The situation with Mandy in Ed Vega’s short story “Spanish Roulette”, portrays a young women’s innocence being stolen and the distress that was brought upon the family thereafter. The narrator focuses on Sixto Andrade, the brother of Mandy, and how he deals with the situation. Although Mandy’s character is not directly introduced, she is significant because she is the purpose of the plot and she impacts the actions of her brother. The story begins with an introduction describing the gun Sixto has in his home. He contemplates the thoughts that flow through his mind before making any rash decisions. The plan devised by Sixto to use the gun is greatly influenced by Mandy who has no presence at all. Sixto involves himself in his sister’s unfortunate
event creating the significance of Mandy’s role throughout the plot. Her brother functions through the story by taking into consideration the well-being of his family, but more importantly his sister. Her cruel mishap is the subject at hand that leads her brother to the edge of sanity. Therefore Mandy appears as the main focal point of the short story resulting in all the actions made by her brother. For a week he sat in silence, thinking of ideas on what to do on behalf of his sister. He sat with the gun in his hand contemplating the decisions he would make following his sisters rape. The man who did the crime will eventually meet face to face with Sixto so he can establish justice within his family. After some time of deep consideration of his future actions he decided to take drastic measures and raise his gun at another man. All of these actions are due to the seeking vengeance for his sister. As her older brother, he feels compelled to let no wrong action go unpunished. Furthermore, a character who has no presence in the story can be vital to a plot or theme. There would be no story if the incident that happened to Mandy never occurred. Ed Vega portrayed a life changing ordeal, but also presented a bond of siblings between brother and sister. Sixto surpassed limits as too ensure the justice of his family and for his sister. All of the thoughts and actions that were contrived by him were made as result of his sister’s rape. Mandy, who was briefly acknowledged was the sole purpose of the short story.
Many people would say that to be born a Mexican is to be born a Catholic. This perpetuating stereotype has forced many Mexican families to raise their children as if no other religions options even existed. In the book Pocho by Jose Antonio Villarreal a young boy by the name of Richard Rubio finds himself being raised Catholic by a traditional Mexican family. Richard, struggling to find his place in the world, has his parents religious beliefs pressed down on him forcing him to conform to a religion he does not agree with. Throughout the course of the novel the Catholic religious beliefs imposed on Richard affected his personality in many ways. By the end of the book it is clear that not allowing others to find their own spiritual calling can have drastic effects on their ability to recognize who they are. Many of the spiritual problems Richard faces in book are common to a number of Mexican children. Through the use of my personal experiences in being in a situation similar to that of Richard's, I intend to support my claim that forced beliefs may have damaging effects on a person.
The author, Melina Marchetta applies a variety of familiar and stereotypical events in the book. From cases such as the different characters, their characteristics and their reaction upon certain events that occur in the book. One great example of a stereotypical event in this book is the relationship between Josephine Alibrandi and Jacob Coote who is the school captain of a public school called Cook High. “He cracked two eggs on my glasses once” (32).
Demetria Martínez’s Mother Tongue is divided into five sections and an epilogue. The first three parts of the text present Mary/ María’s, the narrator, recollection of the time when she was nineteen and met José Luis, a refuge from El Salvador, for the first time. The forth and fifth parts, chronologically, go back to her tragic experience when she was seven years old and then her trip to El Salvador with her son, the fruit of her romance with José Luis, twenty years after she met José Luis. And finally the epilogue consists a letter from José Luis to Mary/ María after her trip to El Salvador. The essay traces the development of Mother Tongue’s principal protagonists, María/ Mary. With a close reading of the text, I argue how the forth chapter, namely the domestic abuse scene, functions as a pivotal point in the Mother Tongue as it helps her to define herself.
This novel is a story of a Chicano family. Sofi, her husband Domingo together with their four daughters – Esperanza, Fe, Caridad, and Loca live in the little town of Tome, New Mexico. The story focuses on the struggles of Sofi, the death of her daughters and the problems of their town. Sofi endures all the hardships and problems that come her way. Her marriage is deteriorating; her daughters are dying one by one. But, she endures it all and comes out stronger and more enlightened than ever. Sofi is a woman that never gives up no matter how poorly life treats her. The author- Ana Castillo mixes religion, super natural occurrences, sex, laughter and heartbreak in this novel. The novel is tragic, with no happy ending but at the same time funny and inspiring. It is full of the victory of the human spirit. The names of Sofi’s first three daughters denote the three major Christian ideals (Hope, Faith and Charity).
Elena Poniatowska escrita durante una epoca de cambio en Mexico. Antes de sus obras las mujeres mexicanas eran sometidos, docil, y pasivo. En la tiempo de sus obras las mujeres estaba tratando salir de los estereotipos de antes. Esta problema social tomo un afecto en Elena. Aunque ella no viene de un movimiento literatura directamente, ella escrita con el concepto de compremetido. En su narrative El Recado ella crea un mujer estereotipical que no puede controlar sus emociones. La titula es eso porque ella viene a ver su amante, pero el no esta, asi ella escribe las cosas que sentia. La perspectiva es de un personaje y ella nunca interacta con otros personajes. En facto la unica descripcion de un personaje otro de la protagonista es de su amante Martin. Habla de otros personajes, pero solamente de sus acciones. Porque ellas es la unica perspectiva que tenemos es sencillo a sentar compasion para una protagonista de quien nombre no aun sabemos. Ella da la descripcion de toda que vea, y mas importante todo que se sienta. Tambien tropos y figuras retoricas dan un tono significante al poema. Estos sentimientos de la portagonista y el tono emocional de la narrativa transporta una tema de una mujer estereotipical y debil quien quiere ser reconocido.
