Grandmother Spirit In Arnold's Life

Arnold’s relationship with Mr. P started violently, but as they opened up to each other, Mr. P was able to give Arnold hope; this makes Mr. P arguably the most important mentor. Remarkably, Mr. P was able to become a mentor because of this. In the beginning of the book, Arnold finds his mother's name written in his geometry textbook. Infuriated that the school has books from when his mother was a kid, Arnold throws the textbook at Mr. P. As a result, Arnold is suspended from school and Mr. P comes to visit Arnold at his home. Out of the blue, Mr. P confesses to Arnold that he should be the one apologizing because he has hurt so many Indian kids over his years of teaching; he can’t apologize to them so he apologizes to Arnold. Mr. P tells
Grandmother Spirit is the mother of Arnold’s mother and is well-known throughout reservations because she is forgiving, tolerant, and wise. After Arnold punches, Roger, Arnold comes home confused and terrified. He leans on Grandmother Spirit to figure out why Roger just walked away after being punched. Grandmother Spirit responds in a way that not many Grandmothers would. She tells him, “I think it means he respects you. ” (pg. 68) Arnold doesn’t believe it and she surprisingly replies, “You punched that alpha-dog in the face! They’re going to respect you now. “ (pg. 70) Grandmother Spirit helps Arnold believe in himself because she knows he can thrive. Grandmother Spirits develops the value of tolerance in Arnold. She says, “Who cares if a man wants to marry another man? All I want to know is who’s going to pick up all the dirty socks.” (pg. 155) Arnold uses his Grandmother’s value of tolerance to make friends at Reardan. Grandmother India’s values are ironic considering the fact that she is consistently kind and tolerant, even though she is the one getting discriminated against. Tragically, Grandmother Spirit was injured from getting struck by a drunk driver, she died in the hospital where her last words were, “Forgive him.” (pg. 157) This kindness is unbelievable considering this man just killed her because he was drunk. Forgiveness is especially important for Arnold to learn as he was in a fight with Rowdy, his best friend. During the very last scene of the book, they reunite as friends and forgive each