Does love come at a cost? What is the price of love? One of the themes in the novel “The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao” is love, and so the storyline of this book raises these and other questions. Love is a rather complex emotion, and both real and fictional people can enjoy it and suffer through it. This novel is no different, and it explores all realms of this emotion and the impact that it has. Because the narrative is set in the Dominican Republic, this also demonstrates how devotion and passion is in this country. In this novel, love is not present without violence and this shapes many of the characters and their lives.
Often, the cost of love may be higher than the rewards. The main character, Oscar experiences this multiple times
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Later on in this novel, Oscar meets another woman who greatly impacts his life. Her name is Ybon, and she is a middle-aged prostitute. Yet again, Oscar becomes friends with her and he opens himself up to her. Surprisingly she does the same as Oscar notes that she does not open up very often or to very many. They become very close, almost to the point that they are dating, and Oscar finds himself in love with her. But then, she reveals that she has a boyfriend, who is a police captain, referred to as the Capitan. Warning signs show up to Oscar, but he pays no attention to them because he is so in love. Violence shows up soon after when the Capitan’s cronies beat Oscar to within an inch to his life. He is unconscious for three days after this, but once he awakens he immediately thinks of Ybon. After he recovers, he travels back to Santa Domingo to try to find her. He succeeds and then learns that the Capitan has been beating Ybon and has threatened to kill her if she has any contact with Oscar again. Following his nature, Oscar does not give up on his love and follows Ybon around. She desperately tries to get him to go away, but she appears to be at least partly in love with him also. However, the Capitan catches sight of him and sends his thugs after Oscar one last time. This time they give him a beating that takes his life. So Oscar finds love, but it ultimately ends with it taking his life …show more content…
Except for Oscar, every male from the Dominican Republic in this novel do not give love without being abusive. In addition, males were not considered men unless they had slept with at least one woman. The more women that they conquered the more manly they were considered. This is shown when Oscar’s uncle, upon finding out that Oscar had a girl friend, was “thrilled that he no longer had a pajaro for a nephew” and pronounced that Oscar was “finally a man” (Diaz 287). He was under the assumption that Oscar had slept with Ybon even though he really had not. Oscar faces difficulties because he has not had sex with multiple girls so his fellow countrymen do not consider him to be a true Dominican. Building upon this principle, the Dominican men have the pressure to conquer many women so this leads to many of them being abusive and taking advantage of the women. This is a very accepted form of Dominican masculinity, so love and violence are very often tied
Without the force of love, conflict would cease to exist in The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao. Love specifically seems to be the foundation for misfortune to occur because of how obsessed characters become with reaching for what they cannot have. Unfortunately, love or even lust at times seems to drive the plot and lead to action, most of which are disastrous. It all began with Abelard when he tried to save his daughter Jacquelyn from the wrath of Trujillo and ended up dying anyway. The theme of calamity continues nearly fifteen years later when Belicia throws away family and friends over a man. The man she loved, The Gangster, turned out to be married into the almighty Trujillo family and well, that doesn’t end so well for Beli since she
In the novel Chulito author Charles Rice-Gonzalez creates a familiar world seen through the eyes of a young, gay Latino from New York to strip the reconstructed masculinity that is inherent to the urban Latin communities' sense of machismo and expose the realities of outdated views on gender roles and sexual orientation, and the internal power struggle against the machismo aspects that entrap its members in a cycle of poverty and violence. The majority of young Latinos growing up in impoverished areas of urban society think machismo is necessary for survival and acceptance within the community. Rice-Gonzalez reveals this to be an oversimplification by the members of the community of the social dynamics that are at work behind the scenes and,
Junot Diaz's Drown, a compilation of short stories, exemplifies how the high standard of masculinity within the Latino community can have a detrimental effect on males. These stories are told in the first person by a narrator called Yunior. The different stories are told against the background of The Dominican Republic and the United States. The narrator highlights the different challenges that he faces throughout his childhood and into his young adult life. During this period, he struggles to find his identity which is expected by every Latino. In the Dominican Republic, a man’s manhood is closely tied to his identity, and Yunior is no exception. While in the process of finding his identity, Yunior is challenged with abuse, poverty and the lure of drugs, which leads to his addiction and his becoming violent .…
Upon returning to the Dominican Republic after many years, Yolanda decides to take a trip across the island––something her family views as ridiculous. “‘This is not the states’ . . . ‘A woman just doesn’t travel alone in this country.” (9) This quote highlights the sexism inherent in Dominican society. Yolanda’s family is asserting that women are not individuals capable of taking care of themselves. On another hand, Yolanda’s close friendship with Mundín causes tensions as their mothers confront them about crossing gender lines. “My mother disapproved. The outfit would only encourage my playing with Mundín and the boy cousins. It was high time I got over my tomboy phase and started acting like a young lady señorita. ‘But it is for girls,’ . . . ‘boys don’t wear skirts.’” (228) This is an example of how Dominican societal norms and gender roles have impacted the sisters. Yolanda and Mundín were the only boy-girl playmates out of all the García children, yet this was frowned upon by both of their parents as to not impede the seemingly inevitable growth of Yolanda’s femininity, and conversely, Mundín’s masculinity. Moreover, this shows how societally-prescribed gender roles were instilled in Yolanda at a young age. However, this is not the only way in which women’s freedoms are
Love and Violence The Brief and Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao, by Junot Diaz covers the issue of Love and Violence thoroughly throughout the book, and shows how anger and love influence the impulsive and reckless decisions the characters make. Searching for Zion, by Emily Raboteau on the other hand, shows that love comes in different forms and may be easily misunderstood. Abelard, Belicia, Lola, and Emily show love can be a devastating force if not handled carefully and, can be very dangerous. As others commonly have, Oscar confuses passion or lust with love, which in many ways can be critical when conveyed in violence.