To understand fully the implicit meaning and cultural challenges the film presents, a general knowledge of the film’s contents must be presented. The protagonist, Tita, suffers from typical Hispanic cultural oppression. The family rule, a common rule in this culture, was that the youngest daughter is to remain unwed for the duration of her mother’s life, and remain home to care for her. Mama Elena offers her daughter, Tita’s older sister Rosaura, to wed a man named Pedro, who is unknowingly in mutual love with Tita. Tita is forced to bake the cake for the wedding, which contains many tears that she cried during the process. Tita’s bitter tears cause all the wedding guests to become ill after consuming the cake, and Tita discovers she can influence others through her cooking. Throughout the film, Tita’s cooking plays an important role in all the events that transpire.
In “The Fortune Teller,” a strange letter trembles the heart of the story’s protagonist, Camillo as he to understand the tone and meaning. The author, Joaquim Maria Machado de Assis, attempts to make the reader believe that the letter is very ambiguous. This devious letter is a symbol of Camillo’s inability to realize that the treacherous deeds he has committed in the dark have finally come to light. This letter will ultimately change his life forever something he never expected. Not thinking of the large multitude of possible adverse outcomes, he reads the letter. Frightened that he has ruined what should have never been started, he broods over his decision to love a married woman. In light of this, Camillo continues his dubious love affair with his best friend’s wife, unconvinced that he will ever get caught. “The Fortune Teller” focuses on an intimate affair between three people that ends in death due to a letter, and Camillo will not understand what the true consequences that the letter entails until he is face to face with his best friend, Villela.
Intertwined in allusions to women of Mexican history and folklore, making it clear that women across the centuries have suffered the same alienation and victimization, Cisneros presents a woman who struggles to prevail over romantic notions of domestic bliss by leaving her husband. In the story Woman Hollering Creek, Sandra Cisneros discusses the issues of living life as a married woman through a character named Cleófilas; a character who is married to a man who abuses her physically and mentally. Cisneros reveals the way the culture puts a difference between a male and a female, men above women. In Woman Hollering Creek, we see a young Mexican woman, who suddenly moves across the border and gets married. The protagonist, Cleófilas’ character is based on a family of a six brothers and a dad and without a mom, and the story reveals around her inner feelings and secrets.
Short stories have particular settings to supplement their themes. The eerie catacombs during a carnival in “The Cask of Amontillado” supplement the themes of revenge, and deception, which the protagonist takes responsibility in; whereas in “Hills Like White Elephants”, the atmosphere around the Spanish train station emphasizes the themes of miscommunication between characters and their evasion of responsibilities.
Hemingway presents takes the several literary styles to present this short story. Hemingway’s use of Foreshadowing, Pathos, Imagery and Personification allows the reader to enter the true context of the frustration and struggle that the couples face. Although written in the 1920’s it the presents a modern day conflict of communication that millions of couples face. At first glance the beautiful landscape of the Barcelonian hillside in which Jig refers to frequently throughout the text appears to have taken the form of White Elephants. The Americans’ response to Jigs’ observation was less than enthusiastic as he provides a brief comment and continues on with his cerveza. This was but the first of the many verbal jousts to come between Jig and the American. The metaphorical inferences in those verbal confrontations slowly uncover the couple’s dilemma and why they may be on the waiting for the train to Madrid.
Family is one of the most important institutions in society. Family influences different aspects of a person’s life, such as their religion, values, morals and behavior. Unfortunately, problems may arise when an individual’s belief system or behavior does not coincide with that of family standards. Consequently, individuals may be forced to repress their emotions or avoid acting in ways that that are not acceptable to the family. In the novel The Rain God, written by Arturo Islas, we are presented with a story about a matriarchal family that deals with various conflicts. One major internal conflict is repression. Throughout the novel the characters act in strange ways and many of the family members have internal “monsters” that represent the past that they are repressing. In his article, “The Historical Imagination in Arturo Islas’s The Rain God and Migrant Souls”, Antonio C. Marquez’s implicitly asserts a true idea that The Rain God is a story about repression. Marquez’s idea can be supported from an analysis of secondary sources and a reading of the primary text.
Early in the film , a psychologist is called in to treat the troubled child :and she calmed the mother with a statement to the effect that, “ These things come and go but they are unexplainable”. This juncture of the film is a starting point for one of the central themes of the film which is : how a fragile family unit is besieged by unusual forces both natural and supernatural which breaks and possesses and unites with the morally challenged father while the mother and the child through their innocence, love, and honesty triumph over these forces.
In the short story “Eveline “ by James Joyce, Eveline, the protagonist is given the opportunity to escape from her hard unendurable life at home and live a life of true happiness at Buenos Ayres with Frank, her lover. Throughout the story, Eveline is faced with a few good memories of her past from her childhood and her mother, but she also faces the horrible flashbacks of her mother’s illness and her father’s violence. In the end, she does not leave with Frank, Eveline’s indecisiveness and the burden of her family’s duties makes her stay.
The writer introduces a widow known as Paolo Saverini, her son Antoine Saverini, and his dog Semillante. They live in a small town called Bonifacio located in France. Paolo’s son was murdered in the town by Nicolas Ravolati, the body was then taken to the widow’s house. While grieving his death, she swore to avenge her son’s death by any means necessary. She then executes her plan by training the dog to kill her son’s murderer.
Jose Neil C. Garcia’s The Conversion is a poem narrating the experience of a boy, who feels the opposite, as his family oblige him to quit the thought of being a girl. The poem shows how he pushed aside what he truly feels so that his father would stop harming him.