Smoke+Signals

=Working with Sherman Alexie's //Smoke Signals:// Reversing Stereotypes=

"Good art doesn't come out of assimilation -- it comes out of tribalism." -- Sherman Alexie

Movie Description
Director Chris Eyre’s portrayal of Native Indians in the movie //Smoke Signals//, an adaptation of stories and characters from Sherman Alexie’s //The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven,// is long overdue. For years and years, Hollywood has got it wrong by presenting stereotypes and inaccuracies about Native Americans. Alexie tackles these past indecencies by providing us with a script that genuinely depicts life on a reservation. The movie’s opening scene of a raging house fire on Idaho’s Coeura d’Alene Indian Reservation sets the tone for the film’s fiery relationships and internal struggles. The two main characters, Victor and Thomas, just babies at the time, are rescued from the fire by Victor’s father, Arnold Joseph. As the flames envelop the burning house, “Thomas’ rhythmic voice narrates the scene, explaining that some children are pillars of flame, while some are pillars of ash; he and Victor, he declares are both” ([|yhonline]).

The movie alternates between past and present, acknowledging the frightening reality of dealing with the loss of family. Victor must handle being abandoned by his father, while the death of Thomas’ parents leaves him to be raised by his grandmother, played by Tantoo Cardinal. //Smoke Signals// focuses on the journey by Thomas and Victor from the Coeura d’Alene Reservation to Arizona to pick up the remains of Victor’s deceased father. Alexie’s tale comes to us through Thomas’s narration, a voice that reflects Alexie’s poetic nature. Alexie was a poet before being a screen writer or novelist. During an interview with Cineaste Magazine, Alexie reminds us that his poetry contains strong imagery. He wanted to avoid the traditional narrative in //Smoke Signals//; "I was not interested in their (other writers) formulas for successful screenplays... I was interested in going outside the traditional format. In my books, I've always been fascinated with dreams and stories and flashing forward and flashing back and playing with conventions of time.” Alexie admits that it is through Thomas’ storytelling that //Smoke Signals//' complicated layers adds to its success, “I always knew that while a person was talking we were going to see images from the story he or she was telling...the story of the movie is told by Thomas, so at certain points he's telling the story about himself telling the story about somebody else telling a story" ([|Cineaste Publishers]).

Sherman Alexie delivers an indigenous film that captures a look into the contemporary reality of Indian country. He provides us with characters and situations to which we can learn more about Native Indian culture: marital problems, youths playing basketball, oral traditions, alcoholism, and friendship. The film's cast and soundtrack is entirely native. Alexie should be applauded for his authenticity of his culture. He is no sell-out.

As an educator, I recognize the sensitivity needed when dealing with Native American literature. Native cultures have been misrepresented by a white media for years, and I don’t want to contribute to this injustice. Nevertheless, students of the 21st century need to be enlightened about the historical and cultural significance of Native American literature.
 * Introduction**

**Challenge #1**: Inviting Native American texts into the classroom
//Smoke Signals//, an independent film without any top box office names or intense, action plot, has been termed a simplistic film with a minimalist plot. How can teachers get students to relate to a Native Indian film if the material does not have top box office names or a fast action plot? How can this film help open the door for more modern Native American literature?

Native American advocate, Debra Muller, suggests that teachers should begin a Native American unit by working backwards in history -- meaning we should utilize a modern text and then more relieved about the acceptance of this movie. My colleague Dan informed me that students really "get into the relationship between Thomas and Victor." He has shown the movie several times without any negative reactions.

Additionally, many students relate to film. This upcoming school year I plan to spend a more significant time on Native American Literature. Since we don't have copies of //The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven,// I won't have the opportunity to teach it, but I do hope to copy and include a few stories. But I do plan to invite Debra Muller to meet with my English 11 students as an introduction to the unit. From there I want to focus on some excerpts in our //Elements of Literature// text. We have pieces by Bruchac and Momaday. These are good starting points. Finally, I hope to take students to the Grand Valley State Pow Wow at Riverside Park during the second week in September. This event is a wonderful festivity that provides a ceremonial look at Native American song, dance and spirituality. With these activities in place, I hope that //Smoke Signals// will be a wonderful conclusion to the unit.

[|Debunking the Myth of the American West] Using resources including //The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven// and //Smoke Signals//, students research the stereotypes of the American "Old West" and see it revealed more accurately through modern fiction.
 * Resources**

[|Contemporary People: Sherman Alexie] This lesson plan focuses on biography and the importance of cultural diversity. Access requires Adobe Acrobat Reader or compatible application.

[|Smoke Signals by N. Bird Runningwater] This is an short informative essay that looks at how Native American cultures have been misrepresented and how Native American filmmakers are taking control of their own stories.

By Peter VanGorp