Summary Of Isla By Virgil Alvarez

In “Isla” by Virgil Suárez the author uses imagery and descriptive phrases to paint a picture of the pain an immigrant experiences in a world, described as an island, where they are unwanted and unwelcome (Kirszner & Mandell, 2012, p.679). The author’s use of descriptive phrases allows me to see the world as through the eyes of the young boy and I can see reality as the young boy believes it to be (JOLLIMORE, 2009). Just as the monster Godzilla would rise up against those determined to suppress his existence, an immigrant must rise up against oppression in an environment where he was not wanted (Kirszner & Mandell, 2012, p.679). Being an immigrant is likened to being on an island exiled away from all that is acceptable. “Isla” or island is

It is the country of origin that distinguishes the individual in such a deep and personal way from being accepted in the world. The island is symbolic, just as the boy is an island, isolated from societal acceptances that he wants so desperately, yet the monster of discrimination keeps him at a distance and forbids acceptance. Looking at a globe Cuba appears as an alligator or reptile just as Godzilla is a reptile. The young boy easily makes the collation between the images of a reptile that will consume or destroy all with which it comes in contact and the symbolic alligator in the ocean that destroys the hopes and dreams of an individual. While the young boy has left the island behind, the association renders him isolated just as if he is on an island. The boy wants to holler and curse in resistance of the discrimination, yet his origin would never leave him and would always be a factor regardless of where he lands in the world, since no one wants him to be there. While the mother wants to distinguish the difference in the island and the boy compared to Godzilla and the island of Cuba, even to a 12 year old boy the similarities are