In the chapter “Reindeer Games”, Junior plays his first game with the Reardon basketball team against his old school, Wellpinit high school. As soon as he departs from the bus, he hears his name being chanted “Arnold Sucks!” Not only does Rowdy not like him, but the whole Rez is against him.“They all turned their backs on me”(144). It’s like he has lost his place at the Rez. He is no longer welcome there.
instead taking in the hatred from the Rez, Junior decides to laugh it off. “My laughter was the only sound in the gym”(144). If nobody else laughed with Junior, he would look like a total fool, so the coach and Roder join in to support him, and then his whole team joins in. This shows how Junior is not the new Indian kid at school, he has gained a place in Reardon, where people appreciate him for him. This game has impacted Junior because he now realizes that he is not welcome at the Rez community, but that he is more welcome in the Reardon community, and that his team and coach will support him through the basketball season.
do you think this game has brought Junior and Rowdy’s friendship farther apart? Do you think that this game will make Junior tougher? Do you think this will happen at one of his other games? Will basketball bring Rodger and Junior closer together?
I think this game has brought Junior and Rowdy's friendship farther apart. Because if Rowdy still had some love for Junior left in him, he would have asked if Junior was okay and also not elbow him in the head. In the previous chapter "Revenge is My Middle Name", the Andruss brothers beat up Junior. After they leave, Rowdy comes and asks Junior "did they hit you in the head?...[Rowdy] knows that my brain is fragile". This proves that Rowdy didn't smash Junior on the head by accident. Rowdy meant to hurt Junior physically, by knocking him out. But Rowdy I think Rowdy also meant to hurt Junior emotionally. Junior thought before that he and Rowdy might still have a chance to be friends again, and he expressed that by drawing a cartoon. When Rowdy tore the cartoon up, it gave Junior a sense of hope. But when Rowdy smashed his elbow into Junior's head, it symbolically shows that Rowdy really hates him now. Hitting him in the head might kill him, so by hitting Junior in the head. Rowdy shows that he didn't care about what happened to Junior. After this, I don't know if Junior and Rowdy will get back together. This game has brought them farther apart.
ReplyDeleteIn response to Camille's question, I do think this game has distanced Junior from Rowdy even more. At the beginning of the book, on pages 49 and 50, the losses Wellpinit has suffered from Reardan in past games are described. "We all got really mad and vowed to kick their asses the next game." (50) This vow still exists, even without Arnold on the Wellpinit side. With that said, these games sparked a sense of rivalry and hatred of the "rich, perfect white kids." Now that Arnold is seen as one of them, it's almost traditional to hate him, no matter his original descent as one of them. I'd say this was an event that truly proved where Arnold's loyalty lies, in Rowdy’s and the rest of the Indians’ point of view. Before, this rivalry and hatred of the white kids was something that Rowdy and Arnold shared. Now that is gone. A small action that showed this complete lost connection happened on page 143. “The rez basketball fans were chanting, “Ar-nold sucks! Ar-nold sucks! Ar-nold sucks!” They weren’t calling me by my rez name, Junior. Nope, they were calling me by my Reardan name.” The name Junior was a sort of nickname, an affectionate one that many Indians had. This shows belonging. Now the rest of the Indians don’t feel that way about Arnold anymore, like he truly has the soul of a white person now, and isn’t worthy of having an Indian name. The way Alexie refers to Arnold as Junior’s “Reardan name” reflects the title of “Part-Time Indian.” He’s got two names, one for each side he has to switch between. Who calls him which changes depending on the moment in time, the tension, and the person’s trust and understanding in Arnold. That subtle detail just goes to show how the Indians, including Rowdy, see him now.
ReplyDeleteYeah, I think this game will definitely make Junior tougher. He has realized not only that he can deal with all the hatred coming at him, but also that he has support from his family and his team, which gives him confidence in knowing that he will always have people to fall back on. When he gets to the court, he sees his parents and grandmother at the door. He knows "they'd been pitched just as much crap as I was. And there they were, ready to catch more crap for me" (143). Junior knows that they are going to support him, no matter what happens. Junior's coach seems like the one teacher at Readan who actually understands him, and has a genuine concern for him. After Junior was knocked out by Rowdy, Coach comes to the hospital where Junior is staying to keep him company. Coach understands Junior's problems, and admires his dedication, which is why he wants to see Junior succeed.
ReplyDeleteI think that Roger and Junior will become very close throughout the season because they will be at practices and games together. Also, with Roger knowing that Junior is poor, I think that brings them together even more because it allows Junior to gain Roger's trust and it allows Roger to gain trust also. When Rowdy looked like he wanted to kill Junior at the beginning of the game, Junior laughed it off and I think that Roger saw this happen and laugh along to not make him look foolish. I think that all the events that went on at the game could show the kids from the rez that white kids aren't as bad as they thought. The white kids took in an Indian and stuck up for him while is own people were turning on him. In the future, I think more Indian kids will attend Reardon because they witnessed Junior being accepted. Hopefully they won't have to date a popular girl like Penelope to get respect from the other students like Junior.
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