"The First Annual All-Indian Horseshoe Pitch and Barbecue" is a story from Sherman Alexie's The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven that really sticks with me as one of his more abstract writings -- not necessarily in content but in the way that it was described. It's always impressive when an author knows exactly which pieces to pick out of a setting so to expertly portray an envrionment to the reader. You get this impression from the very first line, standing apart from the rest, "Somebody forgot the charcoal; blame the BIA." From the onset, the reader understands the feeling of a laid-back setting; no one is strung up on missing charcoal or who's to blame.
The way the story jumps; from piano-playing to lying beneath a picnic table, to a funny note on the ground and a mother speaking profoundly to her child -- the effect being that it reads more similarly to a scrapbook than a narrative. Beyond this, there are abstract and poetic phrases inserted arbitrarily into the context that cause the reader to spend time on some lines more than others; "That Skin with the long hair leaning against the pine tree, yes, that one," (148) and shortly after, "Neither has the words to describe this but they know how to dance, yes, they know how to dance." (148) It's as if the author is working to convince the reader of something, or that a second voice is interjecting to but more practically impressing the significance of certain images. Consider the difference between reading simply, "but they know how to dance," versus "but they know how to dance, yes, they know how to dance," and one can begin to more closely understand the author's mindset and motivation. It's as though the story is forcing the reader to more heavily on their own imagination than the concrete words written within. Perhaps then, the reason that this story sticks with me is because thinking of it conjures up my own visual ideas on what took place, almost like they are my own memories. I could say it's due to Alexie being a skillful writer, but really, I blame the BIA.
Ya-hey, Peter,
ReplyDeleteTo me, this story is like a poem. Instead of a linear narrative being told, we get snapshots of beautiful things: a piano concerto, cool grass, horseshoes, love. It's interesting that it comes after "A Good Story," which is about wresting beauty and goodness from painful lives. But that story ends a bit ambivalently: "Believe me, there is just barely enough goodness in all of this" (144), while "The First Annual All-Indian Horseshoe Pitch and Barbecue" ends on a much more hopeful note: "'Both sides of this child are beautiful'" (148).
Peter,
ReplyDeleteI’ve enjoyed your participation in AMS205, particularly your sense of humor. I think we’ve all gone from feeling: “Yep, we sure screwed ‘em (Indians) over.” To, “Wow, we really did that?”, and, Here’s another group that got a raw deal.” To, “Holy Sh*t. I don’t think I want to wrap my mind around anymore!” If AMS205 was being taught in the public school system, it would surely make some group’s “banned classes” list.
You point out that the BIA is a target of Alexie’s poignant humor. The more I learn about the BIA’s role, the more sad irony I uncover. The following quote is from the Department of the Interior government web site (www.doi.gov):
“While the role of Indian Affairs has changed significantly in the last three decades in response to a greater emphasis on Indian self-governance and self-determination, Tribes still look to Indian Affairs for a broad spectrum of services.”
I can just hear Alexie’s sarcastic “Gee, thanks. You’ve done so much for us already. We can take it from here.”
One of the biggest ironies I uncovered while researching Sitting Bull involves the Ghost Dance, which ultimately lead to Sitting Bull’s premature death, and at least partially sparked the events of the Massacre at Wounded Knee. The Ghost Dance movement was fundamentally Christian-based. One of the stated goals of the BIA was to spread Christianity among the Indians. Yet, the Ghost Dance religion was banned.
Come to think of it, Sitting Bull’s murder and the Wounded Knee massacre were probably inevitable. Blame it on Manifest Destiny.
Best of luck to you,
Matt
Hey what good Peter, nice job on your post for the week. I definitely am in 100 % agreement with you that this novel possesses stories that at first seem to be all over the place as far as the activities that take place. But if we take a look at the message that the author is attempting to display it truly is a very sad situation that the Native Americans are dealing with from the time the stepped foot into America up until the present. We as the reader able to witness the extreme poverty ridden condition that these people were subjected to on the reservations on which they dwelled. Some stories display characters that abuse alcohol, and the reader is able to observe the chain of events that seem to occur because of its presence. For Instance in the story of “Every Little Hurricane “ the main character Victor describes the fight that occurred between his uncles, which share the details of how gory the scene had soon become. Another situation in the same story describes how Victor observes his father actions as he is un able to save up enough money to present his family with gifts for Christmas. Even though the atmosphere seems to be depressing the events that were just recently mentioned are things that had become normal in Victors life. It defiantly takes a strong character to have a positive out take on life after going though these type of situations.
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