Tag Archives: week11

11/25/21

fitting a circle into a square

For this week’s blog post I wanted to dive a little bit deeper into Luiselli’s progressive, specific naming the numbers of the questions throughout the text. In our small group, we discussed how this worked to highlight the bureaucratic handling of something that does not fit neatly into the bureaucratic “mould.”

Numbers are potentially the most logical,  systematic way of ordering anything. Throughout the essay Luiselli demonstrates how the US immigration system attempts to squeeze these children’s unique and individualized stories into the confines of logical, ordered and systematic numerical lists.

By specifically referring to the numbered questions at different points throughout the essay, Luiselli reminds us as readers of the futility – ridiculousness – of trying to mould the children’s subjective stories to these highly objective criteria.

At the same time, in a more formal way, the numbers act as little “touchpoints” throughout the story to keep the reader grounded in the story. They move the narrative along, which is especially important because Luiselli jumps between different temporal spaces throughout (between her attempts to get her green card, her road trip, her job as a translator).

Interestingly, I noticed that the “Coda – Eight Brief Postscripta” is organized numerically, even though each “subject” doesn’t fit into a particular “category.” I’m not sure what to make of this, as Luiselli has critiqued the system of numbers throughout the essay, and yet organizes her ideas in this way at the end of the text. I’m not criticizing her for doing so, and perhaps it means nothing – but it just sparked a thought.

11/23/21

ALIENS ON ALIENS CRIME?

When I read this book, I felt as if I had a review, like general culture, something you hear on the radio or see on the news, something that is not normal, but you are used to it. I can’t imagine what a foreigner might think or feel as they read through the violence surrounding the country. As a Mexican woman, things like la Bestia, Los Zetas, Enrique Peña, and “Build the Wall” are familiar terms. So much so that we even make jokes about them (SARCASM).

One of the facts that I didn’t know and impressed me the most is that the children who identify as Mexican do not go through a degrading immigrant process in the United States. Moreover, they could be deported without a second thought.
Almost as if they meant… Oh, you are Mexican? No worries, we don’t have time. We know about all the violence you experienced, but you literally have no chance of getting a permit even if you are MORE discriminated against or harmed in this country. Go behind the line again, Go start over, Go on  keep suffering behind it. That exact same line they drew when they stole more than half of the Mexican territory.

In 1848, the United States “took” more than half of Mexico’s territory. Through the so-called Treaty of Guadalupe-Hidalgo, the current states of California, Nevada, Utah, New Mexico, and Texas, as well as parts of Arizona, Colorado, Wyoming, Kansas, and Oklahoma, all of which today belong to the United States, belonged to Mexico until the signing of the Treaty of Guadalupe-Hidalgo. And, what I find most ironic is how they call the Mexicans “aliens,” the ones they deport from their supposed country. By what right do they have the power to return these aliens to Mexico when they were the first aliens who invaded the territory.

11/19/21

Assimilating new perspectives

Rejection of one’s culture is not unusual for families who immigrate to new countries, especially to the United States. It’s a consistent theme with people who are raised or spend their developing years in the US, where many times their perceptions of their own people start to change based on their new perception of what is “cool” and “trendy”.

This is seen in Diaz’s “Fiesta, 1980” where Yunior describes his mom’s “cheap ass jewelry which on her didn’t look too lousy” (24). Later on, his Tia’s furniture is named a “Contemporary Dominican Tacky” (32). The teenager’s narrative voice expresses his feelings without any censorship. He is sarcastic and includes curse words which indicate a casual voice very common for most kids growing up in the United States, where the use of slang is sprinkled throughout his narration. There is also a sense of superiority on his part, where his opinions about these two women being stuck with old styles that are unfit for the new culture seem to be very prevalent in his mind.

This rejection of cultural tastes creates a separation between the assimilated youth and older members of the family. Whether it is because of monetary confinement or simply a different taste, these women’s taste is probably scrutinized not only by their own family member, but by society as well. Yunior’s perspective was probably adopted in New York when he saw what others wore and heard people’s comments about them too. . The mother’s demonstrated rejection throughout the story also demonstrates how difficult it is for her to change her opinion about her new home.

11/19/21

Coping with Abuse

In “Fiesta, 1980”, Junot Díaz highlights the same dynamics we saw in the previous unit⁠: the power that a man holds in a patriarchal society and the violence that can stem from his effort to maintain this power⁠—and by extension, prove his masculinity. Though Ramón’s abuse is not directly present within the story, the characters’ range of reactions (not only to his anger, but also their hesitancy to disturb his happiness) conveys the severity of its effect on their family as a whole.

