Essay Three Workshop

Sarahi Carranza

Lauren Servais

English 100

April 18, 2011

Essay Three

             A major theme in Smoke Signals is forgiveness. It plays a large role in the development of the story. We specifically see a few characters that have to heavily implement forgiveness into their life. Victor is one of these characters, but he has a bit of a hard time moving on. Thomas is the other character and he’s somewhat of an example for Victor.

            Victor is an intriguing character. He’s very complicated for the fact that he’s emotionally damaged because of what he’s had to experience as a child. Both of his parents were alcoholics. This angered him very much and we can see that in the film. In one of the scenes in the film, his parents are passed out in the middle of the day with beer bottles surrounding them. Victor is outside breaking beer bottles and you can see the frustration and anger that he’s feeling. It’s hard for a young child to see his parents deal with addiction. It’s even harder when they don’t try to better themselves for the sake of their children. Victor experiences this situation and that frustration begins to build.

            To make matters worse, his father abandons him. Victor chases after his father and tries to convince him to stay, but his efforts are in vain. This only adds to his pain, which in return worsens that anger and frustration. He doesn’t hear about his father until he’s informed about his passing. This is a lot for him to deal with. His father’s death

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makes a lot of feelings resurface. He’s always had resentment, but he didn’t deal with it appropriately. This is especially apparent after his father’s death.

            In order for Victor to find peace of mind and to overall improve his emotional health, he needs to come to terms with the things that have happened to him. He needs to forgive his father for the wrong that he did. It’s understandable that this is something very hard for him to accomplish, but it’s necessary. You can’t hold grudges and expect to lead a satisfying life. If you let negative feelings accumulate, you’ll damage yourself more than you’ll damage others.

            Arnold wasn’t a horrible man even though he did leave his son. He wasn’t happy about the choice he made and Victor didn’t consider that this might be the case. Susie mentions to Victor that Arnold didn’t mean to die out there in Arizona. He wanted to return to his son, but something prevented him from going back. It could have been the guilt that he felt or the fear of being rejected by his family. Whatever the case, he longed to be home with his son. Once Victor recognizes that his father didn’t absolutely hate him and he disposes his hate, he begins to heal.

            Thomas is also required to forgive others. The obvious person that he has to forgive is Victor. There has been a lot of hostility coming from Victor. He talks down to him and he often becomes aggravated with him. When he becomes annoyed, he yells at Thomas. This has been going on for a while, but when Victor needs money to travel to Arizona, Thomas is willing to give him the money. He doesn’t ask for repayment, he only asks to come along on the trip. This shows a very admirable quality from his part. He

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doesn’t resent Victor for the treatment he’s giving him. Instead he shows kindness and generosity.

            He’s also had to deal with plenty of hardships. He was a baby when he lost his parents in a fire. This meant that he never enjoyed the company and love that parents have to offer. This alone would be enough to cause someone to become bitter. Once again we see Thomas overcome the bad. He’s not aware that Arnold started the fire that killed his parents, so he can’t directly forgive him. Judging from his character, we can almost be positive that he would forgive him without thinking twice. This attitude has benefited him so much. He has a refreshing personality and we can sense that he’s content with how things have turned out for him. He doesn’t have any regrets or pent up frustration.

            If we stop and take a look at the life that Victor leads and the life that Thomas leads, we see just how important it is to forgive. Smoke Signals permits us to see this a bit more clearly. The changes that Victor makes are a clear indication of what part forgiveness plays in the film. He begins to heal as soon as he accepts his father’s abandonment. If we think about it, one of the most important things in life is growing as a person. Thomas doesn’t have to make many changes, but it’s still a good experience for him. Forgiveness isn’t an issue with him, but after accompanying Victor, he can help him move forward.