John Goodman Witnesses

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In Rolando’s novel, Rites and Witnesses, there are many intriguing characters that are very complex despite the dialogical writing style used. Although there are only conversations and recorded testimonies, these characters reveal a lot about themselves through their words. One of the most notable witnesses is John F. Goodman. John Goodman is a unique character in how not only is he calmer and rational while presenting his views, but gives more detail about racial tensions through the stories he unveils about Klail City’s hate crimes. At the very beginning of his narrative John announces that he is seventy-four years old, which happens to make him the oldest person in witnesses section of the novel. His elder status is even portrayed through his storytelling, which happens to be quite repetitive in the first paragraph. This gives the impression that he is having trouble remembering as he keeps revisiting the fact that he had known George (Choche) Markham for many years. …show more content…

Army veteran and having witnessed and participated in much violence, John Goodman is actually a very peaceful man. Unlike many of the other witnesses who immediately begin listing the many reasons why they dislike Mexican people, John never mentions them as a problem. Other witnesses make it a point to curse and express their rage through profanity, but John uses a tone that is a lot less aggressive. During his discussion, he makes it a point to bring up the fact that he is married to a Mexican woman and even learned some Spanish during his time in Texas, which is proven throughout his narrative. At several points during his testimony, he adds words like “montón”, “camada”, “concuños”, and “bulto.” This can be seen as a major contrast in comparison to Rebecca Ruth Verser, who claimed that she hated Spanish language and wished that it would only be spoken in Mexico. With this, it can be assumed that John is more accepting to the Mexican culture than other people in the

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