Hi everyone!

This week we read Money to Burn by Piglia. To start this book consistently reminded me of Mad Toy by Arlt that we read at the beginning of the term. It’s set in the same place, and the characters come from a similar  socioeconomic backgrounds. To be honest I think I enjoyed Mad Toy more than Money to Burn but that doesn’t really matter. This book discusses themes of money, power, poverty, friendship, crime and relationships.

Let’s begin with what I liked about the book. I liked the message that the gang was unintentionally and intentionally conveying through burning the money. Honestly, money is a social construct that we created (although it is sometimes needed) and it is sad to see majority human interaction ( eg. working or going to the grocery store) revolving around money. This is what helps capitalism continue to grow and the rich become richer. The gangs idea to burn the money, even if it was initially  a form of forensic counter measure, is basically them telling society and the rich to go screw themselves. In burning something that society is taught to place so much value on, they are breaking down societies fundamental ideas of what is acceptable. I can’t remember exactly where but kid is burning the money and he says ‘it would take a bank manager a month to earn this money’ or something like that. There unwillingness to obtain money legally, and their mocking  of people who earn money the proper way shows that they did not commit these crimes for money, but rather for pure evil and desire. They are outcasts in the sense that they do not attach the same positive value to money, and this is almost impossible for the authorities and public to comprehend, they rip the fabric of society while the public and authorities attempt to sew it back together. Society is coached to think, why would you burn something so precious? Overall, this message made me hate the characters a little less because I sympathize with them from this perspective.

The thing I absolutely HATED about this book was its portrayal of women. There’s almost no depth to them as characters and they seem to be there just to serve these criminals. It seemed as if every time they were referred to they were objectified and instead of their names they were referred to as whores or some other derogatory term and it got exhausting. I understand the time period of the novel but still.

Discussion Question: What are your thoughts on the symbolism associated with the burning of the money? How might it have changed your perception of the characters?

Thanks,

Nadia 🙂