Why does Junior feel he wants to get back to school? What happens when he gets there?--Mika

Junior wants to go back to school to escape the influence of alcohol back at the Reservation. Junior understands that drinking only leads to more negative consequences, while the majority of people living on the Reservation do not. Most people living on the Reservation cope with pain by drinking alcohol as a temporary way to soothe their pain. Three of Junior’s close friends and family members have died from a cause related to the use of alcohol. Junior wants to go back to school because the people mourning his sister's death will most likely be drinking alcohol, the drink that promoted her decease, and he wants to leave this place. Although there is irony in this thought, it is very true among not only Junior’s friends and family but among the entire Reservation. When the first settlers conquered America, they oppressed Native American people, and centuries later, Native American people were still oppressed by white people when they tried to “take the indian out of the man”. Centuries of pain have caused generations of Native American people to handle their pain by drinking alcohol. Since this practice is a social norm, many Native Americans drink alcohol to handle their pain, which only leads to greater sorrow and depression.

When Junior returns to school, he is greeted by people who are supportive and empathetic when they hear about Junior’s loss; “They were worried for me.They wanted to help me with my pain” (212). Junior has become a critical asset to Reardan's basketball team, and, overall, a funny and kind addition to Reardan. Junior’s teachers and peers are so supportive when he loses his sister because that kind of trauma rarely happens to any of the students attending Reardan. At Wellpinit, the students there would be sad about the loss of Mary; however, they would not be nearly as supportive as the students attending Reardan because they have gone through similar circumstances as Junior. In conclusion, Junior wants to get back to school in order to escape the influence of alcohol at the Reservation, and when he returned to Reardan, he was greeted by supportive teachers and peers.  

Are there any other characters we have read about in other books that cope with pain by drinking alcohol?

Why do you think that throughout the book Arnold was shaped into this character who was “different” and did not believe in alcohol or losing hope?

Why throughout the book have we frequently seen white people cry when they hear about Junior’s issues and struggles?

       

How does Junior cope with sadness (free response)? Ana Chrysa Maravelias

Each book and each character shows a different way to cope with hardships.  In the Outsiders, Ponyboy just

wanted to forget. He wanted to forget all the deaths, and all the grieving. Here, in The Absolutely True Diary

of a Part-Time Indian, Junior did something similar after Mary’s death, and kept the truth away for as long as

possible. As it says on page 201 " ‘Arnold, I'm sorry,’ she said. ‘But I just got a phone call from your mother.

It's your sister. She's passed away.’ ‘What do you mean?’ I asked. I knew what she meant, but I wanted her to

say something else. Anything else. ‘Your sister is  gone,’ Miss. Warren said. ‘I know she's gone,’ I said. ‘She

lives in Montana now.’ I knew I was being an idiot. But I figured if I kept being an idiot, if I didn't actually

accept the truth, the truth would become false." This shows that Junior just doesn't want to handle the truth.

He can't handle the truth. He's been through so many hardships that another death is just stretching his limits.

He believes that if he pushes the truth away, it will truly be distant and gone. He just wants to do anything and

everything to make the hard, bitter reality go away.  He just wants to stall. He wants to spend as much time as

he can pushing it away.

As it says on page 206 " ‘My sister is dead,’ I said. ‘Yes.’ ‘I was hoping I dreamed that,’ I said." This shows that Junior wishes that the reality that he’s living in wasn't his reality. He wishes that it were all fake, or distant and far away.  He wishes it were all a dream. Or more accurately, a nightmare. At first when Junior's grandma died he didn't really know how to react. Then, when Eugene died, he started to make more cartoons. Now that a third loved one (Mary) has died, he wishes that it weren't true. In reality, Junior is just a kid trying to navigate his way through a world full of sadness, miseries, and disparities, and he is doing the best that he can to cope.

