1 Contemporary Literature, 1970 to Present
Stephen F. Evans, “‘Open Containers’: Sherman Alexie’s Drunken Indians,”
American Indian Quarterly, 25 (Winter 2001): 46–72.
Thorough consideration of the depiction of alcohol use and drunkenness across
most of Alexie’s work; also debates the question of whether or not Alexie offers
any kind of corrective or sense of hope along with his critique.
Jennifer Gillan, “Reservation Home Movies: Sherman Alexie’s Poetry,” American
Literature, 68 (March 1996): 91–110.
Offers carefully considered examination of major themes in Alexie’s work, espe-
cially the struggle to find an identity within the competing claims of tribal pasts
and contemporary U.S. culture. This article is specially recommended for those
interested in exploring Alexie’s poetry.
Patrice Hollrah, “Sherman Alexie’s Challenge to the Academy’s Teaching of
Native American Literature, Non-Native Writers, and Critics,” Studies in
American Indian Literature, 13 (Summer–Fall 2001): 23–36.
Through analyses of various characters, discusses Alexie’s often harsh criticism
of white writers and scholars attempting to discuss American Indian texts and
issues, while critiquing Alexie’s refusal to offer solutions or suggestions for those
wishing to engage with native texts authentically and without arrogance. Holl-
rah also highlights Alexie’s sympathetic depictions of strong women and gender
complementarity in native cultures.
Ron McFarland, “Sherman Alexie’s Polemical Stories,” Studies in American Indian
Literature, series 2, 9 (Winter 1997): 27–38.
Noting the discomfort Alexie often invokes in readers and listeners, argues that
Alexie couches anger in satiric humor, eschews dense texture and description
for an accumulation of character traits and actions, and demonstrates a flair for
aphorism and metaphor to create his distinctive style.
Jacqueline L. McGrath, “‘The Same Damn Stories’: Exploring a Variation
on Tradition in Sherman Alexie’s The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistf ight in
Heaven,” Southern Folklore, 57 ( January 2001): 94–105.
Excellent article challenging definitions of folklore to argue that Alexie’s writ-
ing is an actual embodiment of folklore. (Folklorists argue that any written text
cannot be folklore, but only a folklore text.) McGrath also provides a useful per-
spective on Alexie’s negative view of non-Native American writers using native
characters, as well as analysis of some innovative features of Alexie’s prose.
Louis Owens, Mixedblood Messages: Literature, Film, Family, Place (Norman: Uni-
versity of Oklahoma Press, 1998).
Particularly important for the final chapter, in which Owens recognizes Alexie’s
talent but doubts his ability to offer work that is positive and useful, especially
when compared to such figures as N. Scott Momaday and Leslie Marmon
Silko.
—Kathryn West