post 23
May 3, 2011 by jessicafisher255
“‘Anyone can fight for America he began, giving special emphasis to “America”, even you boys. In a time of need, anyone can fight for her’…Now I know you boys love America as much as we do, but this is your big chance to show it….the recruiter was packing the leaflets into a cardboard box; he didn’t look up. ‘Sure, sure,’ he said, ‘you enlist now and you’ll be eligible for everything-pilot training-everything’” (Silko 60).
In this passage we yet again see the difference in attitude towards Native Americans. We see that they are treated differently by others, in this case, the Army Recruiter. “Even you boys” clearly shows that Tayo and Rocky belong to the “other” group, while the recruiter belongs to the mass population of “white” Americans. “as much as we do” also shows the reader that this recruiter, who is trying to get the boys to do something for him, see himself as different and better than Tayo and Rocky. He is stating that they love America as much as he does, but do they? Tayo and Rocky do not get any respect and are forced to live on a poor reservation because of the American laws. America does not give them the same opportunities as it give others. The recruiter cannot even be bothered to give the boys a hard sell. Yes he wants them to join the army, but he cannot even be bothered to look up and stop packing his leaflets to talk to the boys. The recruiter is also lying to the boys by saying that they will be eligible for everything. He is just telling Rocky what he wants to hear so that he can continue with his business. We see the prejudice of the recruiter in this passage. We see that the recruiter and Americans think Rocky and Tayo are second rate citizens. They do not give them the same respect that they give “white” people. We as an American nation, consider Native Americans different from ourselves. Even though they are Americans and have ties to this land longer than the “white” man, they are not looked as “Americans”. The book Ceremony makes this distinction numerous times. It is a tale of the “other”. What happens when the outcast is an outcast among outcasts, and what happens when for a brief time; the outcast is treated like an equal.
