely heavy and takes a few steps. earlier in the chapter, she makes the statement that the woman who is able to wear the dress will be the one to save them. the fact that she herself is that woman gives her hope for the future and the notion that things will change. Coulombe also discusses the bitterness the woman may feel becasue at one point the U.S. government enacted a sterilization program for them. the aunt was given a permission slip to sign thinking it was only a form that proved she was Indian when in actuallity it was to have her tubes tied. Alexie is just is literally pointin a finger a white society that cares nothing about the rights of Indian women and Indian people in general.
Sherman, Alexie. The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven. New York: Grove Press, 2005.
Thursday, May 14, 2009
Tuesday, May 5, 2009
Alexie
Frank Ross asked Alexie about the political nature of his writing, quoting him as saying he does not like to beat readers over the head with it. Alexie replied: “I like to make them laugh first, then beat them over the head . . . when they are defenseless.” Describe some examples from the stories that demonstrate this tactic. Choose one example to focus on and explain how the humor and political point work together as in the above quote.
When Victor's father went to Woodstock, he said he was the only Indian to see Jimi Hendrix play "The Star Spangled Banner". His father had just gotten out of prison and made it just in time to see Jimi play. this probably wasn't the truth but im sure many Indian people who may have been ther believed that also. Jimi played his version right around the time of the Veitnam War and many of the concert- goers were upset about Americas involvement. ever since then Victor's father would get drunk and listen to the song. Victor says in the days after his father would tell him stories about his mother and the fact that he was conceived on a night of drunken sex. there is one part in the chapter where Victor's father get a motorcycle and eventually never came back. "On a reservation, indian men who abandoned their children are treadted worse than white fathers who have been doing that forever and Indian men have just learned how" (34).
The humor is the fact that he calls himself a "goofy reservation mixed drink" but the reality is that this might really be how many reservation kids were born. they may have had hippie parents who listened to Jimi Hendrix and bought motorcycles and marriages ended. he tries to poke a little fun at the harsh reality that many reservation kids had to face on a daily basis.
On whiteness, Indian identity and colonialism, Alexie says, “What is colonialism but the breeding out of existence of the colonized? The most dangerous thing for Indians, then, now and forever is that we love our colonizers. And we do.” He goes on to say, and I paraphrase, that Indian identity now is mostly a matter of cultural difference; that culture is received knowledge, because the authentic practitioners are gone. The culture is all adopted culture, not innate. Colonization is complete. Think about how what he is discussing plays out in his stories. Choose one (a different one than for the first question) and discuss how a story represents the characters' relationship to the tribe's past and to the colonizing culture.
In the chapter where Victor, Thomas, and Junior are taking the mushrooms, they start haveing the psychedelic hallucinations. at one point Thomas sees Victor dancing naked. he describes the tribe as they are exposed to foreign diseases and the fact that the are killing everyone. he begins dancing a Ghost Dance and when he does this the people who have died come back. the connection to the tribe's past is that he is recollecting what has happened to American Indians in thier history since Europeans. the colonizing future comes in the form of the joke that Victor says. "Hey," I said. "Jump in with us. we're going out to Benjamin Lake to do this new drug i got. It'll be very fucking Indian. Spiritual shit, you know?" (14). I dont really believe that this drug does anything but give you an unbelieveable high and is in no way "spiritual" but they seem to poke fun at the fact that they are who they are.
When Victor's father went to Woodstock, he said he was the only Indian to see Jimi Hendrix play "The Star Spangled Banner". His father had just gotten out of prison and made it just in time to see Jimi play. this probably wasn't the truth but im sure many Indian people who may have been ther believed that also. Jimi played his version right around the time of the Veitnam War and many of the concert- goers were upset about Americas involvement. ever since then Victor's father would get drunk and listen to the song. Victor says in the days after his father would tell him stories about his mother and the fact that he was conceived on a night of drunken sex. there is one part in the chapter where Victor's father get a motorcycle and eventually never came back. "On a reservation, indian men who abandoned their children are treadted worse than white fathers who have been doing that forever and Indian men have just learned how" (34).
The humor is the fact that he calls himself a "goofy reservation mixed drink" but the reality is that this might really be how many reservation kids were born. they may have had hippie parents who listened to Jimi Hendrix and bought motorcycles and marriages ended. he tries to poke a little fun at the harsh reality that many reservation kids had to face on a daily basis.
