--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: She was so white his reservation eyes…" description: "\"“She was so white his reservation eyes suffered.”\" — Sherman Alexie" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/308/sherman-alexie-444_suffered_she-was-so-white-his-reservation-eyes-su_413217.png" --- # She was so white his reservation eyes suffered. ![“She was so white his reservation eyes suffered.” quote by Sherman Alexie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/308/sherman-alexie-444_suffered_she-was-so-white-his-reservation-eyes-su_413217.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/308/sherman-alexie-444_suffered_she-was-so-white-his-reservation-eyes-su_413217.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/308/sherman-alexie-444_suffered_she-was-so-white-his-reservation-eyes-su_413217.png) > ““She was so white his reservation eyes suffered.”” [Sherman Alexie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherman-alexie/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A character’s intense gaze highlights racial tension and alienation, showing how prejudice can be both observed and felt deeply. **In simple terms:** Racial tension shown through a gaze. Key Takeaway Recognize and challenge subtle biases. Themes racism identity alienation Mood reflective somber Type literary social commentary When to use this quote - personal interactions - racial discourse - literary analysis Key Concepts social perception power dynamics Questions to Reflect On - How does visual perception shape prejudice? - What can be done to humanize the “other”? A Different Perspective The line may romanticize the “otherness” rather than critique it. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Eyes Suffered](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/eyes-suffered-3679418/) [Reservation Eyes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reservation-eyes-3679420/) [Suffered](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/suffered/) [White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/white/) [White Reservation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/white-reservation-3679419/) ## Related quotes > [Affirmative action was designed to recognize the uniquely difficult journey of African-Americans. This policy was justifiable and understandable, even to those who came from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-webb/affirmative-action-was-designed-to-recognize-the-uniquely-difficult/) [Jim Webb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-webb/) > [I think that white women are more apt to read laterally. So I think there's some strong identification for women, and their political and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherman-alexie/i-think-that-white-women-are-more-apt-to-read-laterally-so-i-think/) [Sherman Alexie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherman-alexie/) > [I have not suffered a lot for Christ, but I want to tell you that those times that I have suffered and I knew…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adrian-rogers/i-have-not-suffered-a-lot-for-christ-but-i-want-to-tell-you-that/) [Adrian Rogers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adrian-rogers/) > [I've never really suffered complete and utter writer's block, really. I equate it with sex: in the beginning of my career, I was writing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/loudon-wainwright-iii/i-ve-never-really-suffered-complete-and-utter-writer-s-block-really-i/) [Loudon Wainwright III](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/loudon-wainwright-iii/) > [I owed Lewis one thing, at least. Once you had suffered the experience of presenting a case at one of his Monday morning conferences,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-storr/i-owed-lewis-one-thing-at-least-once-you-had-suffered-the-experience/) [Anthony Storr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-storr/) > [“The Crucified is the One most traumatized. He has borne the World Trade Center. He has carried the Iraq war, the destruction in Syria,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-langberg/the-crucified-is-the-one-most-traumatized-he-has-borne-the-world/) [Diane Langberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-langberg/) > [“All her life, Neverfell had suffered the dull, embarrassed ache of the knowledge that she was always the maddest person in the room. Funnily…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frances-hardinge/all-her-life-neverfell-had-suffered-the-dull-embarrassed-ache-of-the/) [Frances Hardinge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frances-hardinge/) > [To have lied is to have suffered.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/to-have-lied-is-to-have-suffered/) [Victor Hugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-hugo/) > [“She was molten in my bed, but she also suffered depressions that were very dear to her.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wells-tower/she-was-molten-in-my-bed-but-she-also-suffered-depressions-that-were/) [Wells Tower](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wells-tower/) > [You will find that every successful entrepreneur has suffered many setbacks. These entrepreneurs just forget to mention these when they are doing interviews with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vivek-wadhwa/you-will-find-that-every-successful-entrepreneur-has-suffered-many/) [Vivek Wadhwa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vivek-wadhwa/) > [North Korea is still my homeland, my country. I suffered on the outside because I was alien, without identity. I was nobody. I was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-hyeon-seo/north-korea-is-still-my-homeland-my-country-i-suffered-on-the-outside/) [Lee Hyeon-seo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-hyeon-seo/) > [Those who have suffered make the best comforters.