1. Do you think that Junior also uses laughter as a way to cope with his pain? Why or why not?
2. How do you think Junior’s sadness increased from one family death to the other? How did they each affect him?
3. Do you think that Mary’s death was the hardest for Junior to fully grasp? Why or why not?

Why does Junior cry on pages 216-217? - Jemma Harvey

Junior cried on pages 216-27 because he is realizing how much Rowdy actually cares for Junior. Rowdy puts on a tough face for everyone around him, but he is actually doing this to prevent people from seeing his true self. Junior is a highlight in Rowdy's life and Rowdy has always known this, he just had to admit it to himself. Rowdy's tendency to push people away makes Junior feel as though Rowdy does not care for him, when that is not actually the case. Rowdy has always believed in Junior, he just never wanted to admit it. On pages 216-217 Rowdy is proving that he does care about Junior. He does this by being the one to make the first move in order to improve their friendship. Then, when they are playing basketball Rowdy tells junior how he has always believed that he would make it. Junior has never heard Rowdy say something as sentimental and constructive. Also, Junior is constantly doubting himself and his abilities, so to hear that someone, let alone Rowdy, has always believed in him is something significant and meaningful. Juniors insecurities are constantly getting in the way of his accomplishments, so when Rowdy tells Junior that he has always known he would be successful it is a step towards Junior overcoming his insecurity.
1) Were you surprised by what Rowdy said to Junior?
2) Did you expect Rowdy to be the one to approach Junior, instead of the other way around?
3) What is your opinion on the tree climbing story? How does it relate to the present day?

In this time of grief, why do you think Junior laughs so much? What are the specific moments he laughs the hardest? - Max B-P

        For Junior, grief and struggle have been consistent things because of his being Indian and living on the rez. Although, as introduced at the beginning he draws cartoons to make fun of the world, because, ”words are two unpredictable”(9). His cartoons are visual representations of him laughing at the world. He, like many others, laughs so that the pain goes away. He denies bad things and pretends they never happened. Junior is not alone, and many people on the reservation do the same thing with drinking and drugs. His dad goes off and gets drunk after a bad thing happens, people today in our world go get opioids to forget temporarily about things they don’t want to face. Junior simply laughs to deflect his pain and it makes it easier for him to cope. Everybody has coping methods and laughing is Junior’s.
        One specific moment where he laughs very hard is when his sister Mary dies. In the car with his dad, the dad is quite sad but Junior laughs very hard the whole way home: “I felt like I might die of laughing… I couldn’t figure out why I was laughing. But, I kept laughing as my dad drove out of Reardan”(204-205). I think he laughs so much at this moment because he was hit hard by Mary’s death. I know that Grandma and Eugene were both big parts of his life, but Mary is the person he wanted to follow in life. She didn’t like the rez either so she just left. He has wanted to leave for a while now and be a wanderer like her so her death proves the difficulty of leaving.


How do Junior's cartoons relate to his laughing?


Why does Mary's death cause the most laughing?

Free Response: Why does Junior keep trying to connect with Rowdy when Rowdy keeps shutting him down? -Adam Murray

When Junior breaks the news that he is moving to Reardan to Rowdy he takes it in the worst way possible and doesn't talk to Arnold still doesn't. But throughout the book Arnold keeps trying to make things better with Rowdy. He tries emailing him but Rowdy either barely says anything or doesn't say anything at all. When Reardon plays Wellipoint in the first game of the season Arnold is booed when he enters the court. When he checks into the game somebody throws a quarter at him and he has to get stitches. At this point Arnold is feeling really mad and sad. He feels mad because he can’t play because somebody threw a quarter at him. He is sad because he doesn't feel welcome because everybody is screaming at him. Although he is feeling these emotions he has enough perseverance to return back to the game. A couple of minutes in Rowdy elbows him and he is unconscious. This is yet another example of how Rowdy is blocking Junior out. When he is better he returns to action and the Reardon team goes on a 12 game winning streak. Then there is the one of the biggest games of the season if not the biggest. Rematch between Reardon and Wellpoint. After a hard match Reardon pulls out the victory and Arnold holds Rowdy to only scoring 4 points. After the game Junior feels ashamed because he knows what those kids on the rez are going through. So he tries yet again to email Rowdy saying that he is sorry for beating there team. Rowby responds with a mean comment and Arnold follows with a mean comment in the end Rowdy says “haha” I personally think that Rowdy is slowly but surely letting Arnold back into his life. I think that Rowdy couldn’t survive without Junior for the rest of his life.

