You can feel trapped in your daily life. This is one the most horrible feelings. It’s the feeling you get when your daily routine becomes so monotonous and boring that it is stifling. The city in which you live can also become a prison. Native Americans often experience this feeling, which is amplified when they’ve lived in the same place with people their whole lives. The reservation has a limited amount of activities and leaving the reservation can be both frightening and difficult. There are many opportunities in the outside world, but not everyone has the skills necessary to seize them. Others may be faced with racism that is a part of American culture. In contemporary literature it seems that this fear, based on a rationale, is what keeps Native Americans in their reservation. Victor’s situation is an excellent example. Victor and Adrian are caught in a loop of sorts when Sherman Alexie tells the story “The only traffic signal on the reservation doesn’t flash red anymore”. Victor’s trapped feeling is portrayed throughout the story by symbols like the broken traffic signal and the rising basketball stars. Victor is an ill-fated character. He desperately wants to change, but he’s afraid to go against the grain and take a risk.
Victor is unsure of what he would like to do. He knows what he’s looking for, but he doesn’t know how to break free from his daily routine. Adrian and Victor begin the story by playing a game of Russian Roulette using a BB-gun. Victor asks Adrian whether he is already dead when he fires a BB from the gun. Adrian replies, “Nope… Not yet”, before asking for a drink. He forgot that they had both stopped drinking. This part of story instantly gives the reader unsettling feelings. Alexie’s character is anticipating death by using the “not yet”. It is almost routine to ask for a beer immediately afterward. They are used to the old routine and have become so accustomed to it that they don’t even notice. This cycle is made permanent by the ending of the story. Victor says that the year has gone by and they did things such as “eat, sleep and read newspapers” (50). The story opens with the same scene. Victor also mentions nothing else between the repeated scene and the seemingly routine life that they seem to lead. Evidently, nothing has changed in the past year that would have caused him to change his mind. He’s bored. He’s bored.
The broken lights on the reservation are a way to compare Victor’s traits. Victor’s mood is shown by the broken light. The light is broken and so does he. Because it’s been like this for so many years, no one notices. Even if people notice it, they may not give a damn. There aren’t many cars, so the light doesn’t do much. “About one car every hour passed,” (48), so what was the value of this light? Victor’s feelings of usefulness are influenced by the fact that he repeats the same actions as everyone else in the reservation. No one is interested in fixing the traffic lights. It is not a top priority. Nobody wants Victor to be fixed. He is not interested in saving himself. He does not make it a priority. Victor’s situation is not improving.
Victor copes best with his helplessness by watching other people and hoping they will break the mould. Vicor, Adrian and the rest of the characters are talking about Julius Windmaker. Victor flashes forward to tell how he was a good basketball player until he started drinking. Victor wants Julius to succeed not only because he’s a sports fan, but also for other reasons. They see Julius taken away from them by a policeman of the tribe after they hear a noise. Victor denies Adrian’s statement that Julius would fail. He claims that Julius was just playing around. He doesn’t think it is fair to say that someone with a brighter future than him will ruin his own future. Victor might be motivated to continue if another person succeeds. The loop will be broken and others may follow. Victor and Adrian watch Julius’s football game one year later. They find out that he has been drinking too much to play. He is found unconscious on Victor’s bedroom floor after being drunk and stumbled into his home. The two begin to talk about Lucy. Lucy’s basketball skills are so impressive that she has been playing with 6th graders. Victor says, “I hope she gets to the finals.” All his hopes are placed in the future. The cycle goes on.
Victor finds himself in a similar lifestyle to that of other Native Americans who are self-conscious. He is too afraid to leave his reservation and start a new life. Instead, he falls into a cyclical pattern of depressing routine. He is lost and confused in his own life. He is broken and nobody, not even himself, cares to fix it. He is just like the broken street light. He isn’t special. It can feel like you cannot escape yourself. Routines can be comfortable or stifling. Victor is a good example. It is easier to say than do.