On whiteness, Indian identity and colonialism, Alexie says, “What is colonialism but the breeding out of existence of the colonized? The most dangerous thing for Indians, then, now and forever is that we love our colonizers. And we do.” He goes on to say, and I paraphrase, that Indian identity now is mostly a matter of cultural difference; that culture is received knowledge, because the authentic practitioners are gone. The culture is all adopted culture, not innate. Colonization is complete. Think about how what he is discussing plays out in his stories. Choose one (a different one than for the first question) and discuss how a story represents the characters' relationship to the tribe's past and to the colonizing culture.
In the chapter where Victor, Thomas, and Junior are taking the mushrooms, they start haveing the psychedelic hallucinations. at one point Thomas sees Victor dancing naked. he describes the tribe as they are exposed to foreign diseases and the fact that the are killing everyone. he begins dancing a Ghost Dance and when he does this the people who have died come back. the connection to the tribe's past is that he is recollecting what has happened to American Indians in thier history since Europeans. the colonizing future comes in the form of the joke that Victor says. "Hey," I said. "Jump in with us. we're going out to Benjamin Lake to do this new drug i got. It'll be very fucking Indian. Spiritual shit, you know?" (14). I dont really believe that this drug does anything but give you an unbelieveable high and is in no way "spiritual" but they seem to poke fun at the fact that they are who they are.
Sunday, April 26, 2009
Summary/ Application
In Bird's essay she distinctly discusses the affect that language has on cultures. She explains how when she was growing up, her mother never taught her how to speak the "old language" and would speak it only when she didn't want Bird to know what was being said. she realized as she got older that colonization was the cause of the disappearance of the language. she also gives a good correlation between her life in Tayo's becasue Tayo has little experience with the "old language".
Tayo had to strain to catch the meaning, dense with place names he had never heard.
His language was childish, interspersed with English words, and he could feel shame tightening in his throat. (Ceremony 31)
the fact that Tayo feels shame for not knowing this language seems to plague other American Indians. they have been forced by whites to forget their language and culture and convert to christianity.
Bird also talks about the element of time that Silko shows in Ceremony. Bird shays she "collapses" time and shows two stories parallel to eachother as if they are happening at the same time. she give the impression that Tayo's story is not the only one going on and that the world has stories that intersect with eachother.
Christianity was probably the biggest portion of the essay becasue it is the most direct form of colonization. the missionaries came in and saw thought the American Indians were heathens and wanted to "save their souls".
Tayo had to strain to catch the meaning, dense with place names he had never heard.
His language was childish, interspersed with English words, and he could feel shame tightening in his throat. (Ceremony 31)
the fact that Tayo feels shame for not knowing this language seems to plague other American Indians. they have been forced by whites to forget their language and culture and convert to christianity.
Bird also talks about the element of time that Silko shows in Ceremony. Bird shays she "collapses" time and shows two stories parallel to eachother as if they are happening at the same time. she give the impression that Tayo's story is not the only one going on and that the world has stories that intersect with eachother.
Christianity was probably the biggest portion of the essay becasue it is the most direct form of colonization. the missionaries came in and saw thought the American Indians were heathens and wanted to "save their souls".
Monday, April 13, 2009
Ceremony #2
We get poetic installments of the Hummingbird tale on p. 42-45, 49-50, 65-66, 76, 97, 104-105, 140 (to this point) How might you relate this story to Tayo’s?
In the poem, the people are fascinated by magic and instead of taking care of their crops and land, they neglect it. in return, "mother earth", it seems like took away the rain and the people began to starve. this poem relates to Tayo's story because he feels like he prayed the rain away and caused the six year drought. Tayo now feels it is his responsibility to figure out a way to bring the rain back just as the Shaman is trying to figure out how to bring rain back in the poem.
P. 62-63 covers the theme of Christianity as a coercive force of assimilation. By what means does this occur and what feelings does it evoke?
What i took from this part of the story is that Christians would look at Indian rituals and customs and "shake their fingers" at them. the whites would try to assimilate Indians into Christianity and white culture by giving emphasis on individualism while the Indians were big on clans and community, thus forcing the confused Indians to hate their own culture and also Christianity. It's like the whites would show Indians how good life would be if they assimilated and forgot their own culture. the people, like little sister, would hate the whites because they knew the motives and at the same time hate their own culture because they stifled the individual ans also feel guilty because he/she knew what pain they were causing their own people.
