Oli Sakadinsky

Journal 5
Throughout history, Native American tribes have cultivated a culture of community and
tradition. These values are very much at odds with the competitive nature of the commercial and
individualistic dominant culture. This contrast between community and competition is commonly
represented in our two class readings, The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven by
Sherman Alexie, and First Person, First Peoples by Native American Dartmouth graduates
(edited by Andrew Garrod and Colleen Larimore). Both Alexies characters and the graduates
featured in First Person, First Peoples who struggled with this contrast found resiliency in
community and cultural identity.
For example, Robert Bennet, a Dartmouth alumnus showcased in First Person, First
Peoples, was stereotyped by his teachers, coaches, and peers for being Native American,
despite his and his grandmothers attempts to separate him from his Lakota culture. He thought
he was better off amalgamating with white culture, which made him known among his white
friends as the good Indian. Being singled out for his race was very trying for Bennet, especially
when it came to baseball, which he eventually went on to play professionally. This particular
brand of judgement came from two coaches in a row: one who said that Bennet couldnt be
trusted with alcohol because his people have a big problem with alcoholism, and another that
described Bennet as poor and in need of favors in a letter of recommendation. Both of these
instances were very upsetting for Bennet, as it seemed that the culture hed tried to emulate his
whole life persisted to single him out for being Indian. To combat this frustration, he turned to
NAD (Native Americans at Dartmouth) and his grandmother so he could learn more about his
culture and heritage. He found strength in recognizing and pursuing his Lakota identity, as he
articulates in his narrative:
I am shedding my wasicu [white] version of life and beginning to understand why my
forebears had preferred to die in battle to protect their ways rather than become puppets
of the wasicu world. Now I wish my upbringing had been as Indian as possible.I have
found more of myself, more of my spirit, and in that discovery comes knowledge
(Garrod 152).
This exemplifies Bennets ideological shift from combatting his culture to embracing it, showing
his growth in understanding that he doesnt have to act white to be successful and accomplish
his goals. In fact, after his further exploration of his culture, he says that his goal is to stand on
a major league pitchers mound with my hair in a braid, knowing that I have accomplished
everything I ever wanted. In light of all the judgement he endured throughout his entire baseball
career, it is through rejoining with his community that he finds the confidence and will to
persevere (Garrod 153).
In Sherman Alexies short story, The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven, (a
chapter in his book) the same theme exists. This story tells the tale of a Native American man
named Victor who moves from his reservation to Seattle to be with his white girlfriend. Upon
doing so, they fight constantly. After much deliberation, as well as nightmares about wars
between Indians and whites, Victor packs up in the middle of the night and returns to the
reservation, where it had been expected that his efforts to integrate himself into white city life
would eventually prove futile. The story references an Indian poet, who summarizes Victors
situation in saying, Indians can reside in the city, but they can never live there. Initially, he
spends his time back home doing absolutely nothing, ignoring his mothers attempts to find him
a job. What eventually brings him to action, though, are his people. When he goes to gym to

play basketball, he sees a white man playing (and beating) all the Indians. While he could have
just not participated, hes driven to compete by the desire to prove his communitys strength and
greatness. He says, Even though I had played most of my ball at the white high school I went
to, I was still all Indian, you know? I was Indian when it counted, and this BIA kid needed to be
beaten by an Indian, any Indian. This is his first time in the story since hes been home that he
really takes the initiative to do something, and its all because he finds strength and resiliency in
identifying himself as Native American. Like Bennett in the other story, it seems Victors goals
have more meaning to him when they are intertwined with his culture and its values.

In both stories, the turning point for each narrator is when he embraces his Indian
identity rather than runs away from it. As a result, they are more prepared to face the challenges
in their lives with the strength of their community behind them. Reading these two pieces, it was
really surprising to me how important cultural identity really is, and how much our own individual
identities are dependent on it. I think through recognizing this Im beginning to understand the
true and residual effects of having that culture practically annihilated by white settlers.

Works Cited
Alexie, Sherman. The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven. New York: Atlantic Monthly,
1993. Print.

Garrod, Andrew, and Colleen Larimore. First Person, First Peoples: Native American College
Graduates Tell Their Life Stories. Ithaca, NY: Cornell UP, 1997. Print.