Assignment
After watching Smoke Signals (1998; 89 min.; DVD BOT-53; streaming for rent on Amazon Prime Video), based on The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven by Sherman Alexie (content note: racism; alcoholism; family death; poverty),
Write a response essay to ONEof the prompts below.
o What is the significance of stories and storytelling to Thomas Builds-the-Fire?
o How do stories help Victor understand who he is?
o How does the "nativeness" of the characters affect the story? All of the novels we are reading for this course depict various stories of migration--moving from another country or continent to the United States--but American Indians are the only Americans who are not immigrants or descendants of immigrants. Is there anything in the stories that seem to highlight their status as Americans who did not immigrate? Is their indigenous status a factor in the stories?
o In what ways might we consider Victor's pilgrimage to Phoenix a migration? In what ways is he going home when he goes to Phoenix, and in what ways is he going home when he returns to the reservation (the Rez)?
Format your assignment according to the following formatting requirements:
1. The answer should be typed, double spaced, using Times New Roman font (size 12), with one-inch margins on all sides.
2. The response also includes a cover page containing the title of the assignment, the student's name, the course title, and the date. The cover page is not included in the required page length.
3. Also include a reference page. The Citations and references should follow APA format. The reference page is not included in the required page length.