Shaquisha Barrow
September 26, 2012
Journal #10: The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven
Intro to Lit
1. I got very confused when I was searching for the original “Lone Ranger and Tonto” because I saw different versions of it and I wasn’t sure which was which. I did however, find the definition of “Tonto”, which means silly or dumb and “Ke-mo sah-bee which means trusty scout. I believe that the narrator was Tonto in society’s eyes. The narrator couldn’t even go into a certain part of town without people calling the police because he looks “suspicious”, or walk in a store to get a few snacks without people being scared of him. I believe that heaven represents America and the “American dream” which, to me, is to have freedom, happiness, and wealth. The narrator along with the other Native Americans on the reservation, symbolizes Tonto, he trusts his girlfriend (The Lone Ranger), to help him better himself and reach the American dream but instead she, along with help from others, knock him down and stop him from reaching his dream. The woman that he loved was supposed to be there to help him and encourage him but instead they always clashed and argued. The narrator said that they never physically fought, but she always knew what to say to hurt him. Based on my experiences, most of the people we attach ourselves to, know how to hurt us the most. I think that society as a whole was a symbol of the Lone Ranger. The narrator just wanted to live his life like a regular American but society wouldn’t let him. Everyone put themselves ahead of the Native Americans; they were the scum of the Earth, the Native Americans could never amount to anything in their eyes.
2. It seems to me like Seattle is a pretty big city. We also see that it’s kind of a “stuck-up” place. The police told the narrator that he should be more careful where he drives. Everybody in that part of town felt threatened just because he was different. I believe that people fear what they don’t know so they stereotype the unknown to make themselves feel better. The clerk at the 7-11 feared the narrator just because he “looked” like a bad guy. The narrator actually teased him a little too, just for amusement, but after the clerk actually got to know him, he realized that he wasn’t a bad guy after all. The narrator was not wanted in the neighborhood he was in because they didn’t trust anyone out of their race, well that’s how it seems to me anyways. There has been some tension between white settlers and the Native Americans ever since the settlers came to America so maybe that’s why there is so much tension seen in this story. I’m not too sure about the time period this story took place in but I would say anywhere between the 70’s and 90’s maybe. There seems to be no signs of slavery but racial tension is still high. I’m not good at all when it comes to time periods and history but I do know that at one point, if you were not a white male then your chances at the American dream was very slim. As time progressed, equally opportunity was given to everyone but some people were still a little bias, which still goes on today. Situations like this occurs all over the world and I’m sure it will never come to a complete end, mostly due to tradition.
3. When the narrator moves to Seattle with his girlfriend he dreams of a war between the white settlers and the Indians. He knows that as long as he is there he will never be happy and he will never reach the American Dream so he leaves and goes back to his real home. In the dream, the narrator was shot because he was with the missionary’s wife and his soul went back to the reservation. To me the dream was saying that his real happiness and peace could only come from his real true home, where he is actually loved and cared for, because in reality the American Dream isn’t cut out for everybody; if you don’t reach all of the criteria then you just don’t get it.
4. Both characters stand out in a world where everything is “perfect”; where women stay home and take care of the family while maintaining a strong spiritual life, while the men go out and work to provide for the family. Both characters also lose themselves somewhere in life and have a hard time recovering. The narrator talks about his past, he used to play basketball, he was a smart kid, he went to college, but when he moved with his girlfriend everything went downhill. Krebs joined the military, he had a lot going for him but after everything he witnessed in the war he just became a whole other person. The characters did however, react differently to this conflict. Krebs left home and went to the city to find a new life and start over (but only to please his mom), while the narrator of this story moves with his parents and gets a job and he’s actually happy about it. Another difference between the two is that Krebs was looked down upon because of how he carried himself after the war; he lost his religion, he was somewhat lazy and just out of the loop with life. The narrator of this story was looked down upon because he was Native American. Both characters’ mothers wanted the best for their son. They wanted them to have a normal happy life, which to them, was meeting the standards of society without question.
5. I think she meant that she wanted to break the expectations of society. Everyone in Seattle looked down on the narrator because he was Native American and she didn’t want to do that. She didn’t want to be scared of the narrator; she actually wanted to be with him. Some people say that it only takes at least one person to make a difference and I believe that she was saying that she didn’t want to be the one stereotyping other people and crushing their dreams, she wants to help people and build them up. She was a schoolteacher and her job is to help kids learn no matter what so I feel like she is a caring and loving person and she doesn’t want to see anybody hurt or knocked down.
6. The narrator knows that no matter how hard he tries or no matter where he goes, he will never be able to find the real happiness he’s looking for. He had a decent education, he was really good in sports, but none of that mattered in Seattle; all they saw was skin color and race. He knows that things will never change for him so he dealt with the cards he was given; he moved back home and found a job.
7. I think that he is an anti-hero in an absurd world. Our character doesn’t do anything wrong in the story, at least not that I know of, but in the eyes of society being that he is different from everyone else, he is labeled as a “bad guy”. When he went to the 711, the clerk just knew for sure that he was going to be robbed or killed but he was wrong. The narrator was also told that he was in the wrong part of town and that he didn’t fit the profile of the neighborhood. We all have the same color blood in us and the narrator is a “Native American”, but they treat him like he’s from mars or something.
8. I feel bad for the narrator, and I understand how he feels. When I first started high school I was the odd ball because I didn’t wear named brands and I was bigger than the other girls. At first it made me feel bad but then I just got over it. Some things in life just aren’t meant to be changed so all we can do is accept it and work with what you got and that is just what the narrator did.