Controversy in Literature: Cancel or Conversation?

I just completed reading Reservation Blues by Sherman Alexie and writing my blog post about why people might want to read or teach this book. I also included information in the notes at the end a reference to accusations about Sherman Alexie's sexual misconduct which came to light during the #metoo movement in 2018. This book is one of the first for me to write about on this website and with that, I felt a large burden and sense of guilt for promoting a book by an author who I don't necessarily want to give money to. Many in my circle would condemn me for reading, promoting, and in particular giving money to authors who have brought harm to others through their words and actions. I don't disagree with their stance - I'm the same person who will not eat at Chick-fil-a due to the owner's continued financial contributions to anti-LGBTQ+ and other hate organizations - so why have I made exceptions for certain books and authors?

Planning for this blog began after seeing that my own high school son's literature list still looked nearly identical to the one I had read when I was in high school 25 years ago and was still dominated by white male perspectives. When I was choosing books to begin this blog, I went to the list of Advanced Placement-approved books and selected a list of books by diverse authors, some I had read before, some I hadn't. My initial goal was to urge teachers and districts to offer more diverse literary offerings in their regular curriculum, offerings already approved on the State level. At a time when the anti-racist (theater) movement was calling on people to make land acknowledgements that the land they stand on originally belonged to Native American tribes, it seemed to me remiss not to include a Native American writer in my selection. I was familiar with Sherman Alexie's work having taught The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian when I was teaching in the Ivory Coast, which is why I purchased the book.

I began reading Reservation Blues after a good friend accepted a job working for a substance abuse rehab center specifically for Native American tribal members and I recommended the author to her. The truth is he's actually the only Native American author I've read knowing they are Native American and whose works I could cite off the top of my head. That's unfortunate. Much of what I know about Native Americans is through works by white authors, history works, and news sources. So after recommending the author, I began reading Reservation Blues as well. The book presents a portrait of American reservation life that is marked by poverty, struggle, and trauma, but it also captures beauty and hope in its imagery and the richness and depth of the characters. For me, this dichotomy makes it worth reading.

Still, there are traces of what can be interpreted as the author's misogyny and objectification and othering of women in his work. Particularly in terms of interracial relationships. White women are simultaneously vilified and objectified by the characters, as well as in their characterization. Indian women in turn are simultaneously vilified and exoticized by white male villains in the story. One set of white women are presented as groupies who sleep with two of the band members until they're put off by the violence of a people whose culture they have romanticized as being one with a 60s-style hippy, beatnik peacefulness and oneness with nature. The other white woman introduced through flashbacks was the romantic partner of one of the band members until she became pregnant and her racism and abhorrence towards the idea of an interracial marriage or child led to her aborting the baby. Throughout the story, interracial couplings are presented as a tantalizing taboo and the men eager to make trophies out of the women of the other race whether through mutual relations or through sexual violence.

A few healthy relationships between the genders are presented throughout the book, but only those of couples who are both Native American. The woman presented as the most mentally healthy and put together in the group is scornful of interracial relationships, whereas her sister seeks a relationship with the white priest, another societal taboo. It's a pattern throughout the story with characters generally being drawn to and then repelled by relationships that don't meet societal standards or expectations.

Sexual and power dynamics are intertwined throughout the story as well. In one flashback, a band member remembers being sexually assaulted as a young boy by the school's priest, while one of the female band members being assaulted by a music executive slash cavalry soldier in a nightmarish sequence that layers past and present. All of this to say that Sherman Alexie is cognizant of sex and power dynamics, as well as sex and racial dynamics.

When one looks at one of the appeals of Reservation Blues, it is in the very essence of the anti-heroes, the villains turned protagonists, in the story. An underlying theme of the book is that hurt people, hurt people. Alexie digs into the violent behaviors of certain of his characters looking at what shaped them into who they are - the bully who was abandoned and abused as a child is a pillar of strength for a young man undergoing his first heartbreak due to an intense racist reckoning. Is all of this character development Alexie's insight into the hurt he has bestowed upon others? Certainly, he has prepared the reader to grapple with the - not merely imperfections, but harmful nature - of some of his characters. So as readers, this definitely prepares us for the ugly truths of the author's behavior.

In a story coated in magical realism, Alexie speaks an awful lot of truth about human nature. Knowing that he has used his own power as a prestigious author, one who is too often the lone voice we have representing a multitude of diverse peoples, to coerce women into sexual relationships, what moral responsibility do we have as readers, consumers, and teachers when it comes to sharing, withholding, and financially supporting his work? If I had more knowledge of the works of Native American novelists of this literary caliber to recommend and choose from and promote, by all means, I would be more inclined to leave Alexie's work to the piles of history. Even then, I wonder, do we learn only from benevolent writers, or do we learn as much from the perspectives of those who are complex individuals who have both helped and harmed people in their lives.

On the one hand, I don't believe in financially supporting men who abuse their powers, on the other hand, I believe that Native American literature and perspectives deserve a place in our schools and the merit of the writing is there. Mostly though, I believe that these are important discussions to have in and out of the classrooms, and I believe that it is up to individuals whether students, readers, or teachers to decide what they will do with the information that they have and whether they are willing to live with their decisions. If I were to teach Alexie's work in the classroom, I would let students know, discuss and decide for themselves whether they would prefer an alternate text. In an ideal world, I would have an alternate text to give them. So therein lies my mission - to find more Native American voices to recommend and share. It comes back to what Chimamanda Ngozie Adichie warns of the Danger of a Single Story. So if you have recommendations, leave them in the comments, in the meantime, I'll see where my own research takes me.

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