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Cycle Of Poverty In Guillermo Lavin's Reaching The Shore

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Cycle of Poverty in Lavin’s “Reaching the Shore” In Guillermo Lavin’s “Reaching the Shore” contains imagery of Maquiladoras, parental role model, machismo, and addiction. “Reaching the Shore” is about the Mexican culture and economic structure. Through these topics, I believe the idea of Mexican culture and economic structure are expressed. Jose Paul admires his father and wants to be just like him. I believe that as a young boy growing up you look up to your father as that male role model you'd like to be when you're an adult. Jose Paul’s father works at the Maquiladoras and is addicted to pleasure chips. As a parent, you want your child to have a better life than you've had and for them to be happy and successful. If Jose Paul follows …show more content…

Maquiladoras are 100 percent foreign-owned (mostly US). Companies can import components duty-free, use low-cost labor for assembly, and then export finished products to the US, paying minimal duties”0. Maquiladoras may help the Mexican economy as well as supply a surplus of jobs but there’s also a downside. They pay their employees very little while the employees work long hours while performing rigorous task throughout the day. Branigin state's, “In the maquiladoras, Mexican workers typically earn in a day what U.S. workers make in an hour. The maquiladoras have succeeded in holding wages down to about $1.25 an hour, which is still about 20 percent above the Mexican minimum wage”c01. The workers are being paid below that minimum wage, this is allowed because the maquiladoras are foreign owned companies. The Mexican workers know they're being underpaid but they have no other option but to accept it because finding jobs are very difficult. Drucker writes, “Practically all new jobs created in Mexico in the past decade are in maquiladoras; they now employ almost 500,000. Maquiladoras account for four-fifths of the country's manufactured exports and for two-fifths of its total exports to its biggest customer, the U.S. They provide the bulk of Mexico's foreign-exchange earnings” A20. Although the employees are being underpaid the Maquiladoras provide jobs to many Mexicans. Without …show more content…

Jose Paul wanted a bike for Christmas and knew that it was too expensive for his father to buy him. One of Jose Paul’s father’s co-workers made a comment regarding Jose wanting a new bike and said, “The old man heard the child’s words and responded to himself, “it's expensive, but your father's addiction is more expensive still”226. Jose paul soon understands that his father isn't capable of buying the bike due to his father's addiction. Jose thought his father wasn't going to be capable of buying the bike because his father had other responsibilities to take care of that were more important than the bike. Lavin state's, “By the time he’d picked up the old bicycle, he’d already made decision; he was sure that the only way to get the new bicycle was to do it himself’ 232. His father’s addiction made Jose incapable of relying on his father to get him the bike. Jose Paul’s father understands that his addiction is a problem and that it’s intervening with his life in a negative way. Jose Paul’s father admits his fault and says, “The union already said that they can’t help me … that I accepted the risks, that they’re had no prior case of the pleasure chip causing addiction,” his voice wove in sadness with hatred and seemed to dilute in the salt water of tears. “In the end, my weakness got the best of me”230. He understands that his addiction is ruining his life. His addiction

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