Yunior seems to bear the brunt of the abuse—as he puts it, “It was like [his] God-given duty to piss [his father] off” (26)—yet he craves Ramón’s affection and does not confront him about the abuse or the affair. Yunior also often comes into conflict with Rafa, who has begun to mimic some of their father’s violent behaviour but still avoids his wrath. Even their sister, no more than a few years old, has learned to fear her father’s anger⁠: “Madai was too scared to open her eyes… Anytime Papi raised his voice her lip would start trembling” (26)⁠. Interestingly, though, she seems to be the only character whose relationship with Ramón is somewhat positive, as we see when they search for coins in the car. Finally, the mother is the most worn down by the abuse: she tries to protect her children, attempting to de-escalate the situation when Ramón begins to yell and consoling them afterwards, but there is only so much she can do without challenging him directly.

Though each person has their own way of coping with Ramón’s abuse, they surrender to it in order to preserve their family⁠; however broken it may be, they are very few people they can rely on in this new environment, away from the home they are used to.

11/19/21

In Sickness and in Health

Junot Díaz’s “Fiesta, 1989,” depicts the physical manifestations of the family’s relationship to the father. Not only does the father literally starve his son before they depart anywhere in the van, he also metaphorically starves his family of love and affection. Starving is symbolic of the father’s distance from his family in addition to his abuse and extramarital affair. The irony is that he’s traditionally patriarchal and demands respect, but in turn cheats on his wife and sets a bad example for his children, which may end up contributing to generational trauma. Consequently, Yunior’s disapproval of his father’s actions are manifested into him vomiting whenever he gets into the van. The father’s van was “bought to impress” most likely his mistress (p. 27). Because the father is almost more attached to his vehicle than any of his relationships, Yunior’s vomiting is a symbol of his longing for a good father and a healthy family dynamic. Due to the power imbalance, Yunior or his brother are unable to explicitly make known their disapproval out of fear of retaliation from their father. Alternatively, Yunior may have kept quiet because he didn’t want to see his parents split up, even if it is for the best, which is often what children don’t understand. Regardless of his reasoning for keeping quiet, we know that as a child he cannot speak up, so the only way Yunior is actually able to express himself if through vomiting, particularly in his father’s precious car.

11/18/21

Sense and Space of Confusion

Throughout “The Parade Ends,” by Reinaldo Arenas, space is depicted in an atypical way, as it is developed through the senses rather than typical visual descriptors. This development creates a skewed and confused sense of space. I think the best example can be seen when the narrator is taken to jail. As he enters the jail, he describes, “the circular cave that endlessly oozes bugs, mold, urine, those fumes, those fumes accumulating, overflowing excrement, and that din, the constant shouting of the prisoners, that beating on the bunks and walls” (108). Typically, the visual description would be described to set the scene for all of the other senses to contextualize themselves in; however, Arenas does not do this, rather he places the other senses above sight. By doing so, the reader is drawn towards the emotional side of the scene, rather than the visual. This can be better seen at the beginning of the story when the narrator is attempting to escape a crowd to follow the her. He describes the journey through the people, “that want, like me, to walk around, change places, turn, and that only cause contractions, wiggling, stretching, convulsions” (99). The reader feels the entrapment, so rather than understanding how large the crowd is, the reader understands the feeling instead. We feel the trap; we cant rationalize the narrator out of the situation, we can only be stuck in the trapped space that the narrator is in. As someone who is very visual, I struggled to understand how the scenes were changing throughout the story, yet I was still able to follow the emotions and the atmosphere of these skewed places. Overall, by not relying on visual cues to develop space, Arenas creates an ambiguous sense of space for the reader, which in turn intensifies the emotion and atmosphere of the story.

11/18/21

Fathers and Daughters

In Díaz’s story, we see the effects of masculinity and sexuality on the childhood of our narrator Yunior. Yunior’s papi, Rámon, showcases an interesting stereotype among some men. There is a commonality among some men to create a standardized sort of dealing with women, where all women are objects, or subjects of desire, and therefore deserve to be treated poorly, or just treated as less. A sort of contradiction to this behaviour, is exemplified in these men’s actions towards their daughters. There is a common practice amongst fathers to treat their daughters with care and protect them, yet treat other women differently. This is exemplified in Rámon’s treatment of his wife, his mistress, and his countering treatment of his daughter. He shows care for his daughter when he collects the coins from the toll booth for the amusement of Madai (page 28). This is one of the only moments we see him act in a non violent way.

Ultimately Rámon’s actions towards his daughter work to end the violence against women, but his treatment of his sons works to enforce it. In his blatant expression of infidelity which he readily shares with his sons, Rámon sets an example for a patriarchal expression of relationships for his sons. These actions are further highlighted in his violence towards his children, in which he hits his sons, Yunior especially. In this we see him pass along his negative identity to his sons, yet refrains from giving it to his daughter. In these separate treatments, there is much to be understood in regards to men’s own realization of the discrimination against women to desire to protect their daughters from the same thing, yet not to stop such destructive actions in themselves or other men.

11/18/21

The Party is Over

While “Fiesta 1980” is a story about a family party, there seems to be a large emphasis and focus on Yunior’s carsickness problem, leading me to consider the potential messages Junot Diaz is trying to get across. 

