Alexie Questions

Alexi claims that we love our colonizers, and that is the most dangerous thing for Indians and their culture. One example we get in the book is when Victor and his father are taking a ride together. Victor's Dad is talking about Jimi Hendrix and Hank Williams, which shows us his connection to the colonizer's culture. He goes on to tell Victor that "even an Indian needs a piano or guitar or saxophone now and again" (30). We can see in this example how Victor's father had identified himself to the colonizing ulture, and also how younger generations are denied certain connections to their tribe's past


Alexie likes to mix humor with stark political truths in a number of ways. It seems that he uses a lot of typically lighthearted scenarios to use as a background for a more serious political statement. In "Every Little Hurricane", a sad story of Victor's childhood, is placed in a party. The sad story of heroes on the reservation and their inevitability to success is surrounded by laughter from two guys on a porch. One example that I found particularly striking is in "Amusements", when Victor and Sadie put a drunk Indian in a tourist-filled carnival ride for their own amusement. When Victor is attempting to escape, he runs in a fun house, with with image-skewing mirrors. While this ir normally a moment of gaiety, it is for Victor a metaphorical look at his actions, facing the realities of racism and "otherness", and his own contributions to it, "the Indian who offered up another Indian like some treaty" (5). While these stories do hold strong political messages, they are surrounded by what could otherwise be pleasant situations. I think the irony and contradictions between the humor and serious make the truths much more sobering.