One of the hardest realities of being a minority is that the majority has a thousand ways to hurt anyone who is a minority, and they don't There are only two or three ways to defend yourself. themselves. In Sherman Alexie's short story, The World's Toughest Indian, Roman Gabriel Fury is a member of the Native American minority that makes up less than two percent of the total United States population (1.2 percent to be exact) . This inherent disadvantage of being a minority, as well as various cultural factors, influence the novel Gabriel Fury's conflicted nature and attitude toward the white majority. Through his use of strong language, a demanding tone, and vibrant colors, Roman Gabriel Fury is able to reveal his complex feelings about growing up in India in a predominantly white world. Language, when used correctly, can be an extremely powerful weapon. Roman's knowledge of sophisticated language is one of his strongest attributes, as he immediately makes it known that "he wanted to be the first to use a word actually found in Webster's Dictionary, Ninth Edition" after M . Williams muttered "'Hmmm' as if guttural was an important part of his vocabulary." Roman is proud of the irony: although both his parents are deceased and his grandmother does not speak English, the Indian seems to be more sophisticated than the white man. Roman further uses his strong language to express his awareness of the victimization of his ethnicity. For example, when Mr. Williams “compliments” Roman on his near-perfect score in the CAT math section by saying it is the “second highest score ever for a Native American,” Roman responds, “Normally, I' I said thank you, sir, but I don't think it was a sincere compliment, was it?...... middle of paper ......ial, a bland man, white and helpless; nothing distinguishes Mr. Williams from the rest of seemingly dominant white society. Roman, on the other hand, despite living in poverty, possesses more vivacity and power than Mr. Williams could ever possess. For example, Roman shows up to take the CAT dressed in his "red, yellow, white and blue grass dancing outfit" because Roman's grandmother "told him that Mr. William's test was culturally biased and might need a little help. extra power to do your best. Unlike Mr. Williams, Roman recognizes the power that color has, even after death, as Roman vividly remembers "the yellow headlights of the red truck that slammed head-on into his father's blue Chevrolet," the "blood red spat into his mother's folds. with a white handkerchief", and the fact that his mother "was buried in a purple dress.”