Discussion Topic
The central conflict, rising action, climax, crisis action, and resolution in "What You Pawn I Will Redeem"
Summary:
The central conflict in "What You Pawn I Will Redeem" is Jackson's quest to reclaim his grandmother's stolen regalia. The rising action involves Jackson's efforts to gather money within 24 hours. The climax occurs when Jackson finds himself short on funds but still determined. The crisis happens when he nearly gives up. The resolution is when the pawnshop owner gives him the regalia, recognizing his perseverance and cultural connection.
What are the rising action and climax of "What You Pawn I Will Redeem"?
Identifying the rising action and the climax isn’t always easy, particularly in a short story such as Sherman Alexie’s “What You Pawn I Will Redeem.”
As you might have noted, there isn’t so much action in the story as a series of events and reminiscences. Remember, Jackson Jackson is trying to collect enough money to buy back his grandma’s stolen regalia from the pawnshop. Yet every time Jackson seems to get his hands on some money, he spends it. He buys alcohol, breakfast, or McDonald’s cheeseburgers.
Jackson’s inability to hold on to the money makes it hard for the action to rise. However, there is a moment when the action finally seems to gather momentum. You might think of the bar scene as the raising action. You could argue that all of the day’s money-chasing leads to the bar scene in which he has a passionate encounter...
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with Irene. It also causes him to wake up on the railroad tracks.
Perhaps the climax could be the scene when the amiable police officer finds Jackson on the railroad tracks. That is to say, this is the crisis. If the cop doesn’t discover Jackson, something horrid might have happened to him. As Jackson says, “I should have been a railroad-track pizza, a double Indian pepperoni with extra cheese.”
Yet the interaction with the cop seems to settle Jackson down. After the cop drops him off, the falling action seems to take over. He hangs out with some Aleuts, eats breakfast, and then finally finds resolution by reacquiring his grandma’s regalia.
What is the central conflict, crisis action, and resolution in "What You Pawn I Will Redeem"?
One way to determine conflict is to consider what the goal of the protagonist is. In a general way, Jackson is in conflict with his society; he doesn't feel that he really belongs anywhere and as a homeless Indian, and he finds little encouragement from his mostly white community.
More specifically, though, his goal in this story is to recover his grandmother's regalia, which was stolen from her fifty years prior. The conflict that motivates Jackson's actions in "What You Pawn I Will Redeem" is with the pawn shop owner, who wants to recover the thousand dollars he spent on the regalia before returning it to Jackson. This conflict is introduced as Jackson walks with Rose of Sharon and Junior on their way to purchase alcohol at the 7-Eleven with their collective wealth of five dollars. When Jackson proves that the regalia belonged to his grandmother by predicting that there would be a hidden yellow bead somewhere in the material, the conflict of rightful ownership emerges.
The crisis action of a story occurs when the conflict is at its highest point, often demonstrating social, historical, or cultural strife. In "What You Pawn I Will Redeem," this occurs when Jackson returns to the pawn shop without the nine hundred and ninety-nine dollars he needs to purchase the regalia. In fact, all he has is five dollars, which is the same amount the pawnbroker had given him the day before to get Jackson started.
The story's resolution comes after this moment, when the pawnbroker decides to return the regalia to Jackson anyway. Jackson takes the regalia into the street and dances with joy, feeling a deep connection to his grandmother's presence.