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/billy-graham/those-who-have-suffered-make-the-best-comforters/) [Billy Graham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/billy-graham/) > [I always wanted to make big action movies as a kid, and that was my dream. In a way, 'Swingers' was the thing I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doug-liman/i-always-wanted-to-make-big-action-movies-as-a-kid-and-that-was-my/) [Doug Liman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doug-liman/) > [I suffered too much and I want to stop the suffering of other people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phan-thi-kim-phuc/i-suffered-too-much-and-i-want-to-stop-the-suffering-of-other-people/) [Phan Thi Kim Phuc](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phan-thi-kim-phuc/) > [“We both suffered but neither of us stopped living our lives and we got so much out of them, so, so much. And now…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kristen-ashley/we-both-suffered-but-neither-of-us-stopped-living-our-lives-and-we/) [Kristen Ashley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kristen-ashley/) ## More by Sherman Alexie > [“He says the earth is an oval marble that nobody can win. He says the sky is not blue and the grass is not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherman-alexie/he-says-the-earth-is-an-oval-marble-that-nobody-can-win-he-says-the/) [Sherman Alexie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherman-alexie/) > [“Now, in the old days, Indians used to be forgiving of any kind of eccentricity. In fact, weird people were often celebrated. Epileptics were…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherman-alexie/now-in-the-old-days-indians-used-to-be-forgiving-of-any-kind-of/) [Sherman Alexie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherman-alexie/) > [Since Jesus was human then he most assuredly farted and burped. And if God did create us in God's image then God must fart…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherman-alexie/since-jesus-was-human-then-he-most-assuredly-farted-and-burped-and-if/) [Sherman Alexie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherman-alexie/) > [“A century ago she might have been beautiful, her face reflected in the river instead of a mirror. But all the years have changed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherman-alexie/a-century-ago-she-might-have-been-beautiful-her-face-reflected-in-the/) [Sherman Alexie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherman-alexie/) > [“In all those stories, I could fly.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherman-alexie/in-all-those-stories-i-could-fly/) [Sherman Alexie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherman-alexie/) > [I don't think there's a whole lot of class literature at all. I think most of that has become racially based, and people don't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherman-alexie/i-don-t-think-there-s-a-whole-lot-of-class-literature-at-all-i-think/) [Sherman Alexie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherman-alexie/) > [She wanted to be buried in a coffin filled with used paperbacks.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherman-alexie/she-wanted-to-be-buried-in-a-coffin-filled-with-used-paperbacks/) [Sherman Alexie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherman-alexie/) > [“Is there really a difference between that killing and this killing? Does God approve of some killing and not other killing? If I kill…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherman-alexie/is-there-really-a-difference-between-that-killing-and-this-killing/) [Sherman Alexie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherman-alexie/) > [“Son, things have never been like how you think they used to be.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherman-alexie/son-things-have-never-been-like-how-you-think-they-used-to-be/) [Sherman Alexie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherman-alexie/) > [My parents banned nothing, though the Christian fundamentalists in my tribe held book-and-record burnings every now and again. So, yes, fundamentalist assholes can also…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherman-alexie/my-parents-banned-nothing-though-the-christian-fundamentalists-in-my/) [Sherman Alexie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherman-alexie/) > [“Or maybe I could have anesthetized myself with homework and extra credit and binge-reading.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherman-alexie/or-maybe-i-could-have-anesthetized-myself-with-homework-and-extra/) [Sherman Alexie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherman-alexie/) > [“Dear wife, I'm sorry that I am mysteriously incapable of folding clean laundry, but I iron, oh, I iron. Sweetheart, I'll make your white…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherman-alexie/dear-wife-i-m-sorry-that-i-am-mysteriously-incapable-of-folding-clean/) [Sherman Alexie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherman-alexie/) > [“Gordy,” I said. “I need to talk to you." "I don't have time," he said. "Mr. Orcutt and I have to debug some PCs.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherman-alexie/gordy-i-said-i-need-to-talk-to-you-i-don-t-have-time-he-said-mr/) [Sherman Alexie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherman-alexie/) > [“The United States wants all of us to forget the crimes it committed against the indigenous. The United States wants us to forget. The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherman-alexie/the-united-states-wants-all-of-us-to-forget-the-crimes-it-committed/) [Sherman Alexie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherman-alexie/) > [I think that white women are more apt to read laterally. So I think there's some strong identification for women, and their political and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherman-alexie/i-think-that-white-women-are-more-apt-to-read-laterally-so-i-think/) [Sherman Alexie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherman-alexie/) [Explore all 546 Sherman Alexie quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherman-alexie/) ## More Suffered quotes > [“We both suffered but neither of us stopped living our lives and we got so much out of them, so, so much. And now…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kristen-ashley/we-both-suffered-but-neither-of-us-stopped-living-our-lives-and-we/) [Kristen Ashley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kristen-ashley/) > [I suffered too much and I want to stop the suffering of other people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phan-thi-kim-phuc/i-suffered-too-much-and-i-want-to-stop-the-suffering-of-other-people/) [Phan Thi Kim Phuc](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phan-thi-kim-phuc/) > [I always wanted to make big action movies as a kid, and that was my dream. In a way, 'Swingers' was the thing I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doug-liman/i-always-wanted-to-make-big-action-movies-as-a-kid-and-that-was-my/) [Doug Liman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doug-liman/) > [Those who have suffered make the best comforters.