The long story.poem, p. 122-128, is of how "witchery" created whites and the onslaught of Europeans and all the destruction they brought. Gloss this poem to identify how the story represents Europeans and their relationship with the world. Consider also: what is the point of Betonie emphasizing the American Indian role in the destruction? What IS his point? Why does he think it is important for Tayo to think about it in this way?
this story is very interesting to me because it gave me a different way to look at things. In the story, white people were created from the "witchery" of the other races. these other races were trying to show off their witch craft and by these actions, they created a race that would end up dominating them. The story basically calls white people barbarians that will destroy everything. it describes everything from pollution, to guns, and even describes whites bringing disease to places. I believe the emphasis on American Indian role is to show that even they aren't perfect. It's easy to see faults in others without looking at yourself also and i believe the point is for Tayo to understand this point.
In the poem, the people are fascinated by magic and instead of taking care of their crops and land, they neglect it. in return, "mother earth", it seems like took away the rain and the people began to starve. this poem relates to Tayo's story because he feels like he prayed the rain away and caused the six year drought. Tayo now feels it is his responsibility to figure out a way to bring the rain back just as the Shaman is trying to figure out how to bring rain back in the poem.
P. 62-63 covers the theme of Christianity as a coercive force of assimilation. By what means does this occur and what feelings does it evoke?
What i took from this part of the story is that Christians would look at Indian rituals and customs and "shake their fingers" at them. the whites would try to assimilate Indians into Christianity and white culture by giving emphasis on individualism while the Indians were big on clans and community, thus forcing the confused Indians to hate their own culture and also Christianity. It's like the whites would show Indians how good life would be if they assimilated and forgot their own culture. the people, like little sister, would hate the whites because they knew the motives and at the same time hate their own culture because they stifled the individual ans also feel guilty because he/she knew what pain they were causing their own people.
The long story.poem, p. 122-128, is of how "witchery" created whites and the onslaught of Europeans and all the destruction they brought. Gloss this poem to identify how the story represents Europeans and their relationship with the world. Consider also: what is the point of Betonie emphasizing the American Indian role in the destruction? What IS his point? Why does he think it is important for Tayo to think about it in this way?
this story is very interesting to me because it gave me a different way to look at things. In the story, white people were created from the "witchery" of the other races. these other races were trying to show off their witch craft and by these actions, they created a race that would end up dominating them. The story basically calls white people barbarians that will destroy everything. it describes everything from pollution, to guns, and even describes whites bringing disease to places. I believe the emphasis on American Indian role is to show that even they aren't perfect. It's easy to see faults in others without looking at yourself also and i believe the point is for Tayo to understand this point.
Thursday, April 9, 2009
Ceremony
Explain why Tayo blames himself for the six year drought
While Tayo was in the war, the rain in the jungle went on for days and days. he said the rain had no beginning or an end. He was so tired of the mud and he had to carry Rockey through the rain when he was hurt and somehow he dropped Rockey in the mud. he prayed and sang that the rain would stop and it ended up stopping for six years.
Describe, as best as you can, Auntie’s attitudes about Tayo, mixed blood, and religion.
Auntie seems like she has mixed feelings about Tayo's mixed blood. I believe she loves him but still doesn't agree with her sister's decision in having a child with a white man. During the time Tayo was born, mixing blood was a terrible thing to do. Now, Auntie takes care of Tayo because he is the only thing she has left after her son, who is Rockey died. Tayo says she is a Christian woman which is probably not the religion of choice for Indians living on reservations. When Old Grandma requests a medicine man to help Tayo, Auntie is worried about what people will think because Tayo is mixed blood. and from that i feel like Auntie doesn't really believe in medicine men.
While Tayo was in the war, the rain in the jungle went on for days and days. he said the rain had no beginning or an end. He was so tired of the mud and he had to carry Rockey through the rain when he was hurt and somehow he dropped Rockey in the mud. he prayed and sang that the rain would stop and it ended up stopping for six years.
Describe, as best as you can, Auntie’s attitudes about Tayo, mixed blood, and religion.
Auntie seems like she has mixed feelings about Tayo's mixed blood. I believe she loves him but still doesn't agree with her sister's decision in having a child with a white man. During the time Tayo was born, mixing blood was a terrible thing to do. Now, Auntie takes care of Tayo because he is the only thing she has left after her son, who is Rockey died. Tayo says she is a Christian woman which is probably not the religion of choice for Indians living on reservations. When Old Grandma requests a medicine man to help Tayo, Auntie is worried about what people will think because Tayo is mixed blood. and from that i feel like Auntie doesn't really believe in medicine men.
