Sherman Alexie, author of Flight and a biracial Native American, is quoted as saying “not living up to your expectations.” The history of Native Americans is one of genocide, violence, and the battle for equality that still hinders many today. Past events in American history have shaped prejudices against American Indians, which continue to affect members of this ethnicity. In Sherman Alexie's Flight, Zits uses stereotypes that have been formed by historical events and scenarios to understand and identify himself, to situate his life within a larger history of conflict. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original EssayWhen Europeans began to settle the Americas, many Europeans were afraid of the darker-skinned tribes, who in turn were angry at the reckless disrespect that had been shown; with attempts to remove them from their land began "their perception of the threat of the natives". This expectation of violence and anger from Native Americans was "heavily dependent on European perceptions of origins and the malleability of [their] supposed backwardness", and is still present in modern society Based on the perspective of Gus, an Indian hunter who worked with the U.S. government, Zits recalls “When he, [Gus], came across those slaughtered, stripped, mutilated, ruined dead white bodies” (86 ). This gruesome image of violence and anger, although not fictitious, was not true of the entire Indian race, although it became a generalization expected by all. In colonial times, “captivity tales were often offered as evidence of the kind of native barbarism that merited violence,” and white militias joined with Indian trappers, like Gus, to track down and massacre entire tribes. Over the course of the lives of the United States, many of those who feared Native Americans wanted to "wipe these wild and untameable creatures from the face of the earth." With such aggression at play, it is not surprising that many American Indians fought against their oppressors in hopes of surviving When he sees a psychiatrist, Zits is told that he is simply "programmed for violence" and accepts the diagnosis simply as a sign of his Native American heritage (27). destroyed” or “damaged” and this misfortune has become a stereotype, even an expectation Although “virtually non-existent in traditional American Indian communities, American Indian women and children today experience family violence at rates similar to those of women. “families of European and Caucasian descent” (source a). This growth in conflict-affected Native American families has been attributed to a trait "learned from the white man" during events such as forced assimilation, which continue to plague the culture today. During his time in the foster system, Zits lives with "two Indian foster fathers, [but discovers that] they were bigger jerks than all of [his] eighteen white foster fathers" (9). This crippled sense of family for many Native Americans has created a divide between those who choose to live traditionally and those who choose to live as 'Americans'. The conflict is similar to the past, when “[a] permanent demarcation was formed between the “good Indians” and the “bad Indians” , both as tribes and as individuals,… based on their willingness to assimilate or cooperate.” American cultures are proud of the tribe from which they come and have fought for the sense of belonging that revolves around their traditions and heritage. When they were assimilated with..