Questions:

1. Will Rowdy let Arnold back into his life?
2. Wen Rowdy say “haha” what do you think he means other than he is laughing?

Explain the humor/irony of the title of the chapter, “Rowdy and I Have a Long and Serious Discussion About Basketball.”-🤪🇭🇹Judy Moody🇭🇹🤪

               

                          In the chapter title "Rowdy and I Have a Long and Serious Discussion
           About  Basketball" has a little bit of irony because going into the chapter you'd think that                  Rowdy would be so rude and cruel to Junior in his email. However, he had a decent tone in his
        email and still had a little "Rowdy flair" in him. I think that Rowdy has finally had an epiphany          that Junior and him are together forever even though they may have their downsides they work            together as one despite the challenges along the way. This shows that Junior's point that Indians are close shows that it could even be in the hardest of time they're like glue.

                         Although in the chapter title they're is some irony they're is also some humor
         in the chapter title. Junior describes the conversation as a long and serious on e, but I think that      this is funny because in the chapter there's is a lively almost friendly conversation between the 2         Indians. Personally, I think that Junior prior to the conversation  is very stressed about the reaction     of his worst enemy, Rowdy. Thorough out the book you can see that Junior always has expectations  for himself others and so much more. Leading to why he possibly exaggerated the title   of the chapter.

     1.What do you think of this reading and Why? Text is needed
     2.Would you be sad if you won to Wellpinit? Why?
     3.How do you feel about Arnold currently?Why? Use text to help explain your opinion

Summarize the outcome of the game. Why does Junior cry at the end? What
does he realize? -Spiros Gerogiannis

After the game between Reardan and Wellpinit, Reardan won by a lot and
Arnold did an amazing job in the game. But instead of celebrating this, he
put himself back in the position of what it feels like to lose in Wellpinit.
There, if you lose, your drunk parent might physically abuse you, and it
prevents you from taking a step further in your life, while in Reardan, not
much would have happened, “I knew that none of them was going to college
Not one of them. And I knew that Rowdy’s father was probably going to beat
the crap out of him for losing this game” (195-196). Wellpinit didn’t have
many chances at becoming successful, for this game was their only chance.
When Arnold realized that he potentially ruined the rest of their lives, he felt
so ashamed, almost like carrying the burden of murder.


Considering the good person that Arnold is, he will have to do something to
do something to undo this situation, despite the fact that he would most likely
want to keep success coming his way. How do you think that Arnold might
fix this situation? Sherman Alexie has put a lot of symbolic moments between
the coach and Arnold, showing that the coach inspired Arnold to keep going,
because that is what coaches should and are supposed to do. But the coach and
Arnold seemed to have and immediate bond. Why do you think that Sherman
Alexie put the coach to be the character that inspires Arnold to keep going?
Based off of this, what do you think will happen next? Will things get better or
worse?

Why does Junior make a list of things he likes?

I think that Junior makes a list of good things in the world because so many bad things
have happened to him, he wants to see the good. He was depressed after his
grandmother and Eugene died, “I was joyless… I was so depressed that I thought about
dropping out of Reardan” (173). However, now that he sees that his classmates and
friends understand him and stand up for him, he feels hope, and he feels happier. Junior
knows that he isn’t alone, and although their protest didn’t go the way they had hoped,
Junior learned that there is still good in the world, and that there are still people who are
there for him. “I used to think the world was broken down by tribes… by black and white.
By Indian and white. But I know that isn’t true.” (176) So instead of focusing on all the bad
things in the world, Junior makes a list of all the good things in life, no matter how small.
He’s drawing things he doesn’t like, to relive his anger and sadness. “It became my
grieving ceremony.” (178) Now that Junior understands that the world can be horrible
and wonderful at the same time, I think he will be stronger and able to overcome more
challenges that may come in the future.