His vomiting problem is a major source of conflict and abuse. Yunior alludes to the root of this new problem being his new environment since he ‘was famous for his steel-lined stomach” that only a “third-world childhood could give you” (pg 29). In this case, it seems that his vomiting problem is perhaps a manifestation of the anxiety that immigrating to a new country triggers, especially since it is triggered only when he is in the car after he has eaten. The implication here may be that Yunior is struggling to assimilate into his new country since American food is unsettling for him. It may also be that the movement of the car is enough to trigger the feelings of turmoil and chaos that immigrating may have initially caused resulting in a physical anxiety response. In this case, perhaps Diaz is trying to emphasize the way that immigration can be distressing for a child and the difficulty of assimilation into a completely different society. 

Another approach to understanding this habit of Yunior is to view it as an invitation for his father to take care of him. It is clearly evident that his father is a violent and threatening man who does not offer any paternal love or support. Yunior craves time and care from his Papi and has learned that his carsickness is the only way he can achieve it. He describes his car trips with Papi as something he looks forward to and that “when we were alone he treated much better like maybe I was his son or something” (pg 35). While Yunior understands that his father is a dangerous and scary man, he still desires his attention, and the only way he knows how to get this is by physically demanding it. This makes me consider that Diaz is offering a critique of patriarchal dominance by showcasing the manipulation men are capable of; Yunior both hates and craves his father’s attention. 

11/18/21

The Parade and the End

The reader of “The Parade Ends” by Reinaldo Arenas must relinquish their need for linear storytelling in order to progress through the story. The story fundamentally operates on a different epistemology of time — time does not progress linearly forward; instead, it oscillates forward and backwards triggered by motifs. Arenas writes that “I was, again, like so many years ago already, at the extreme where life is not so much as a useless and humiliating repetition, but only the incessant memory of that repetition” (Arenas 99-100). Arenas summarizes the structure of his story within this explanation. The story is not about the banal repetition of life; instead, it’s one step removed from life, it is only the memory of life. Thus, time does not need to function linearly, or perhaps, time can no longer function linearly. Tormented by the fragmented memory of his past, Arenas can no longer stay in the present. 

“The Parade Ends” reminds me of Quentin’s internal monologues in The Sounds and the Fury by William Faulkner. Quentin’s monologues are devoid of all punctuation, and the reader floats ceaselessly tugged forwards and backwards by whatever memory Quentin happens upon. While Arenas does not deprive the reader of all punctuation, the prolonged sentences lull the reader through the mind of the narrator forwards and backwards without respite. In both cases, the narrators cannot reconcile with the linear time, and thus, their narrative cannot be constrained by the normal grammatical structure. The reader must adopt this epistemology of time as they progress through the stories in order to experience the story (rather than figure out the story).

11/16/21

The Prose Never Ends

Arenas story “The Parade Ends” feels like a novel crammed into a short story. The energy of the piece if turbulent and cascading – each moment pours into the next and the reader is never given a moment to grab onto anything. A quick glance at the work is enough to understand that it will either be extremely tense and chaotic, or very slow and thoughtful. Arenas manages an interesting combination of the two by writing in such a way that the reader must constantly move forward, but is still given the room to process and witness the events unfolding.

Usually, long sentences packed into tight paragraphs cause the reader to “fall” into the prose. There is little rhythm or pause given, and so the style emulates the chaotic rush of the story within. Rather than describing moments and given them time to deepen and flourish, Arenas piles them next to each other, and urges each moment forth. Interestingly, a story can achieve this quick movement in two quite contrasting ways. Short sentences and fluid paragraphs encourage the reader to shoot down the page. Usually, however, this is done when either a play by play action is being described, or events are unfolding terribly quickly. The alternative is to have a tight paragraph packed with long sentences. Though slower to skim and read, this tightness and lack of control emulates the actual event, as often when things feel quick and chaotic, one is bombarded with a bunch of stimulus and doesn’t have the space or momentum to process it all.

Arenas, however, uses this tight prose in an interesting way by having it cycle back to similar motifs and moments over and over. Though it is chaotic and fast, repeatedly seeing the crowd, the fence and so on allowed the reader to grasp the moments just as the character might have over the span of a few days. The first descriptions of the crowds feel confusing and garbled, but numerous revisits give them structure, and the reader is able to make sense of the chaos through the characters eyes. What was once a swarm becomes a backdrop to certain key elements. “You” becomes more and more honed in as it appears time and time again in different forms.

Ultimately, it is the writing style of this piece that stood out to me the most. The never ending prose made it hard to skim, yet at the same time it felt difficult not to simply lose the words in the crowd of sentences. By the end of the work, it felt like the narrators voice gave the reader a chance to breath even though the chaos was still present and the words just as tight. This had the effect of highlighting the importance of thought and voice – the earlier visuals of the work lent a hand to chaos and confusion, where the emergence of the narrator’s voice and clear purpose allowed the reader to empathize and become more present in the work.