Sherman Alexie: The Truth Hurts

I commend Sherman Alexie's writing. First off, Alexie is a Native American writer who is aware of the social position of his people. He understands that Native Americans are looked down upon from society because they have a bad reputation to be unsuccessful, alcoholic, and stagnant as a reservation. Very few make it out of the desolate reservation to go to college and make a life for themselves. However, just because it is expected that Alexie did not do anything with his life, that did not stop him from defying the norm and finding himself through writing. His writing is, in my opinion, very commendable because he is honest to the reader. He could write stories about the Indians and leave out all of the negative sides of the culture, however, he decides that if he is going to write about his people , he is going to cover all aspects of them, including the alcohol problem and depression associated with Reservation life. I also appreciate how Alexie is willing to confront the stereotypes of his people and admit whether some are true or just nonsense. He does not try to avoid all the stereotypes, and some of them he even embraces as a proud part of his culture. For example, his braid. It is a stereotype that all Indians have thick, long, black braids. Instead of being embarrassed about it because it is a known stereotype, he embraces it and is so proud of it that he grows it as long as it has ever been in his senior year. So in general, Alexie is an honest writer who is not afraid to speak the harsh truth.