Saturday, November 5, 2016
#3. Interpret/explore/explain the context and the significance of the quote “I don’t know if hope is white. But I do know that hope for me is like some mythical creature” (51). (Maddy S)
When Junior says "I don't know if hope is white. But I do know that hope for me is like some mythical creature", he means that white people a lot more hope than him and that hope is unrealistic for Indians to have that amount of hope (Alexie 51). What Junior doesn’t realize is that it takes hope to go somewhere new like he is doing. Later on that page, Junior says “Man, I was scared of those Reardan kids” (Alexie 51). Even though he was scared, Junior hoped it would turn out for the best and he hoped he would have a better life because of it. This proves that Junior leaving the rez was an act of hope. Nonetheless, I agree that everyone else in the reservation had lost hope. The rest of them stayed there because they didn’t think life could get any better and they didn’t hope for it to get better, either. Junior would’ve stayed like them if Mr. P hadn’t given him this new hope that his life could get better if he left. So, Junior is underestimating himself when he says “hope for me is like some mythical creature”.
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I agree, the Indians at the reservation have lost hope and Junior moving schools will help him gain hope and understand that hope is not white. Juniors decision of moving schools was a choice that caused a large change in his life. He lost his friends and respect at the reservation. He chose to go to a new school where he would be the only diverse student, teased by other students, and he would have to learn a whole new set of rules. "I had followed the rules of fighting. I had behaved exactly the way I was supposed to behave. But these white boys had ignored the rules. In fact, they followed a whole other set of mysterious rules where people apparently DID NOT GET INTO FISTFIGHTS" (Alexie 65).
ReplyDeleteI agree that the Indians on the reservation have lost their hope and that hope comes to the white kids much more easily. I also feel though that hope is especially hard for Junior because of all of his physical ailments. His lisp, stutter, and fragile self make it hard for him to have any hope, and although the new high school is tough for him right now, he has much more hope now than he did in the reservation school. Coming to the school has also given Junior more bravery and encouragement than he has ever had before: "I felt brave all of a sudden... it was the most important moment of my life. Maybe I was telling the world that I was no longer a human target" (Alexie 65).
ReplyDeleteI agree that the Indians on the reservation have lost their hope and that hope comes to the white kids much more easily. I also feel though that hope is especially hard for Junior because of all of his physical ailments. His lisp, stutter, and fragile self make it hard for him to have any hope, and although the new high school is tough for him right now, he has much more hope now than he did in the reservation school. Coming to the school has also given Junior more bravery and encouragement than he has ever had before: "I felt brave all of a sudden... it was the most important moment of my life. Maybe I was telling the world that I was no longer a human target" (Alexie 65).
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