Junot Diaz’s novel The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao is focused on the hyper-masculine culture of the Dominican, and many argue that his portrayal of the slew of women in the novel is misogynistic because they are often silenced by the plot and kept out of the narration (Matsui). However, Diaz crafts strong women, and it is society that views them as objects. The novel recognizes the masculine lens of the culture while still examining the lives of resilient women. In this way, the novel showcases a feminist stance and critiques the misogynist culture it is set in by showcasing the strength and depth of these women that help to shape the narrative while acknowledging that it is the limits society places on them because of their sexuality
At the beginning of the story, the protagonist, Cleofilas, had an illusion that all romances are like the ones she has seen on television. However, she soon realizes that her relationship with Juan Pedro was nothing like what she had dreamed it would be. Cisneros wants to emphasize the idea that when men bring home the primary source of income in the family, they feel they have power over their wives. Cisneros uses Juan Pedro in the story to portray this idea. For instance, Cleofilas often tells herself that if she had any brains in her, she would realize that Juan Pedro wakes up before the rooster to earn his living to pay for the food in her belly and a roof over her head (Cisneros, 1991, p.249). Cisneros wants to make a point that when men feel that they have power over their wives, women begin to feel a sense of low self-worth.
Throughout Junot Díaz's novel, The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao, the text poses concerns with narrative viewpoints, familial history of the Dominican Republic, and most importantly, specifies characters. Díaz introduces characters who are present throughout the entire novel, and others who appear only briefly. Isis, in particular, holds a special place in the novel. Before Díaz introduces Isis, we are introduced to many of her family members who maintain family traditions in both the United States and the Dominican Republic. The order of the text enhances our understanding of Isis as a character. Isis stands out as the next generation of her family by living in a familiar place, New York. Isis, a minor character in The Brief Wondrous Life
Love is a powerful force of nature. It is a feeling of passionate and deep affection. It is patient, kind, and honest. It has the ability to consume someone’s thoughts, feelings, and emotions. It serves as the foundation for numerous songs, poems, shows, and novels. However, the attributes of love in The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao are depicted as a curse preying on the insecurities of relationships and a blessing embodying its beauty. Fukú, a curse, strikes the Dominican Republic and its inhabitants through violent acts of revenge, rage, and jealousy. The source of fukú’s power, nonetheless, is derived from the infamous dictator of the Dominican Republic, Trujillo. The dictator not only presided over all political, economic, and social
The Lais of Marie de France is a compilation of short stories that delineate situations where love is just. Love is presented as a complex emotion and is portrayed as positive, while at other times, it is portrayed as negative. The author varies on whether or not love is favorable as is expressed by the outcomes of the characters in the story, such as lovers dying or being banished from the city. To demonstrate, the author weaves stories that exhibit binaries of love. Two distinct types of love are described: selfish and selfless. Love is selfish when a person leaves their current partner for another due to covetous reasons. Contrarily, selfless love occurs when a lover leaves to be in a superior relationship. The stark contrast between the types of love can be analyzed to derive a universal truth about love.
Yunior struggles with personal acceptance, due to his father not completely accepting him. Papi struggles with being the head of a lower class family. Both of their personal conflicts with themselves and their conflicts with each other set the theme of “Fiesta, 1980.” Junot Diaz depicted a scenario a plethora of individuals know all too well. Both Yunior and Papi love each other, both have strange ways of showing it. The conflict of Man vs. man within this story shows that no matter the age, an internal struggle can greatly affect the people around you.
Junot Diaz’s The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao it shows us the Daily life of a Dominican American family and the wonderful ability of people to persevere and fight for a happy life. Oscar is an overweight guy who is trying to find the love of his life, and from a young age is hard for him to find love. Without growing with a father figure, he lacks a lot of those basic “Don Juan” skills that every Dominican guy has. Oscar’s biggest fear is that he will die a virgin. After trying to commit suicide two times Oscar moves to the Dominican Republic and falls in love with Ybon. After seeing each other several times Ybon’s
In The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao Junot Diaz shows how the Dominican Republic influenced the superstitions, the Cane fields, and the male dominance. In the end Oscar dies because of the love he spent his life searching for. He sees that he gained it but at the cost of his life. He expresses the happiness of love in the end right before he died. The rest of the family deals with the death of Oscar differently. Beli’s loses her will to fight and the cancer returns and she dies ten months later. Lola and Yunior relationship never restarts and both get married to other people and have children. They only see each other occasionally and only speak of Oscar.
Junot Diaz’s The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao, set in the late 1900’s, tells a story of Oscar Wao, an overweight Dominican “ghetto nerd”, his mother and rebellious sister who live together in Paterson, New Jersey. Throughout the novel, Diaz incorporates many different stories about each character that show acts of resistance. One of the most prominent stories of resistance in the novel is through Oscar’s mom; Beli, who is prompted by great tragedy, known as the Trujillo curse, to love atomically and thus follow a dangerous path. Beli’s family history plays a large role in her choices that eventually compel her into a different life than what her adopted mother, La Inca, had wanted
The two ends of this spectrum of love is accurately depicted by Antonio and Orsino. Love is a crucial part of one’s daily life and the way in which one expresses his/her love -whether it be sincere or for self-gain-, really contributes to how and if one will receive love in return.