Stereotypes: A Short Story Of A Native American

Reverse discrimination is unequal, preferential treatment against some people to advance the interest of others. This is an issue that has been around for years and will be for years to come. Whether it is two students applying for college or adults applying for a job interview reverse discrimination can play a part. The author James Rachels describes how in society reverse discrimination is constantly a factor.

Throughout the history of media, stereotypes have developed a big role in decision making for producers. In the article “Appalachian Culture and Reality TV” by Angela Cooke-Jackson and Elizabeth Hanson, there was a lot of discussion about how these unscripted shows such as the The Real Beverly Hill Billies, were depicted in a negative and unethical way. This show showed footage of uneducated, ignorant, ripped clothing individuals who live in the Appalachians.Producers of the show used humor to depict these individuals instead of real emotions. This angered many individuals who are considered to be in within the subculture. The stereotypes depicted makes it hard for groups of the subculture to value themselves.

The French did not know what is tobacco; and they could not speak to the Indians. On the other hand, the Indians never used axes, knives, or guns, and were scared of them. The Europeans and Native Americans traded furs but European disease affected a lot. Europeans were eager with furs and the Indians derided them, an example was that the they gave the Indians 20 beautiful knives to exchange a Beaver skin.

When you think of the typical Native American, also known as Indigenous, a stereotypical image probably comes to mind. You think of a sulky, half-naked male dressed in animal skin and a tall feathery hat, dancing around a fire. You might picture a slim, attractive female with smooth red skin and long black hair. These are the images fed to us by the media. The media created this generic version of an indigenous person and everyone has been running with it ever since. Indigenous people, are rarely represented in the media. They typically don’t appear in film and when they do, they are negatively stereotyped. These negative stereotypes are deeply embedded in American life and most Americans cannot even perceive Indigenous people as real people.

Hockey is a national sport that unites one another. From the Montreal Canadiens to the Vancouver Canucks, children and adults find excitement in the game. In the novel Indian Horse by Richard Wagamese, Saul Indian Horse encounters racism in his hockey career and with society. Saul attempts to bear the stereotypes set on him, which destroys him and thus, Saul struggles in attempt to reconcile mentally, physically and spiritually.

Johnny Reeves is a very important character throughout the story “The Witness”. In the story “The Witness”, Johnny is the minister of the KKK and preaches about how bad blacks are to him. Some of the problems that Johnny creates in this story are usually with blacks, because he is racist and against them. The reason he is like this is because he is a part of the KKK and has been brought up to be this way. In this story, I argue that Johnny Reeves is one of the main problem causers because of his back ground of being apart and the minister of the KKK.

In his short story “Indian Education,” Sherman Alexie uses character to suggest that even though the world is seen to be equal, but bigotry and discrimination still exists. Alexie uses the stories of his main character, Victor, to express the constant prejudice in the world.

In the text, “Superman and Me,”One main quote that explains everything you need to know about this article is when Sherman Alexie says, “I wasrefused to fail. I was smart. I was lucky.” Many people that have read this choose to believe that this quote is just an irritating repetition of how he felt about himself, however, closer examination shows that it actually develops his main claim and central idea, refines his claims, and shows the purpose of this text all in one quote. Alexie was a young, Indian boy who just wanted to know how to read in write in the aspiration of becoming emotionally closer to his father because he loved him so. He was lucky enough to have the first step taken for him getting the books.

Native Americans have been depicted as primitives and salvages since they were discovered by of non-natives in the Americas. These stereotypes were created through oral tradition by explorers and settlers and remained to in the present through books, radio, television, and film. This prejudice has caused Native Americans to suffer this backlash throughout their life. They have been coined noble savages or murderous heathens, especially in western movies, films, and television shows. Native American men were considered a good Indian brave, the villainous warrior, or mystic nature priest. The Native American women were depicted as the angry, defiant or the compliant squaw. In movies, on television, or on film, Native Americans were viewed as wild and uncivilized, even if they were good or evil.

Today, society has become dependent on media, propaganda has risen because of the portrayal of stereotypes of the Hispanic culture. There is a common ground of the concepts of stereotyping and ethnocentrism. The propaganda has enabled stereotypes to arise in the media and has made an impact on the behaviors of those that interact with the Hispanic culture. Any action reflecting stereotypes could have a negative or positive impact on those of other cultures.

The film Precious Knowledge is from the perspective of a group of students at Tuscan High School in Arizona. The school system wanted to increase graduation rates and was looking at different ways to do this. The school came to the conclusion that a Mexican- American studies class will increase the dropout rate from 48 percent. This class taught students about Mexican-American history and culture with a curriculum that can be related to social justice while thinking critically and socially conscious. The Governor of Arizona started to protest this class because of the books they were reading and some of the material that was being taught was considered to be promoting the overthrow of the US Government. He believed this class was anti-American. A bill was passed, where the class had to be cancelled or the school would lose 10 percent of their funding. This class shows oppression, different teaching styles and can be related to other historical and more recent events.

When Junior is in Reardan (the little white town),he is “half Indian,”and when he is in Wellpinit (his home reservation),he is “half white.” “It was like being Indian was my job,” he says, “but it was only a part time job.And it didn’t pay well at all.” At Reardan High,why does Junior pretend to have money than he does,even though he knows that “lies have short shelf lives”?

As Medina transitions from Cuba to a New York public school, he changes his perspective on the move. He explains how “the snow on the ground did not stay white for very long. Nothing does in New York” (Medina 72). The comparison of nothing in New York to the white snow with neither remaining white, or pure, suggests to the audience that his perspective of the United States has changed from bright to darkness. Medina describes his new school as “a typical New York school, a microcosm of the city where all races mingled and fought and, on occasion, learned” (72). Medina’s use of sarcasm towards the kids of his school about rarely learning reveals how he was hoping he would become more educated, but instead the school fights about race more than

As Winston Churchill said,” Success is not final. Failure is not fatal”. It is the perseverance and hope to continue that counts. This is the story of a boy named Junior whose key is his hope. The Absolutely True Diary is the life story of a Arnold Spirit (Junior) and his efforts to break the stereotypes about Indians. He wants to become something amazing; he wants to be successful. Juniors experiences throughout the book changes him as a person and he understands that life has its ups and downs but if people have hope, they can do anything. In The Absolutely True Diary, Sherman Alexie uses literary devices, Mr.P’s advice, and Juniors experiences to illustrate the theme that perseverance and hope can lead to great things.

In his book the Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, Sherman Alexie portrays a teenage boy, Arnold Spirit (junior) living in white man’s world, and he must struggle to overcome racism and stereotypes if he must achieve his dreams. In the book, Junior faces a myriad of misfortunes at his former school in ‘the rez’ (reservation), which occurs as he struggles to escape from racial and stereotypical expectations about Indians. For Junior he must weigh between accepting what is expected of him as an Indian or fight against those forces and proof his peers and teachers wrong. Therefore, from the time Junior is in school at reservation up to the time he decides to attend a neighboring school in Rearden, we see a teenager who is facing tough consequences for attempting to go against the racial stereotypes. The decision to attend a white school is a tough one and Junior understands that for him to survive and to ensure that his background does not stop him from attaining his dreams; he must battle the stereotypes regardless of the consequences. In this light, race and stereotypes only makes junior stronger in the end as evident on how he struggles to override the race and stereotypical expectations from his time at the reservation to his time at Rearden.