How do you think his classmates protest had an impact on him?

Why do you think Junior says that tears are the same as laughter?

How does Eugene’s death further effect Junior’s depression?

Why does Junior say he would always love his tribe? What do you think this reveals about Junior?
Riana Desai

When Arnold’s grandmother died, Junior says “People had either ignored me or called me

names or pushed me. But they stopped after my grandmother died… I would always love [my tribe]

for giving me peace on the day of my grandmother’s funeral” (160). This quote symbolizes

that the death of Arnold’s grandmother affected not only Arnold but his whole tribe. Death

was hard for this tribe because losing one person felt like losing more of the small community

they had. Arnold, later on, states that “Each funeral was a funeral for all of us. We lived and

died together”(166). This tribe is so close and tight-knit, that everybody knew Arnold’s

grandmother and they were in pain when she was killed. For this reason, the tribe can forgive

Arnold because they realize why he left the reservation. Arnold left because he was seeking

hope in a new place where he would find an opportunity to become more than himself. He

wanted to experience a real life in a place where he could be happy.

Arnold respecting his tribe shows how he respects and he tries to look for the best in people.

This is shown because Arnold forgives his tribe. The book highlights his tribe forgiving him,

but the truth is that Arnold was the one with the right to be mad. All he did was try to find

more hope and opportunities, and his tribe was not supportive of his decision. They had no

right to be mean to him because Arnold still lived on the rez. He didn’t completely leave, yet

his tribe was really mad. They were jealous that he had enough courage to walk off to

Reardon in one day.

Who do you think has the right to be mad? Arnold? His tribe?
Do you think that more Indians will follow Arnold and move to Reardon hoping for a better life

Why does Junior say he would always love his tribe? What do you think this reveals about Junior? Thomas Fulginiti

Junior said that he will always love his “tribe” because even though the majority of the time

when he is around his peers he is hated and bullied, but now they stood up and showed sympathy for him. Throughout the novel gruesome events have occurred from pretty much every

individual he has met. The only person that all the time was supporting Arnold was his

Grandmother. When she passed away the “tribe” felt his sadness and responded in an

exceptional manner. “We were stunned because almost two thousand Indians showed up to

say goodbye. And nobody gave me crap (159).” Also the page 175 shows how all of his

classmates are no longer going to let him be oppressed and made fun of by students and

teachers. Both communities, Wellpoint and Rearden, are starting to put herself in his shoes

and understanding what he has gone through his entire life, especially now. This reveals to

Arnold that there will always be love and support for him and he will always love everyone

else no matter what.

Before now why was Arthur chosen to be disliked? Why?

Did Author betray his tribe or does he still love it?

If you were Arnold and you were told to choose to go either Rearden or Wellpoint (not thinking about

location and wealth) which would you choose?

How is Arnold's perspective changing? (Free Response) -AntotheGreat

Arnold's perspective is changing. At the start of the year, even though he stuck out like a sore thumb, he felt like a part of his tribe. Now, he doesn't feel like a part of his tribe. In fact, Arnold feels so disconnected from them that he says "these dang Indians"(144), as if he isn't one of them, and doesn't feel proud for his tribe at all when they "won by thirty points"(147), his middle school dream. The people on the rez say that he's a traitor and a white lover, which is becoming true because they exclude him in that way. Because no one on the rez accepts him, he's finding his community in Rearden, with Penelope, Gordy, and Roger, and is leaving the community in Wellpinit behind, which is shifting his views. He has no reason to have any concern for the other people on the rez since none of them are part of his community anymore. With the passing of his grandmother, he feels even more disconnected. 

