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Abhay Gupta
Mrs. Sidwell
Literary Explorations 1
14 October 2015
Heroism through Perseverance
Hero. What exactly defines a hero? Nelson Mandela could be described as a hero because
he helped end apartheid in South Africa. John McCain could be termed a hero because he fought
for his country and was shot down over Vietnam, captured, tortured, and broken down to be
complacent with the North Vietnamese. Through this example, one can infer that any person who
is captured by the enemy is called a hero, even if he assists the enemy by cooperating with him.
However, by the former example, one could assume that a hero is someone who influences the
lives of others in a positive manner. Hence, there is no clear meaning to a hero; everyone is a
hero in his or her own special way. In The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by
Sherman Alexie, from the moment Junior was born with water on the brain, to the struggles he
faces on his reservation and the conflicts he faces at Reardan, he constantly overcomes hurdles in
his life. Therefore, Junior is a hero in his own unique way. Junior endures several disabilities, yet
he conquers these immense obstructions to achieve his ambitions. His fortitude and resilience are
the defining qualities that distinguish him as a hero.
Junior has faced many challenges throughout his whole life, such as being born a
hydrocephalic and enduring the deaths of his loved ones. This can be first seen when Junior
exclaims, I was born with water on the brain. Okay, so thats not exactly true. I was actually
born with too much cerebral spinal fluid inside my skull (Alexie 1). Junior is a hydrocephalic,
so he is at risk of brain damage and is more prone to seizures. Due to this disability, he has an

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abnormally large head, the chief reason why he is picked on. In his reservation, this was
everyday life for him; it was how he reacted to such circumstances that classify him as a hero.
He had to willingly accept the Andruss brothers bullying to not create conflict, which makes him
the bigger man since he did not act selfishly and fall victim to physical pain. Another indication
of when Junior faces a hardship is when he mentions, In fact, last week, she [my grandma] was
walking back home from a mini powwow at the Spokane Tribal Community Center, when she
was struck and killed by a drunk driver (157). Dealing with the loss of a family member is hard
to cope with, and Junior was close to his grandmother. Junior described her as tolerant; she
would actually listen to him complain and give him helpful advice. Hence, he is a hero because
his grandmas death forces him to appreciate the finer things in life, such as the basketball team
and Penelope, which gives him a different outlook on life. He overcomes her death through
fortitude and resilience, which defines him as a hero. With all of this in mind, it is evident that
Junior has had a hard life to begin with, from water on his brain to losing his beloved
grandmother; these tragedies have forced him to resort to bettering himself.
Junior displays his fortitude under dire circumstances throughout the book, in spite of his
disabilities by listening to Mr. Ps advice of leaving the reservation to further his education and
by striving to become the smartest kid at Reardan through giving his best effort. One way this is
true is when Mr. P instills the seeds of determination in Junior asserting, You cant give up. You
wont give up. You threw that book in my face because somewhere inside you refuse to give up
(43). Here, Junior feels pride knowing that someone truly cares about him and that he has a
chance at redemption. This pride and fortitude will compel him to enroll in Reardan and take that
first step towards salvation. He utilizes the Mr. Ps support to fling himself towards success
because he now has a sense of purpose in his life. He conquers the obstacle of unequal

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opportunity by enrolling in Reardan, which contributes to his heroism. Another example that
proves Juniors fortitude is when Junior starts to become a better student due to Gordon because
he writes, And he [Gordon] certainly helped me through school. He not only tutored me and
challenged me, but he made me realize that hard work that the act of finishing, of completing,
of accomplishing a task is joyous (98). Junior is determined to make a life for himself by
studying hard and excelling in school. He shows pure dedication to this goal by meeting outside
of class with Gordy to collaborate on assignments. This proves he is interested in achieving
success, unlike the people at his reservation, where they believe that they have no prospect of
progress. His heroism is displayed when he leaps over the enticing hurdle of laziness by
exemplifying that he is the epitome of an industrious worker. Due to all these reasons, Junior
exhibits fortitude since he vanquishes the barriers of unequal opportunity and lethargy by
enrolling in Reardan and excelling as a student.
Junior exhibits his resilience despite his debilities in multiple situations throughout the
book, by defending his culture in front of Roger and standing up to the people in his reservation
by playing against them in his basketball game. For instance, Junior explains his fight with
Roger saying, I couldnt let them get away with that shit. I wasnt just defending myself. I was
defending Indians, black people, and buffalo. So I punched Roger in the face (65). Junior
expresses his inner strength by standing up to Roger; he defended his race because he is proud of
his people and no one should talk bad about them. At this moment, he is a hero to his people
because he is not letting Roger disrespect Indians and he is acting resilient towards Roger. He
crosses the barrier of race by ending all inequality and punching Roger in the face. Also, when
Junior was going to play against his old reservation in a basketball game he writes, The rez
basketball fans were chanting, Ar-nold sucks! Ar-nold sucks! Ar-nold sucks... You dont have to

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play this one Yes, I do (143). He wanted to help his team at any cost and was willing to face
his reservation and play against them in order to be a team player. He got over the shock that the
reservation was singling him out and chanting that he sucked and was ready to face Rowdy
and his team. Juniors coach was very proud of him when Junior exclaimed that he would play in
the basketball game. He is a hero because he displayed immense courage when he decided to
compete against his old reservation. Junior conquers his shallowness and becomes more
nonchalant as he now does not care what his reservation thinks of him. There is no doubt that
Junior demonstrates resilience since he stood up to Roger for his tribe and plays basketball
against his former reservation to keep his team going.
Juniors fortitude, resilience, and his ability to overcome obstacles in his path
characterize him as a hero. He has faced numerous challenges such as being a hydrocephalic and
suffering his grandmothers death; however, he overcome these problems with fortitude and
resilience. He is a role model to whom which every child should aspire to be since he is not
afraid to sacrifice his personal happiness to bring joy to others. Todays leaders, in order to better
the world, should follow Juniors example of how he stands up for what he believes. A true hero
cannot be perfect, but fortitude and resilience are two defining qualities that aid in trumping
obstacles.

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Works Cited
Alexie, Sherman. The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-time Indian. Ellen Forney. New York:
Little, Brown, 2007. Print.