I found that Tell Me How It Ends is a text that makes parallels with another literary piece that we visited earlier in the term, And We Sold the Rain by Naranjo Carmen. For instance, both introduce a government that has failed to deliver sufficient provision to its residents, causing many to flee. I believe that both pieces call attention to the matter that a power will always step up when there is an opportunity to in their government. In Tell Me How it Ends, that power was gangs. While in And We Sold the Rain, a foreign government chooses to establish economic and financial power over Guatemala. Thus, we can compare the two literary pieces to establish a resemblance that appears in both parties. For example, when there is a vulnerability present with a country, both choose to enact and exploit these vulnerabilities for their own benefit. Regardless of the means through which they choose to enact their power, both, in the end, threaten the well being of the individuals in which they reign over. Hence, this reveals a commonality present in the structure and principles of both groups. Although the two parties (gangs and governments) are separated due to social status and practical procedure, it is possible that their essence is united in harmony. Could this be bought out in anyone when they are given a position of power? This is only limited to certain personalities or is it possible in anybody due to a weakness in human nature?
Hello 🙂
I found it interesting how you associated both stories with all the political aspects and how someone with power could do whatever they please. We can also relate this story to Grieving by Cristina Garza or even to the Puzzle of the Watch by MarÃa Elvira. Likewise, both come from México, portraying the horror of violence and femicide, the corruption, such as when the actual murderer of Rosa was a policeman or the profound relationship between the Mexican president and the government to drug cartels.
For example, Luiselli exposes that one of the main reasons these children cross the border is to escape Mexico’s high level of violence. At the same time, Elvira shows a low-income family that has no resources to hire a detective and that, in the end, they couldn’t do anything about it. As Luiselli explains the dangers that come with the path to the U.S., maybe 3,000 dollars is way too expensive but is a “maybe” ticket of escape, but when there is no way of paying, sadly, they have no other choice but to stay.
Hi Katherine, I really enjoyed your post, so I would like to try to answer your last question. I am a firm believer in the value of materialistic possessions; however, money and power must be separate in order to limit the influence money has over everyone. Therefore, I believe that in our current society, many people can be bought out with money, due to not human nature, but capitalistic culture. Yet, there are still those with strong moral beliefs who are less vulnerable to this influence because they believe in what is right to them.
This is a fantastic, thought-provoking comparison. Your observations about power vacuums and the entities that emerge to fill those vacuums are insightful. Really delighted with this post and the ensuing conversations, chic@s!