This chasm between him and the rest of his tribe will probably continue to grow, and Arnold will become integrated into the Rearden community. This will probably result in even more resentment by his neighbors, and quite probably more incidents like the basketball game. 

Will the chasm between Arnold and the rez community continue to grow? Will Arnold become a full-fledged member of the Rearden community? Will Arnold and Rowdy make up?

Malik Spaloss G block


The reason Arnold tried out for the basketball team was because of the idea that his dad had about “dream big”.

His father tells him a weird story about him meeting his mom and he says “ Your mother was

thirteen and i was five when we first met?” How ? She helped me get a drink from a water

fountain”. Arnold was freaked out but now he sees that they are married so he believes that since

his dad dreamed big he should to. Arnold’s first game is against his old school and when

he walks out he gets yelled at and people continuously say “ Arnold sucks”. But Arnold is not fazed

by this and he wants to use this anger as a benefit. When he goes out for his first play he gets a

quarter thrown at him and has to get stitches by Eugene and luckily he gets to go back out and

play but when he is going he slams into rowdy and get tooken out. At the end of the game he

talks to the coach and he is proud how Arnold can go back out there and keep playing.

This impacts him because he now knows that his coach actually cares for him and he

finally has someone to count on. Arnold’s grandmother explains one of her best gift which is

even though back in her day Indian tribes did not accept other races or homeless or gay people

but she did and she talked with them. The Indians sense of tolerance has changed because of

the influence in white culture and because of that they did not accept those people.


Questions:
1, why do you think the kids at the Rez treated Arnold this way when he faced them?
2. How do you feel about Arnold's dad? if good why? if not why?

On page 132, Gordy says: "Well, life is a constant struggle between being an individual and being a member of the community." Explain this quote and how it relates to Junior, and also to a main theme in the novel. Charlotte Trodden.

When Gordy says "Well life us a constant struggle between being an individual and being a member

 of the community.", it seems like a normal Gordy quote. He always says weird deep things that are

 way too mature for a Freshman. But, when thought about more deeply, it is clear that this quote

 relates to Junior's life. For example, on page 20, when talking about Rowdy, Junior says, "I am his 

friend, his best friend, his only friend. He wouldn't hurt me." This shows that Junior is part of a tribe

 or a community. He has a tight community too not only with Rowdy but with his sister,

 Grandmother, Mother, Father and other friends. But, when Junior is at Rearden, or on his way to

 Rearden, he has no community to be a part of. This is shown on page 83 when Junior is talking about

 his time at Rearden and says "It was the loneliest time of my life." He also says "I woke up on the

 reservation as an Indian, and somewhere on the road to Rearden, I became something than that

 Indian. And once I arrived at Rearden, I became something less than less than less than Indian." This

 all changes in "Slouching Towards Thanksgiving" and "Hunger Pains" when he befriends Gordy, 

Penelope, and eventually many others. This relates to the main theme of identity in the novel because

 Junior is trying to figure out who he is and one of the main parts of identity is who the person is 

friends with and who they associate themselves with.

Questions

1: What is one example of identity in the chapters we read for homework?

2: How is Junior's identity starting to show in his actions and words?

3: How does Junior feel about Penelope and Gordy and how they are affecting him (use text support)? 

Junior says that the night of the Winter Formal was one of the "best nights of his life." Why? Explain. Do you think it could be a great night, but also confusing for Junior at the same time? Why?---- Max B-P

When Junior and Penelope go to the Winter Formal as a couple, they, “danced every single dance”
(123) and had a great time.
Junior is also a bit confused because he was worried people would make fun of him, except it was
just the opposite when he walked into the party in his dad’s old polyester suit.
The baffling and awesome part for Junior was that Penelope liked the suit and because of that, the
whole school did as well.
The people who made fun of him and the ridicule he faced at first disappeared that night so that now
he was the highlight of the party.

