When Junior transitions to Rearden he encounters tremendous amounts of discomfort and pain. As soon as
he walks into the classroom students are already staring at him as if he was “bad weather.” Once Junior
sits down Penelope asks what his name is. She wasn't trying to get to know him. She wanted to make him
feel terrible about himself. Thus, she laughed at his name, and acted like it was weird. As Penelope tries to
get to “know” him better she asks where he is from. When Junior responses with “Wellpinit” she had her
opportunity to make fun of him and sure did. A few days later, he is constantly being called names by the
jocks of Rearden. One day, these Jocks started to surround Junior. Roger, the leader of the group then stated
an extremely racist comment and it struck Junior more than anything. This was not something that he said
to become friends with Junior. Now that his is at Rearden, his “whole life is a fight”. The reason why he
came here is being forgotten and he is living his life like he did back at the rez.
he walks into the classroom students are already staring at him as if he was “bad weather.” Once Junior
sits down Penelope asks what his name is. She wasn't trying to get to know him. She wanted to make him
feel terrible about himself. Thus, she laughed at his name, and acted like it was weird. As Penelope tries to
get to “know” him better she asks where he is from. When Junior responses with “Wellpinit” she had her
opportunity to make fun of him and sure did. A few days later, he is constantly being called names by the
jocks of Rearden. One day, these Jocks started to surround Junior. Roger, the leader of the group then stated
an extremely racist comment and it struck Junior more than anything. This was not something that he said
to become friends with Junior. Now that his is at Rearden, his “whole life is a fight”. The reason why he
came here is being forgotten and he is living his life like he did back at the rez.
Why did junior want Rowdy to come with him?
Why is the title “How To Fight Monsters”?
Why would Roger say the racist comment on page 64 if he wanted to become friends?
Why is the chapter called how to fight monster?
ReplyDeleteIt is called how to fight monsters because in this chapter Junior goes to Reardon and has to deal with all of the people calling him names and making fun of him. I think that the author is implying that the kids at Reardon are the monsters and that Junior has to fight them. They make racist jokes about him and it hurts. He doesn't speak for 6 days but then remembers the “unwritten rules”. These are the rules that state that if somebody insults a member of your family or insults anything about your heritage you should stand up to them. SO on the seventh day JUnior stands up to the “monsters” that are calling him names and throws a punch. Thatexample of JUnior fighting the kid that was making fun of him was him “fighting a monster”
According to Junior he wants Junior to go with him because “It will be an adventure.” Earlier in the book you can hear that Rowdy is the only real true friend Arnold has on the rez and no wonder why he is so obsessed as well as dedicated to their friendship. On page 24 Junior says “I think Rowdy might be the most important person in my life.” and I mean, after all, I spend a lot more time with Rowdy than I do with anybody else.” This shows that Junior really cares for the compassion between the 2 of them also, he has someone he can “vent” to. However, he sadly gets punched and yelled at by the one person he felt comfortable around, Rowdy. I think after that moment Junior’s world got flipped upside-down and now he’s a lone wolf & now “I knew that my best friend became my worst enemy.”(53)
ReplyDeleteI think that Junior wanted Rowdy to come with him to Reardan because he wanted Rowdy to also have access to opportunities, he didn’t want to be alone (and the only Indian) in this new environment, and he also wanted to be with someone who could protect him when needed. I think that Junior wanted Rowdy to also take advantage of this opportunity because as he said on page 49, “‘I’m leaving the rez, man, and I want you to come with me. Come on. It will be an adventure.’” I think that what Junior really means by this is that if they go to Reardan they can start a new chapter in their lives, and they can be better off than if they were to stay at the reservation. I think that Mr. P’s earlier advice really opened Junior’s eyes and allowed him to better see that he can’t make it in the reservation any longer. As Junior said on page 52 “‘I have to go. I’m going to die if I don’t leave.’” I also think that Junior wanted Rowdy to come along with him because he knew that there wouldn’t be any other Indian kids at Reardan. As he wrote on page 56 “ What was I doing at Reardan, whose mascot was an Indian, thereby making me the only other Indian in town?” I think that Junior partially wanted Rowdy to come along with him because it would be a huge adjustment for him to tackle alone. Back at the reservation, everyone had certain ideals, they had a certain way of life, and a certain culture, but now that Junior was at Reardan, all of that was different, and everything he knew up until that point would be changed. I think that if he had Rowdy along with him, some of those adjustments wouldn’t be so hard to make because he would have someone by his side who understood what he was going through. Finally, I think that Junior wanted Rowdy to come with him because he wanted protection from the bullies. Junior was used to not having to stand up for himself, but at Reardan, he had to do it. Junior had an epiphany on page 68 where he wrote “I realized how much of my self-worth, my sense of safety, was based on Rowdy’s fists.” Overall, I think that Junior just wanted someone who understood him to come along. Do you think that Junior will struggle more without Rowdy as time progresses?
ReplyDeleteIs Rowdy leaving Junior a bad thing for Junior? How will the friendship’s ending affect Junior?
ReplyDeleteJunior and Rowdy are polar opposites but as the saying goes, opposites attract. Rowdy is the person who makes Junior feel safe despite being in such brutal circumstances. The day before Junior left for Reardan seemed like it would be the worst part of their friendship. Personally, I assumed that Rowdy would in a way forgive Junior for the horrible “sin” he committed and that the incident would be a complication in the story. Instead, Junior feels alone at school around so many people of a higher social class. One specific instance summarizes my thoughts, “I wished Rowdy was still my friend. I could have sent him after Roger. It would have been like King Kong battling Godzilla” (67). I like this part because it is cool in a way that Rowdy is that reliable for Junior, but it is bittersweet because that quote is a far fetched dream right now. Rowdy leaving Junior is a sad moment because Junior relies on Rowdy. Although, now that Rowdy is gone, Junior will learn the valuable skill of fending for himself. This is a skill Junior lacks but he showed signs of self confidence when he punches the bully. In conclusion, Rowdy leaving Junior is a bittersweet moment because while Junior may learn self advocacy, he will also be more vulnerable than ever.