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Misha Smith
Professor Sandor
English 1A
17 May 2020
The Comparison and the similarities of Culture
According to both novels, “The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by
Sherman Alexie, and American Born Chinese”, Gene Luen Yang have both shared the same
situations to being stereotype cause of their cultural heritage.
Alexie and Yang have briefly experienced the similarities in both novels of racial
discrimination due to the cultural of being belittle because of their own race. “When the class
finally figured out that we weren’t related, rumors began to circulate that Suzy and I were
arranged to be married on her thirteenth birthday” (Yang 31). This had gone to affect them into a
different aspect because they weren’t related in any kind of form, and that they’ve assumed that if
they’re not related that maybe, that they’re supposed to be married at a young age. A young age
that they believe that other culture heritage is different from the other culture. “It’s a school on
the reservation border filled with the poorest Indians and poorer- than white kids. Yes, there is a
place in the world where the white people are even poorer than you ever thought possible”
(Alexie 45). Discrimination still plays a major factor in the culture of believing that another race
is actually poorer than another race. Which will always continue to belittle race after race, and
continue to the myth of actually believing that every race has some kind of poor people. “Just
remember this, “my father said. “Those white people aren’t better than you.” (Alexie 55).
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Another reason to why that if the hate still continues as a hatred against one another that it will
never change the mind of others, and that will go beyond the line from one another to build a
better relationship with another race. This goes to show that the discrimination of another culture
taken the edge of continuing the hate against one another, and it has been the cause to the
situation that why another culture is belittle.
Alexie and Yang also explain the situation of being a student who’s the only race in a
school full of one particular race, that make you feel you’re out of place. When one of the new
students who came from Tai Wan had experience a situation where when he wanted to become
friends with one of the other classmates and when he wanted to start a conversation with the
other classmates. It had begun like this, “Eh… We B-Be Friends? I have enough friends” (Yang
38). Although in the novel of American Born Chinese begun to feel disappointed because the
thought of him being different from the rest of them would make him feel out of place, and
didn’t want to be friends with. “A few of my white classmates have been to a grandparents’
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. (Alexie 200).
Another reason why Yang felt out of place because even though that some of them been to
funerals a few times, but they haven’t been to more than four. Which gave him another
disappoint that he doesn’t belong nor fit in with the rest of them because they have been to less
than five funerals, but he has been to five of them. “All of these whites’ kids and teachers, who
were so suspicious of me when I arrived, had learned to care about me. Maybe some of them
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even loved me. And I’d been so suspicious of them. And now I care about a lot of them. And
loved a few of them” (Alexie 212). This goes back to the fact that even though they’ve been
suspicious of another human being because of what they’ve thought of, instead of knowing of.
That gives them the opportunity to be not even get the chance of going outside of their mindset
of learning to care instead of judging.
Although in both novels Alexie and Yang had gone through difference prior to what it’s
like to move away, and being able to start difference at a new place. “You know how I
transferred from Hughes Academy at the beginning of the year? Well, the year before that I
transferred from High Rohmer High. (Yang 126). Changing location and making better decisions
to start over when things get difficult. Which can trigger you to adjust to it because when you get
frightened of how things will look if you stay. So, moving on to different places will make you
feel like more comfortable, and less stressful. “And once I arrived at Reardan, I became
something less than, less than, less than Indian” (Alexie 83). When you arrived at places you
start to think less of your own culture because you’re busy trying to fit in with the rest of the
cultures. That you are no longer thinking or doing activities that you normally do in your own
culture. Which shows once you leave another state that you think less and less than your average.
“She found a home across the road from a University, they soon now spent all his free time
reading book about mathematics, science, and history” (Yang 24). In this particularly situation
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that once you move on to a different location, you’re more focus and less distracted on learning.
Which goes beyond that when She had found a home away from the University, that she had
more time to study than to not being able to stay at all. That shows moving to away to other
places is sometimes for the better.
Alexie and Yang have briefly experienced the similarities in both novels of racial
discrimination due to cultural of being belittle because of their own race. That they assumed that
the race of another are supposed to be the opposite of theirs. Alexie and Yang also explain the
situation of being a student who’s the only race in a school full of one particular race, that make
you feel you’re out of place. Making new friends in a new school environment, and not be
accepted because you feel that you the opposite to the rest of them. Lastly, how they went
through the differences prior to moving away, and starting at new places has become a better
decision for their lives.