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Analysis Of The Absolutely True Diary Of A Part Time Indian

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A lot of people feel like they are coasting along life with the rest of the group; they feel a need to find their own individuality. Everyone has something, or multiple things, that make them who they are as a person. In The Absolutely True Diary of a Part Time Indian, Junior goes through the same experience. Junior becomes an individual by switching schools, being Indian, and playing basketball. The first way that Junior becomes an individual is switching schools. Junior lives on an Indian reservation and, naturally, goes to the school there. After hitting his teacher, Mr.P, in the head with a book, Junior is suspended. While sitting at home, Mr.P comes to Junior’s house, not to scold him, but apologize. He encourages Junior to leave the school on the reservation and go to Reardon, the other school a few miles from the reservation. After taking it into consideration, Junior decides that he’s going to go to Reardon. After just one day there, Junior realizes things at Reardon are very different than on the reservation. A bully at school teases Junior, and Junior defends himself by punching the bully in the face, as he would if this scenario happened at the reservation. Well, that was not how things worked at Reardon, and Junior was instantly respected for his courage. This interaction shows that Junior is willing to stand up for himself more than any other student at Reardon, and what was “normal” at the reservation is now “brave” at Reardon. This sets Junior apart from the

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