Reservation Blues: the Power of the Guiter

Reservation Blues: the Power of the Guiter

Throughout the first few chapters of Reservation Blues, by Sherman Alexi, the characters have internal struggles that they deal with differently. Thomas, who struggles to fit into the community as he is known to be the only sober Indian and tells stories that no one cares about. Being picked on by his companions, he struggles to be his own person. Everything changes for him when he meets Robert Johnson, an outsider, lost, finding his way to get something back. When Thomas approaches Robert, he notices a guitar, this is when Thomas changes. Talking to Robert, Thomas realize that there is something that will make him fit in. The guitar is the one object that lets Thomas express himself in a non-accepting community.
Talking to Thomas, the guitar feels the pain that is inside of Thomas. The music the guitar plays has a power to change a person. As Thomas was playing the guitar one night, “The guitar’s song drifted through the truck’s open windows, fell down on the two Indians, and worked its way into their skins (23).” When the guitar talks to Thomas, it shows that it is caring and feels the pain that Thomas has endured throughout his life. Reservation life seems difficult as everyone is trying to gain power and respect by any means that they can and Thomas gains more power with his guitar, starting a band and getting acts on the road for his friends and himself. The guitar’s powerful sound seeps into the skin and shows a change that betters the characters.
Before the guitar, their lives seemed worthless; Thomas Victor and Junior did not do anything with their time. They always talk about being poor and finally with music their lives are more upbeat and they get long with each other more. The blues music they perform allows them to tell the audience about their life, expressing it in a way that is interesting and lets people understand them. The above quote about the guitar and the guitar passages makes the story more interesting, with it the characters...

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