How The Literal And Figurative Walls Symbolize In The Tortilla Curtain

Boundaries
In T.C. Boyle’s The Tortilla Curtain, it should be easily noted that each wall comes with a much deeper, metaphorical meaning. The literal and figurative boundaries in the story appear as symbols for what keep the characters in their own “worlds.” These boundaries symbolize the fear of outside forces which each character struggles to keep away from what they cherish the most. Although the boundaries in the story can both be real and imagined, each one of them can allude back to the main issue of the Mexican-American border.
The figurative walls in the novel are much harder to pin point than those that are literal. Candido’s father showed him that when he is “…lost or hungry or in danger, ponte pared, make like a wall” (Boyle

168). This advice shows the reader that not even in America, but wherever Candido is, the wall will affect his life completely. It protected Candido his whole life, and now he is using this wall to get through the tougher, higher boundaries of life. The lack of job opportunities can be seen as a barrier that the Rincons need to push through, in order to achieve the American Dream. Even when Candido or America get a job, it either does not last for long, or it does not pay enough for them to reach their goals. Throughout the book, there is an ongoing wall that separates the lives of the Rincons and the Mossbachers. This border keeps the characters in their own worlds and disallows them to interact with the other. The novel comes with a lot of in text barriers; however, if thought deeper, the text can be seen as a barrier itself. The book is written in two different point of views, separating their worlds until the end of the novel. Boyle’s goal here is to have the reader interpret that multiple cultures can collide for a common, and greater goal.
Literal boundaries maintain a frequent presence during the novel.

Two walls can be analogized to the illegal immigrants passing across any state or country border. The physical fence around the Mossbachers’ home is one of these. Although they buy a bigger, better fence, the “…coyote had somehow managed to get into the enclosure and seize one of the dogs…” (37) Throughout the book, Delaney and Kyra worry about these animals entering their yard. This just shows that no matter how big of a boundary you construct, the “coyotes” will always find a way around it. The Arroyo Blanco wall can also be compared to a state or country border. It separates the things that can come in, and the things that cannot. Since the residents want to be apart from the rest of the world, this can be seen as a metaphor of ignorance. “They were out here in the night, outside the walls, forced out of their shells, and there was nothing to restrain them” (289). The canyon walls can be seen as racial boundaries that disconnect the Rincons from the rest of the world. This boundary is very important because it reminds the Rincons of how far away they are from the American Dream. Towards the end of the novel, the Rincons and Delaney are all swept away by a “wall of water.” This wall has knocked down all other barriers throughout the book, and allow the characters to collide. Candido has a change of heart and “…when he saw the white face surge up out of the black swirl of the current and the white

hand grasping at the tiles, he reached down and took hold of it” (355).
All of the characters play a major part in keep the two worlds different. Take Kyra for instance, she has her mind set on getting a wall put around the Arroyo Blanco community. Although he dislikes the immigrants, Delaney is very much against the building of this wall. Candido and America help construct the barrier in the canyon. They have chosen to stay down, and hide away from all of the aspects of life. This boundary would not exist if they happen to earn enough money to get an apartment to live.
The Tortilla Curtain can best be seen as a two worlds trying to see each other over the many barriers around them. While the Mossbachers are trying to block themselves off from the rest of the world, and the Rincons are trying to jump into their world, they both try to achieve this while being ruled by the idea of the boundaries.