In How the Garcia Girls Lost Their Accents, the characters are caught between their native homelands the Dominican Republic culture and their new found country the United States culture which is not the only factors in this novel. Yolanda, a character in the story the third child, encounters sexuality and freedom vs. religious beliefs raised as a Catholic no premarital sex. She also faces prejudice against their race, language barriers and in earlier years adjusting to a different economic status. It places her between the issues of understanding the English language and unwilling to commit to a sexual relationship with her boyfriend in college during the sixties social, sexual revelation. Although these conflict of Catholicism, heritage, and
In Julia Alvarez’s bildungsroman novel How the Garcia Girls Lost Their Accents, the concept of American assimilation is vigorously examined. The story highlights the experiences of an immigrant family, who move to the United States. Sofia, the youngest of four daughters finds it extremely challenging to balance out “fitting in” in an american setting, and meeting the expectations of her strict dominican parents. Sofia consistently finds herself struggling to not stick out of a crowd, while still upholding the virtues her parents have instilled her. The difficulties encountered by Sofia are due to her parents putting tremendous amounts of pressure onto her shoulders.
For as long as people can remember, the stereotype that men have “more power” than women in a relationship has been a relevant argument. In the novel How the García Girls Lost Their Accents the Author, Julia Alvarez, writes about four girls and part of that revolves around their relationships with men. In all of their relationships with men, he has the power in the relationship which means he makes the decisions for them. When they lived in the United States the girls and their mother had more say in the society. When they lived in the Dominican Republic men just saw them as submissive housewives who bear their children.
Lee 1 Breann Lee Period 3 22 September 2014 Compare and Contrast Paper The books “How the Garcia Girls Lost Their Accents”, by Julia Alvarez and “Speak” by Laurie Halse Anderson are very similar novels. The main characters share similar experiences growing up in their New York setting that shapes them throughout the book. Both Melinda and Yolanda feel like outcasts because of their low self-esteem and their problems communicating. In “Speak” on Melinda's first day of school Anderson writes “I am clanless…I have entered high school with the wrong hair, the wrong clothes, and definitely the wrong attitude.
Oftentimes, societal problems span across space and time. This is certainly evident in Julia Alvarez’s How the García Girls Lost Their Accents a novel in which women are treated peripherally in two starkly different societies. Contextually, the Dominican Republic and the United States are very dissimilar countries in terms of culture, economic development, and governmental structure which all contribute to the manner in which each society treats women. The García girls’ movement between countries helps display these distinctions. Ultimately, women are marginalized in both Dominican and American societies where they are treated as inferior and discriminated against as a result of factors including gender, race, culture, and social class.
For immigrants, it is hard to be accepted in America, in this case, "Latino/ Hispanic" immigrants. Not only do they have to face the struggle of living in America but face all the cultural aspect as well. In The Garcia Girls lost Their Accents Julia Alvarez shows many adversities in forms of literary devices. Immigrants go through many hardships such as dual identity, gender inequality, and cultural expectation.
They way a person reads is greatly influenced by their personal background; their story, their culture, anything that led them to who they are today. When reading How the Garcia Girls Lost Their Accents written by Dominican-American Julia Alvarez, many controversial points are brought up that can be interpreted in many different ways depending on who is reading. In many scenarios, it’s the matter of where the reader comes from, in this case the Dominican Republic, or the United States. By having written from both Dominican and American perspectives, Alvarez teaches how a character’s sexuality or sexual tendencies can be perceived differently depending on the reader's personal background.