The dancing was the biggest aspect of the night and despite his uncoordinated nature, Junior kept on dancing the whole night and
no one even mentions that he is poor, an Indian, or an outsider. That is what Junior like best about the
night, that he finally was fitting in in the wealthy,
racist town he attends school in. Junior and Penelope also are seen as an “item” by the whole school
and by pure association, Junior becomes popular.
Also, the second part of the evening was great for Junior but was also wildly unexpected. He was at
the restaurant with the cool jocks,
Penelope and he when the person who had bullied him, Roger, gave him money to pay for the food.
Despite his being Indian and despite Roger suspecting Junior was poor, the football star helped out
his “buddy”.
Both examples resulted in Junior being happy and feeling included. That is why this night for Junior
was categorized as the best one of his life.

Questions to Think About... feel free to make up your own!

How did the Winter Formal change Junior's perception of Reardan?

How does Junior now view his relationship with Penelope after he exposed himself for being shallow?

What do you think is next to come in the chapter novel?

How do you think Roger will act now that he knows Junior is poor?

 On pages 107-109, Junior tells us more about Penelope, and he learns her secret. Use the quote, “…she’s scared all the time, but nobody will let her be scared…” (108). What did Junior mean by this?
--Mika

Junior states that, “Penelope is scared all the time, but nobody will let her be scared”(108). He is conveying that Penelope goes through pain and adversity, but she does not have anyone to help her through that pain because she has a reputation to uphold. As a result of this, she hides her pain from others and expresses her pain internally by being bulimic. When Junior is describing his interaction with Penelope’s father, he remembers something that Penelope’s father said to him: “She’s only dating you because she knows it will piss me off”(109). It could be inferred from this quote that Penelope does not maintain a positive relationship with her father. This fact shows that Penelope’s father is not someone who she can rely on for support, and so she is not able to trust him with her emotions. At school, Penelope has to battle through her pain by being tough because she feels she has to be popular and smart at school. Arnold is the only one who she can truly express her emotions to, and it is difficult for him to help her because they have only interacted with each other for a short period of time.

The method that Penelope uses to overcome pain is similar to how Rowdy overcomes pain. Rowdy’s father physically and mentally abuses him, and he handles that pain by acting tough and violent. Both Rowdy and Penelope have negative interactions with their parents, and they hide their pain by acting tough. Both Rowdy and Penelope have an unhealthy amount of pain bottled up inside of them and fight that pain by acting less vulnerable than they actually are. In conclusion, both Rowdy and Penelope are “scared all the time”, and need someone to rely on in order to handle the pain and adversity that they face.

Why do you think that Arnold tends to befriend people that handle pain by acting tough?

Can you think of any other characters that we have read about that handle pain by acting tough?

Why do you think that the author decided to have Penelope be this character who is “scared all the time”, and handles pain by being bulimic?

Explore the irony of the discussion about Thanksgiving. - Jemma Harvey

This discussion about Thanksgiving is ironic because during the actual time of thanksgiving it was about unity between the Pilgrims and Indians, but shortly after that time the pilgrims once again began to mistreat the Indians. It would be expected that many of the Indians would be against the holiday, due to mistreatment, but most actually celebrate the Holiday. Junior is exploring these ideas about Indians, Including his family, celebrating Thanksgiving. Junior becomes more curious about it so he consults his father. His father replies by saying, "We should give thanks that they didn't kill all of us (102)." His father does not say this in a serious way, but more sarcastically. His father is implying that the Indians were so unfairly treated that they see Thanksgiving as a time to be grateful that their whole race was not murdered violently, though that should have never even been a concern. Though they are just joking, what they say has a deeper meaning to it. During the times when Thanksgiving first happened racism was a prominent problem. Racism is still a big problem in today’s society, people just like to think that it isn’t because people today are not as direct as people in the past. Junior’s father’s comment is very smart because he knows what he said has some truth to it.