Wednesday, April 1, 2009
Harjo and her Horses
In Harjo's poem "She Had Some Horses", the first thing I tried to understand is why she decided to use horses to represent people. Honestly, i still haven't figured that one out. As far as the other points of the poem, some other contradictory feelings ca be found in the following lines:
She had horses who thought they were the sun and their bodies shone and burned like stars.
She had horses who whispered in the dark, who were afraid to speak.
These lines are definitely in conflict with each other because of the fact that the first line the "horse" seems confident and very outgoing. but in the second line, the "horse" is quiet and whispers, and is afraid to speak. The contrast between the dark and light elements int he two lines are, in my opinion, important also. When the horse is so confident that they think they are the sun and their bodies are very bright. on the other hand, why would the horses be afraid to speak let alone in dark where their bodies would not be seen.
I do not believe there is a specific gender in the poem but i do feel the poem is directed more towards women. Harjo's descriptions can be seen as being directed toward women but many men can have the same feelings and views that are being described, save a few that are just to obvious.
Some "clear truths" can be found in the fourth stanza. They describe a person who cries in their beer, and another horse that "spit at male queens who made them afraid of themselves". These lines definitely feel more masculine especially the line about the male queens. in today's society, male queens would most likely be gay men. straight men do not like being around gay men for fear of them getting hit on. So they try to demean these men to make themselves feel good and to reinforce their "straightness and this stanza clearly gives that impression.
if looked at in a political sense, the last 2 lines of stanza 6 and the first line of stanza 7 can be considered as such. they are clearly christian which is a very dominant religion and many people would be able to identify with these lines. The feminist view definitely comes at the end of stanza 7.
She had horses who tried to save her, who climbed in her bed at night and prayed as they raped her.
The sadness of this line is evident and from what it says the girl that was raped seemed to know her rapist since the first words are they tried to save her. In a feminist light, rape is one of the biggest fears for women everywhere so this line can strike a chord.
The last lines of the poem provide the ultimate resolution. They basically say that although people can be really messed up and some can be very good but all in all people will be people and there is nothing you can do to change them. There will always be those who you can love and hate at the same time.
She had horses who thought they were the sun and their bodies shone and burned like stars.
She had horses who whispered in the dark, who were afraid to speak.
These lines are definitely in conflict with each other because of the fact that the first line the "horse" seems confident and very outgoing. but in the second line, the "horse" is quiet and whispers, and is afraid to speak. The contrast between the dark and light elements int he two lines are, in my opinion, important also. When the horse is so confident that they think they are the sun and their bodies are very bright. on the other hand, why would the horses be afraid to speak let alone in dark where their bodies would not be seen.
I do not believe there is a specific gender in the poem but i do feel the poem is directed more towards women. Harjo's descriptions can be seen as being directed toward women but many men can have the same feelings and views that are being described, save a few that are just to obvious.
Some "clear truths" can be found in the fourth stanza. They describe a person who cries in their beer, and another horse that "spit at male queens who made them afraid of themselves". These lines definitely feel more masculine especially the line about the male queens. in today's society, male queens would most likely be gay men. straight men do not like being around gay men for fear of them getting hit on. So they try to demean these men to make themselves feel good and to reinforce their "straightness and this stanza clearly gives that impression.
if looked at in a political sense, the last 2 lines of stanza 6 and the first line of stanza 7 can be considered as such. they are clearly christian which is a very dominant religion and many people would be able to identify with these lines. The feminist view definitely comes at the end of stanza 7.
She had horses who tried to save her, who climbed in her bed at night and prayed as they raped her.
The sadness of this line is evident and from what it says the girl that was raped seemed to know her rapist since the first words are they tried to save her. In a feminist light, rape is one of the biggest fears for women everywhere so this line can strike a chord.
The last lines of the poem provide the ultimate resolution. They basically say that although people can be really messed up and some can be very good but all in all people will be people and there is nothing you can do to change them. There will always be those who you can love and hate at the same time.
Tuesday, March 31, 2009
Hello Everyone!!
Hi! I'm Ariel and welcome to my blog! I've never had a blog before so I'm not entirely sure how this all works so work with me! I'm sure you will be able to post things on my page like Facebook or something. Any who, this blog pertains to the English course 254 Reading and Writing so posting things that have to do with that specific subject are preferred. I'm sure this will be an interesting quarter!!
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