In Julia Alvarez’s book, How the Garcia Girl Lost Their Accents, the best literary theory to analyze the book with is Formalism, specifically looking at the recurrence of Yolonda feeling as if they don't belong, to demonstrate the greater immigrant experience during the time period. After Yolonda has lived in the United States for a while, she heads off on her own to college. She notices how her peers act differently than her, “...I cursed my immigrant origins. If only I too had been born in Connecticut or Virginia, I too would understand the jokes everyone was making in the last two digits of the year, 1969. I too would be having sex and smoking dope; I too would have suntanned parents who took me skiing in Colorado over Christmas break, and
Blanca Quinteros Ms. A. Aramillo English IV Honors 29 October 2015 How The Garcia Girls Lost Their Accent The transition the girls made from Dominican Republic to the United States was imbued with struggles – cultural, linguistic, and gender-related. In the 1960s American women were limited in various ways, including family roles and equality in the workplace. The way gender roles were set retained them from expanding their abilities in their homes and jobs. Women had one path to follow: marriage at their early 20s, and subsequent servitude to their husbands and/or children. A feminist movement in the 1960s to 1970s focused on breaking down the gender inequality.
One of the two books I read over the summer is How the Garcia Girls Lost Their Accents, by Julia Alvarez. This story took place in the late 1960s in the Dominican Republic. The four sisters Carla, Yolanda, Sandra, and Sofia learn to adjust in their new surroundings in New York after their family was forced to leave the Dominican Republic due to their father’s dilemma with the government. Throughout the book, the four sisters told stories that were very memorable to them. The second book that I read was October Sky, by Homer Hickam.
Sex. A very risque topic that comes up thousands of times in everyone’s life, even though it’s uncomfortable. Kids learn at a young age what sex is in school through health, even if it scars kids for the rest of their life, seeing they haven’t fully matured. In Julia Alvarez’s book, “How the Garcia Girls Lost Their Accent”, she teaches the reader that sex is treated differently in different cultures. This book highlights the fact that in the United States sex is viewed as an activity for pleasure, where The Dominican Republic treats sex as something more sacred, and something you wait for.
The immigrants entering the United States throughout its history have always had a profound effect on American culture. However, the identity of immigrant groups has been fundamentally challenged and shaped as they attempt to integrate into U.S. society. The influx of Mexicans into the United States has become a controversial political issue that necessitates a comprehensive understanding of their cultural themes and sense of identity. The film Mi Familia (or My Family) covers the journey and experiences of one Mexican-American (or “Chicano”) family from Mexico as they start a new life in the United States. Throughout the course of the film, the same essential conflicts and themes that epitomize Chicano identity in other works of literature
The novel I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter by Erika L. Sánchez portrays a stark contrast between the personality of the protagonist, Julia, and the cultural expectations imposed upon her as a Mexican-American woman. I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter is a semi-autobiographical novel, drawing from author Erika L. Sánchez's own experiences growing up as a Mexican-American woman in Chicago. The novel tackles a variety of complex themes, including mental illness, family dynamics, and the immigrant experience in America. In the beginning of the story Julia’s sister Olga gets in a accedent with a truck and is run over. Julia’s mom thought of Olga as a perfect daughter and after Olga’s passing, Julias mom is constantly comparing Julia to Olga in every aspect of life.
In many occasions the confusion of maintaining two cultures can lead into distress. Robert C. Smith has studied that children of immigrant parents, specifically Mexican-Americans in New York City in the book, Mexican New York: Transitional Lives of New immigrants where he studies the social troubles Mexican-American children face living in New York and having immigrant parents. Smith speaks about the struggles that Mexican American children go through as they live in New York and trying to fit in the city’s environment as well as keeping the Mexican culture at home. When raising these children, Smith showed the struggle Mexican immigrant parents undergo raising in a place that is not Mexico. Wanting what is best for their children, while maintaining culture at home, these parents determine three possible paths their children can possibly take to better their lives.
A common lifelong struggle of humanity is finding oneself as well as one’s place in society. People struggle to define their identities on a global, local and personal level. For instance, a Mexican family is trying to create a living in America, while struggling for acceptance. As a member of the family, a young girl questions the true meaning of home. As she grows, she dreams of what the perfect home will be and also learns how to fight for her rights as a Chicana woman.
