The Approximate Size of My Favorite Tumor by Sherman Alexie
"The Approximate Size of My Favorite Tumor" by Sherman Alexie is a poignant exploration of love, illness, and the complexities of relationships within Native American culture. The story centers on Jimmy Many Horses, who reflects on his tumultuous relationship with his wife, Norma, set against the backdrop of his terminal cancer diagnosis. Through Jimmy's humorous yet stark recollections, the narrative delves into themes of alcoholism, cultural identity, and the struggle between traditional values and contemporary life.
The couple's bond is tested as they navigate Jimmy's health crises and personal issues, including their differing responses to his illness. Norma's journey, including her temporary departure to engage with the powwow circuit, highlights a search for connection and identity. The title references Jimmy's description of a tumor, symbolically linking humor and pain as he copes with his condition. Ultimately, the story reflects on the healing power of humor and the essential human need for companionship, especially in the face of mortality. The narrative offers a thoughtful glimpse into the challenges and resilience of individuals facing life-altering circumstances.
The Approximate Size of My Favorite Tumor by Sherman Alexie
Excerpted from an article in Magill’s Survey of American Literature, Revised Edition
First published: 1993 (collected in The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven, 1993)
Type of work: Short story
The Work
“The Approximate Size of My Favorite Tumor” reprises some of Alexie’s recurrent concerns: relationships, traditional values versus modern society, alcoholism, and ironically doomed lives. Jimmy Many Horses retells the history of his relationship with his wife, Norma, from the initial meeting at the Powwow Tavern through their problematic relationship, including grappling with alcohol addiction and Jimmy’s death sentence of terminal cancer. Jimmy’s recollection of their relationship includes a classic Indian Country pickup line, “Listen . . . if I stole 1,000 horses, I’d give you 501 of them.” Although their wedding took place at the Spokane Tribal Longhouse and although Norma is known as the world champion fry bread maker, traditional belief and custom do not especially inform their lives.
Jimmy’s cavalier humor about his terminal condition enrages Norma to the point that she leaves him temporarily to go on the powwow circuit. She ends up in Arlee, Montana, with a “second kind of cousin” before returning to be with Jimmy in his last days because, as she explains, “making fry bread and helping people die are two things Indians are good at.” The title of the story comes from Jimmy’s description of an X ray of one of his tumors which was the approximate size and shape of a baseball—with faint stitch marks on it. Norma finds distasteful Jimmy’s attempt to make a joke out of his medical diagnosis; however, she has returned by the end of the story to be with Jimmy in his last days, and their joking together and their domestic dialogue prove the metaphorical point that Jimmy makes in narration in the middle of the story: “Humor was an antiseptic that cleaned the deepest of personal wounds.”
Bibliography
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