Fistfight In Heaven

Words: 1035
Pages: 5
Open Document
The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven written by Sherman Alexie illustrate various short stories based on Victor, a young American-Indian who lives in the Spokane, Washington Reservation. In Victor’s stories, we learned that he comes from a unique culture, his father who was an alcoholic passed away due to heart issues. In addition, The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven gave me a different perspective on American Indians because we are fooled as a society. Most Southern Californians believe that American Indians have an easy life and they’re rich because of their revenues from their tribe casinos. However, this does not include all tribes. Certain tribes don’t have the luxury to afford a casino, furthermore, their location plays …show more content…
In addition to the hurricane, Victor’s uncles, Arnold and Adolph, both got into a fist fight against each other. Victor claimed the importance of coming together after a fight. “Adolph and Arnold were touched by memories of previous battles. When children grow up together in poverty, a bond is formed that is stronger than most anything. It’s this same bond that causes so much pain” (Sherman Alexie;2005, Page 8). This quote analyzes the family bond that many American Indians have. When a family comes from a poverty class, they have a certain bond of what I like to call “us versus them.” Us representing the poverty class and them being the rich Whites. When looking at this from a lower-class perspective, the lower class tends to have each other backs. In other words, the lower-class will help each other out and form a special bond. Later in the book, Thomas-the-Fire, Victor’s friend recalls a vision that he had. His vision leads him to travel to the Spokane Reservation. There, Thomas encountered with Victor’s father, who drove him over to Denny’s and bought him a meal. Then Victor’s father drove him back to Thomas’ reservation. Thomas recalled his vision and understood that he must take care of each other. “Your dad was my vision. Take care of each other is what my dreams were saying. Take care of each other” …show more content…
First and foremost, we need to understand the jurisdiction of the each and one of the reservation. If I’m not mistaken, the reservation falls under the federal jurisdiction, however, each reservation has their own law enforcement agency. With that being said, your normal cops, and/or officer are not allowed to go into the reservation to make an arrest or to enforce the law. The first example that we see the use of alcohol and drugs can be found in the first story, “Every Little Hurricane.” As the night comes to an end, Victor goes up to his parent's bedroom for the daily good night kiss, and Victor encounters his parents passed out drunk in their bedroom. “Victor climbed up on the bed and lay down between them. His mother and father breathed deep, nearly choking alcoholic snores…He kissed his mother’s neck, tasted the salt and whiskey. He kissed his father’s forearm, tasted the cheap beer and smoke” (Sherman Alexie;2005, Page 9). This quote emphasizes the first of many occasions, that we see drugs and alcohol in the book. Subsequently, we encounter with Julius Windmaker, a former basketball hero from Spokane Reservation, as stated by Victor. Victor was catching up with a friend, Adrian. They discussed their substitution addiction until they saw Julius Windmaker drunk out in the reservation. Adrian stated, “Oh, look at that, Not even two in the afternoon and
Show More

Related Documents: Fistfight In Heaven

The Lone Ranger And Tonto Fistfight In Heaven

treatment is tremendous. This is a shared topic in the short stories, “The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven” and “Woman Hollering Creek”. These stories have a lot in common when it comes to the the moral of the story and the mental state of the characters, although they do have a difference in areas that play important roles in story development. Both, “The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven” and “Woman Hollering Creek”, express that society’s stereotypes can drastically affect not only…

Words 620 - Pages 3

Summary Of The Lone Ranger And Tonto Fistfight In Heaven

“The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven by Sherman Alexie “was about the life of Indian on the reservation. The reservation included alcohol, little education and geographical isolation. In the end of the story he realizes he relives his dream to play basketball and he found a job at a high school exchange program that changed his life. “School vs Education” by Russell Baker children learn from their home environment such as what they see, hear and what their parents are teaching them. The…

Words 163 - Pages 1

The Lone Ranger And Tonto Fistfight In Heaven Analysis

and understand the pains they feel. Being poor has lasting effects on a person, and on communities of people who live together in impoverished circumstances. Poverty is a reoccurring theme in many of the stories in “The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven.” It shows the struggles of a people kept in poverty and the effects it has on them generation after generation and what they come to accept as normal. In “Every Little Hurricane” the story opens stating that Victor and his family live in HUD…

Words 1117 - Pages 5

FNS304 Schmidt Theme Lone Ranger And Tonto Essay

First Nations Study 304 Themes in “The Lone Ranger and Tonto “ Diana Schmidt “The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven” is set on the Spokane Indian Reservation in eastern Washing state, is a collection of loosely related stories featuring a recurring cast of characters and each story has some relationship to alcoholism, racism, cultural identity, and traditions of the tribe, and living conditions on the reservation. The one thing that I got from Alexie Sherman’s book is that…

Words 397 - Pages 2

Societies Void in the Aimless Individual Essay

The feeling that minority feels living in a country that doesn’t belong to them. We look around we ask ourselves if we fit up to the standards of America. What can we do to improve our stability in this world? In “The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven,” Sherman Alexie tells readers of a man who doesn’t feel stable outside of his comfort zone. How he constantly feels the need to give into stereotyping. The feeling of always being criticized by people that is not of the narrator’s ethnicity…

Words 1069 - Pages 5

Outline Loneranger and Tonto Essay

with the ever-growing problem of racism and relentless stereotypes, and sometimes it can be quite difficult to create an example to explain the daily pain many go through. A. In Sherman Alexie’s short story titled, “The Loneranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven,” the American Indian narrator clues the audience in with subtle hints of how the problem of racism has negatively impacted his life. Specifically, a past instance involving a few basketball games made the narrator turn away from a potential…

Words 703 - Pages 3

Sherman Alexie and Victor’s Uncles Essay

perspective of a child, Alexie emphasizes the ways that problems on the reservation are harming not only the present residents but also the tribe’s future. Love - especially complicated love - is a recurrent theme in The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven. In “Every Little Hurricane”, Alexie depicts familial love as deeply two-sided. On the one hand, Victor’s family has seen each other through many difficult times and has worked together to overcome racism and grinding poverty. However, they…

Words 597 - Pages 3

Sherman Alexie's Short Story 'A Drug Called Tradition'

[Title] The three stories “A Drug Called Tradition,” “What it Means to Say Phoenix, Arizona, and “The Trial of Thomas Builds-the-Fire” in a book of short story collection called: “The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven,” published in 1993 and reissued in 2005, by Sherman Alexie, a Spokane/ Coeur D’Alene Indian. Those three short stories introduce us readers to Thomas Builds-The-Fire, a character who tells too much stories. By having a closer look at Thomas Builds-The-Fire’s stories, it is…

Words 1028 - Pages 5

Racism Against Mexican Americans

When people hear the word, “racism”, they often think of slavery in the south or recent shootings across America. The United States often forgets that racism is not always directed toward just African-Americans. However, a form of racism toward those of Hispanic descent has become a normal part of American culture. This year, citizens elected a new president, Mr. Donald Trump, who used this racism for his own benefit. He used angry ideals and people to grow hs following. The accusations he made against…

Words 1303 - Pages 6