Questions:

1) If you were Arnold would you be curious as well to why your family celebrates Thanksgiving?

2) Do you think Arnold’s father’s response is satisfactory? Why or why not?

At what points in the story does Junior hint at how he’s feeling without actually telling readers (free response)? Ana Chrysa Maravelias

One very important scene in tonight’s reading is on page 101 when the following was written “ I

always think it’s funny when Indians celebrate Thanksgiving. I mean, sure the Indians and Pilgrims

were best friends during that first Thanksgiving, but a few years later, the Pilgrims were shooting Indians.” Although this section may seem unnecessary and irrelevant at first, it seems to have a deeper

meaning. Through this, Junior is trying to express to readers how he feels now that he is at a

previously all white school. At Reardan, Junior is the only Indian, and he gets a lot of controversy and

negativity because of that. In his (Junior's) analogy, the Pilgrims were newcomers to the Americas and the Indians took them in, but before they realized it, the Indians were getting stabbed in the back and

were treated awfully. The section about the Pilgrims shooting the Indians is meant to be a metaphor

to Junior’s everyday life at his new school. In this case he is the newcomer, and is treated poorly. On

page 64, Junior even wrote “I was afraid those monsters were going to kill me. And I don’t mean ‘kill’

as in ‘metaphor.’ I mean ‘kill’ as in ‘beat me to death.’” This section helps to better emphasize the severity of Juniors situation, and his identity in this new environment.

Another scene in this section where Junior may be implying his emotions is when on page 108

Junior says to Penelope “‘Don’t give up.’” When Junior says this, he may be also giving this advice to himself. This is because previously on page 83 Junior said “ It was the loneliest time of my life.” Even though Junior was feeling this way, he didn’t let it stop him and tried to live his new life at Reardan, and he eventually became friends with Gordy who had up to that point helped him navigate his school

life. Another reason why Junior may be giving this advice to himself too is because throughout this

book, Junior faces discrimination due to his identity and ethnicity, and even though he is a different

person at school and at home, he doesn’t want to let go of who he really is, and instead he just wants to fit in while still being himself.

Questions:

1. How does Junior's conversation with Penelope (when they discussed their dreams) connect to other sections of the novel?

2. Since Junior is now facing a "high" in this story (since he is with Penelope and is popular), what do you think the next low will be and why?

3. Do you think that when Gordy said something similar to what Rowdy said when Junior asked them for advice it made Junior see himself and his beliefs in a new light?

Describe how Penelope Treats JUnior- provide 2 specific examples. How does this relationship contribute to Juniors understanding of himself/ his identity? -Adam Murray

In this chapter Penelope dress up as a homeless woman and Junior dresses up like a

homeless man. When Junior calls this to Penelope's attention she says that she is

going to try and collect spare change for the homeless. Junior then goes on to lie and

say that he is doing the same thing. When Junior coomes to school the next day he has

to tell Penelope that he was jumped and they took his money. I thought that Penelope

was going to act mad but she goes on to say “I still put your name on the money when I

sent it”(page 80). This shows that Penelope knew that Junior tried and she knew that he

cared about this. When she tells Junior this he says “Wow. That’s really cool. Thank

you”(page 80) This shows that JUnior was surprised. It also raises his self-esteem

because he feels like he made a difference. The second example is a couple sentences

later when Junior says to himself “I was just going to let her go. But I had to say

something memorable, something huge.” (page 80) He then goes on to say that it feels

good to help and she agrees and walks away. In the last example Penelope makes

Junior feel good about himself. But in this example JUnior says something to make

Penelope feel good about herself which makes him feel good about himself. Junior

reminds her that what she did was really great and when she smiles at the end that

makes Junior feel good about himself.

Questions:

1.Why do you think Penelope put Juniors name on the envelope.

2. Why do you think that one of the chapter names was “Tears of a Clown”

3. Why does Dodge get so mad when Junior corrects him?