“This Is What It Means to Say Phoenix, Arizona” is about the physical and mental journey of Victor, a Native American in Washington state, as he goes to Phoenix, Arizona Arizona, to claim her father's remains and his savings account. During this journey, Victor learns about himself, his father, and his Indian culture with the help of his estranged friend, Thomas Builds-the-Fire. The author, Sherman Alexie, plays on Native American stereotypes through the characters of Victor and Thomas. While Thomas is portrayed as the more traditional and “good” Native American, Victor is presented as the “bad” Native American. Through the use of this binary relationship, Alexie is able to illustrate the transformation of these characters as they reconcile with each other and break out of these stereotypes in the process. In “This Is What It Means to Say Phoenix, Arizona,” Alexie creates a story that captures common stereotypes of Native Americans. For example, in the story the narrator states, “Who has money for a reservation, except the cigarette and fireworks sellers?” (Alessio). This quote shows that the narrator addresses the idea that all Native Americans must own businesses that sell fireworks and/or cigarettes to be successful. In this example, it is shown that Victor does not identify with Native Americans because he does not pursue the same job opportunities as many Native Americans. The character of Victor is used as a contrast to the stereotypes that see him representing reality. Another example where the author incorporates a stereotype about Native Americans is when Thomas-Builds-the-Fire first converses with Victor. Thomas-Builds-the-Fire informs Victor of the news of the......half a sheet of paper......c after” (Alexie). This quote shows that Thomas has become less persistent as he finally creates a new story to tell. In conclusion, Sherman Alexie created a story to demonstrate the stereotypes that people have created for Native Americans. The author is able to do this by creating characters that present both the negative and positive stereotypes that have been given to Native Americans. Alexie has Native American ancestry. By writing a short story describing the life of an Indian, the reader can also glimpse the stereotypes Alexie encounters. From this story readers can learn the importance of having an identity and also see how stereotypes are used by many people. At the end of the story, both Victor and Thomas are able to understand each other as they can finally relate to each other through Victor's father..