I’m not going to lie: I’m torn on this one. On one hand I
really like the work. Viewed through a certain lens, this a story about a young
boy who is in a bad situation and through hard work, determination and a desire
for a better life, claws his way out of that situation and improves himself. In
a way, it exemplifies the American dream. It is an inspiring story, something that
reminds us that something better is always within our grasp.
But on the other hand, this book makes me feel slightly
uncomfortable. It feels as if all the good things that happen are a result of
leaving the reservation and Native American traditions behind. Going to a White
school, making good friends with White kids, having White teachers that care
about him. Almost everything on the reservation is viewed in a negative light. While
the people on the reservation are decent enough, everything else about the
location is painted as grim, dark and hopeless. Perhaps this is the truth,
perhaps nothing good ever comes from places like that, but it feels wrong to
assume that everything about a place is bad. To me, at times, it seemed like
the reservation was shown as flat out bad, and the White school was portrayed
as better, not just in an academic sense but every sense. Perhaps this was
intended to show the poor situation that many native people deal with, but by
giving it next to no redeemable features it comes off as a little insensitive.
Anyway, I did enjoy reading the novel. I thought that the characters
were interesting, and they developed well enough. I like the diary format,
which makes it seem more personal, and I really like how you can jump into a
young teenager’s head. It was a fun read for me.
I think that this would capture the attention of many
students. Even if it was not taught to Native American students, students could
still find ways to connect to the text. There are a lot of very teenage
centered issues in this work. Not fitting in, figuring out who you are and what
you want to be, balancing responsibility to family and society with
responsibility for self, grief, friendship, loneliness, the list goes on. I
think the novel does a good job of presenting these issues in a fair light and
students will relate to these things, making the work more interesting.
As for a grade, I’m kind of stuck. I’m still torn as to
whether or not I think this work is offensive. I’m going to say no, and assume
that it was written with the intent of pointing out a bad situation rather than
simply bashing on a certain culture. Still a little uneasy though. With that in
mind, I really liked reading the novel and I got invested in the story so: B+.
I guess.
Maybe.
No comments:
Post a Comment