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/billy-graham/those-who-have-suffered-make-the-best-comforters/) [Billy Graham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/billy-graham/) > [North Korea is still my homeland, my country. I suffered on the outside because I was alien, without identity. I was nobody. I was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-hyeon-seo/north-korea-is-still-my-homeland-my-country-i-suffered-on-the-outside/) [Lee Hyeon-seo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-hyeon-seo/) > [Affirmative action was designed to recognize the uniquely difficult journey of African-Americans. This policy was justifiable and understandable, even to those who came from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-webb/affirmative-action-was-designed-to-recognize-the-uniquely-difficult/) [Jim Webb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-webb/) > [You will find that every successful entrepreneur has suffered many setbacks. These entrepreneurs just forget to mention these when they are doing interviews with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vivek-wadhwa/you-will-find-that-every-successful-entrepreneur-has-suffered-many/) [Vivek Wadhwa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vivek-wadhwa/) > [“She was molten in my bed, but she also suffered depressions that were very dear to her.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wells-tower/she-was-molten-in-my-bed-but-she-also-suffered-depressions-that-were/) [Wells Tower](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wells-tower/) > [To have lied is to have suffered.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/to-have-lied-is-to-have-suffered/) [Victor Hugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-hugo/) > [“All her life, Neverfell had suffered the dull, embarrassed ache of the knowledge that she was always the maddest person in the room. Funnily…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frances-hardinge/all-her-life-neverfell-had-suffered-the-dull-embarrassed-ache-of-the/) [Frances Hardinge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frances-hardinge/) > [“The Crucified is the One most traumatized. He has borne the World Trade Center. He has carried the Iraq war, the destruction in Syria,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-langberg/the-crucified-is-the-one-most-traumatized-he-has-borne-the-world/) [Diane Langberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-langberg/) > [I owed Lewis one thing, at least. Once you had suffered the experience of presenting a case at one of his Monday morning conferences,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-storr/i-owed-lewis-one-thing-at-least-once-you-had-suffered-the-experience/) [Anthony Storr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-storr/) > [I've never really suffered complete and utter writer's block, really. I equate it with sex: in the beginning of my career, I was writing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/loudon-wainwright-iii/i-ve-never-really-suffered-complete-and-utter-writer-s-block-really-i/) [Loudon Wainwright III](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/loudon-wainwright-iii/) > [I have not suffered a lot for Christ, but I want to tell you that those times that I have suffered and I knew…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adrian-rogers/i-have-not-suffered-a-lot-for-christ-but-i-want-to-tell-you-that/) [Adrian Rogers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adrian-rogers/) > [Those who have suffered much are like those who know many languages; they have learned to understand and be understood by all.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophie-swetchine/those-who-have-suffered-much-are-like-those-who-know-many-languages/) [Sophie Swetchine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophie-swetchine/) [Browse all 431 Suffered quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/suffered/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“She was so white his reservation eyes suffered.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Sherman Alexie" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherman-alexie/she-was-so-white-his-reservation-eyes-suffered/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Suffered" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherman-alexie/she-was-so-white-his-reservation-eyes-suffered/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/308/sherman-alexie-444_suffered_she-was-so-white-his-reservation-eyes-su_413217.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/308/sherman-alexie-444_suffered_she-was-so-white-his-reservation-eyes-su_413217.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/308/sherman-alexie-444_suffered_she-was-so-white-his-reservation-eyes-su_413217.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“She was so white his reservation eyes suffered.” — Sherman Alexie", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Sherman Alexie", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherman-alexie/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“She was so white his reservation...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherman-alexie/she-was-so-white-his-reservation-eyes-suffered/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherman-alexie/she-was-so-white-his-reservation-eyes-suffered/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```