DRAFT!
Argument Essay: Why Banning The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian is
not a good idea
By
Alexi Bonfils
For the last
month in ELA we have been focusing on banned books. Sherman Alexie’s best
selling, and frequently challenged book, “The Absolutely True Diary of a
Part-Time Indian.” Is a book that I read, and I can’t believe it is being
banned This book is about a 14-year-old native kid, Arnold who is funny,
sensitive, and a growing artist. Arnold is going through puberty, but also has
a disease that leaves him with a big head, a stutter, and lisp. Because of this
he is bullied non-stop. The central conflict of this story is when Arnold
leaves the Spokane Indian Tribe School, to go to an all white school that is
looked down upon by the Indians. People want to ban this book, but they
shouldn't because this book gives very good life lessons, and kids can learn
from, and relate to this book.
This book
has a great message to go after your dreams. Arnold gets picked on at his
reservation, and decides he wants to switch schools. “ ‘I want to go to
Reardan,’ I said again. I couldn’t believe I was saying it, for me, it seemed
as real as saying, ‘I want to fly to the moon.’ ‘Are you sure?’ my parents
asked. ‘You could maybe wait till next semester break or until next year. Get a
fresh start.’ ‘No, if I don’t go now, I never will. I have to go now.’ ‘Okay.’
They said.” From this quote we can tell that Arnold really wants to go to this
school. This also shows Arnold being brave because he knows that all the
Indians hate Reardan since it is filled with rich white kids, but he knows if
he goes there he will get a better education. When children read this they will
get inspired to be braver and go after what they want.
When Arnold
gets to Reardan he doesn’t have any friends. There is boy there named
Gordy who Arnold thinks he could be good friends with. Gordy does not even know
who he is, but still Arnold goes up and talks to him, “I looked at Gordy. He
was a big kid, actually, strong from bucking bales and driving trucks. He was
probably the strongest geek in the world. ‘I want to be your friend,’ I
said. ‘Excuse me?’ he asked ‘I want us to be friends,’ I said.” This shows Arnold being brave because instead
of just waiting for the day to come when Gordy talks to him, Arnold steps up
and talks to Gordy, and by the end of the book him and Gordy are good friends.
When children read this they will want to make friends, I know this because
some kids are shy, and when they find out a way to do something they will try
it. If you want to make a friend, but don't know how, then you won’t try. But
if you read something that tells a story about someone making a friend, you
will want to try that way out.
Arnold likes
a girl at Reardan named Penelope. Penelope is a popular pretty white girl who
doesn’t talk to Arnold at all. Arnold tries talking to her now and then and
Penelope talks back, but they aren’t really friends. Arnold tries collecting
money for charity with her, he helps her with problems, and by the end of the
book they start to date. Not only does this give advice on how to make friends
and a girl friend, but also it is another example of being brave, and when boys
and girls read this they will also want to try to be braver. To add on it is
coming from a boy close to the age of kids who normally read this book, so it
is easy to relate to.
People who want to ban this book say it
has subjects such as alcoholism so it should be banned. The book does talk
about alcoholism, but shows a strong message against it. It explains why no one
should ever consider becoming an alcoholic, or drinking and driving. Arnold
explains throughout the book about what its like having an alcoholic dad, and
even goes through deaths of people close to him because of alcohol induced situations,
“I'm fourteen years old and I've been to forty-two funerals. That's really the
biggest difference between Indians and white people. A few of my white
classmates have been to a grandparent's funeral. And a few have lost an uncle
or aunt. And one guy's brother died of leukemia when he was in third grade. But
there's nobody who has been to more than five funerals. All my white friends
can count their deaths on one hand. I can count my fingers, toes, arms, legs,
eyes, ears, nose, penis, butt cheeks, and nipples, and still not get close to
my deaths. And you know what the worst part is? The unhappy part? About 90
percent of the deaths are because of alcohol.” Kids who read this book will
realize what can happen when you get drunk, and they will learn to make better
choices. On http://www.nbcnews.com it
says, “Alcohol abuse kills
some 75,000 Americans each year and shortens the lives of these people by an
average of 30 years, a U.S. government study suggested Thursday. Excessive
alcohol consumption is the third leading cause of preventable death in the
United States after tobacco use and poor eating and exercise habits.” If this book were banned they would not
get the chance to learn about how dangerous alcohol can be.
People also
say it should be banned because it talks about masturbation. The thing is this
is a book about a 14-year-old boy going through puberty. Most kids don’t want
to go up to someone and ask questions, they would rather read about it, and
keep it to themselves. This book helps kids learn about what’s going to happen
to their body, and if this were banned boys and girls wouldn’t know what to do.
Also parents get embarrassed about talking about this stuff, so why not give
your child a book that he/she can relate to instead?
The book, “The Absolutely True Diary of
a Part-Time Indian” By Sherman Alexie should not be banned because it teaches
kids to be brave and gives great life lessons. It as well gets kids ready to
learn about what’s going to happen to their body. Some people want to ban this
book because of it’s mentions of alcoholism and inappropriate words, but it
talks how it is bad to drink alcohol, and kids can relate to the terms that
Arnold says in this book. So the next time you need a book to read, read The
Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian By Sherman Alexie and think about
weather it should be banned or not!
