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Irony
Definition of Logos
Logos, along with ethos and pathos, is one of the three "modes of persuasion" in rhetoric (the art of effective speaking or writing). Logos is an argument that appeals to... read full definition
Logos, along with ethos and pathos, is one of the three "modes of persuasion" in rhetoric (the art of effective speaking or writing). Logos is... read full definition
Logos, along with ethos and pathos, is one of the three "modes of persuasion" in rhetoric (the art of effective... read full definition
Chapter 18 - Don't Trust Your Computer
Explanation and Analysis—Acting White:
In Chapter 18, Gordy sees the photo of Rowdy's naked butt on Junior's screen. When Junior explains why he thinks Rowdy hates him enough to send this image, Gordy uses logos to point out a fallacy:
“How come he hates you?” he asked.
“Because I left the rez,” I said.
“But you still live there, don’t you? You’re just going to school here.”
“I know, I know, but some Indians think you have to act white to make your life better. Some Indians think you become white if you try to make your life better, if you become successful.”
“If that were true, then wouldn’t all white people be successful?”
Man, Gordy was smart. I wished I could take him to the rez and let him educate Rowdy.
What Junior is trying to explain to Gordy is a complicated, thorny issue. Rowdy and American Indians more broadly have every reason to resent the idea that "acting White" is the ticket out of poverty and trauma. For one thing, White colonists and their descendants caused the very situation Junior is trying to escape. Over the course of centuries, European settlers and the United States government have killed countless American Indian people and forced survivors onto smaller and smaller corners of their ancestral land. Cut off from resources, American Indian communities (including the Spokane people) have been forced to build their economies around semi-legal industries like gambling and alcohol, industries that can be quite harmful to the communities that depend on them.
Historically, the United States has offered assimilation (or "acting White") as the only way for American Indians to escape the cycle of trauma and poverty. However, assimilation is its own cruel bargain. Generations of American Indian children were kidnapped and forced to assimilate in abusive boarding schools that attempted to "discipline" their culture out of them. As Mr. P says, the racist idea was to "kill the Indian to save the child." Many of the children were killed anyway. Rowdy sees Junior's choice to attend a White school as a betrayal because it is as though he is joining the colonial project of stamping out American Indian people and culture. In Rowdy's mind, Junior is prioritizing his personal success over the lives of everyone back home.
Gordy does not know all of this, at least in as much visceral detail as either Junior or Rowdy. He points out that Rowdy's logic is flawed: acting White cannot be the thing that makes someone successful because plenty of White people are unsuccessful. Junior is a bit stunned by the simplicity of Gordy's refutation. He has his own complicated feelings about Rowdy's complicated feelings, so such a straightforward take-down catches him off-guard. Junior's comment that, "I wish I could take [Gordy] to the rez and let him educate Rowdy" seems both genuine and sarcastic. On the one hand, Gordy helps Junior see that Rowdy is placing outsized blame on Junior's choices. It is a relief for him to hear that he may not be the traitor he thought he was. On the other hand, Gordy's comment reveals that he is blissfully ignorant of the cultural context driving Junior and Rowdy's rift. Even as Junior is impressed by Gordy's logic, he also seems frustrated to realize that Rowdy might be the only person he can talk to about their fight.
Related Themes:
