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Adversity In The Short Story 'Ten Little Indians' By Sherman Alexie

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Have you ever felt like you just didn’t belong in the predetermined path that was set out for you? In the short story "Ten Little Indians" by Sherman Alexie, the main protagonist Corliss faces adversity in her academic identity. Corliss and I are similar in the fact that we strive to overcome these obstacles. Through finding different avenues to escape we ultimately find ourselves and our true identities.
Corliss is a Spokane Indian who was stereotypically supposed to live a certain life. She refused to accept this life that others similar to her chose to live. She had goals that trumped the situation she was in and did everything she could to separate herself from them. Corliss faced many hardships in her academic progress when it came to reaching her goals. She was in no way behind in her studies, but she always felt like her family accepting the fact that she loved poems and literature would be beneficial. She felt like she didn’t belong in the typical Indian family and could do more with her life. "How could she tell her family that she didn’t belong with them, that she was destined for something larger, that she believed she was supposed to be eccentric and powerful and great …show more content…
She went on a quest for someone she felt she could connect with. Feeling like there was nobody that she could connect with in the world, she went to what was comfortable for her. On a whim she went a quest of self identity. In doing so she found another Spokane Indian similar to her and sought to confide in him. In a way she was upset that he didn’t turn out to be the way she wanted him to be in his head. However, in the end she took away many lessons from the man after hearing the story of his life. He, just like her, was lost as an Indian and turned to poetry as a means of escape. Although their living situations growing up weren't similar, they both faced adversity and through literature sought self

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