What is the purpose?
The narrator’s father had just endured an incredibly expensive surgery. The narrator says directly that his father is an alcoholic, diabetic Native American with terminally damaged kidneys, and he himself sees no sense in the surgery as after getting better his father would “ride his motorized wheelchair to the bar and win bets by showing off his disfigured foot”. Ironic attitude is felt in the depicted situation, but still he did not ever said that the surgery was a mistake as it still gave his father few more years of “motorizing” life.
Identity
The narrator meets in the hospital another Native man who was from the Lummi tribe, while the narrator himself originated from the Spokane tribe. To this the other said: “My first wife was Spokane. I hated her.” And the narrator answered: “My first wife was Lummi. She hated me.” The humor among the natives was a common case and the situation shows its peculiarities.
Old new tradition
An old man whom the narrator met in the hospital was trying to introduce some Indian tradition into his family. It was one of the sort welcoming a new-born into the world, and the ceremony of the welcoming might make him strong and healthy. The comic effect concerning the tradition is presented by the son of this man who told: “this new Indian tradition. He says it’s a thousand years old.”
Humor
It has been humor that helped the narrator to live through all the challenges of his life, and when he remembers the side effects of phenobarbital, which were “sleepwalking, agitation, confusion, depression, nightmares, hallucinations, insomnia, apnea, vomiting, constipation, dermatitis, fever, liver and bladder dysfunction, and psychiatric disturbance”, he ironically refers to the cockroaches in his head – "do you like those?" Other instances of showing courage are completely based on humor. Humor became for the narrator a helper and supporter.
