The Role Of Isolation In The Barbarian Nurseries

In the general novels, a theme is usually developed or repeated throughout the novel in order to emphasize a main idea relevantly, captivating readers the process of evolving the story and the plot. The significance of the theme invites the readers to think, consider, and wonder, which is presented with different forms throughout the novel. Hector Tobar evolves the theme of isolation and disconnection throughout the novel The Barbarian Nurseries, indicating the impact and the significance of crossing over the border between isolation and freedom which is thoroughly developed through the character of Araceli. Araceli isolates herself from the outside world frequently, withdrawing into her own world that she reserves the real self, which implies

She thinks again in a contemplative silence that “She could hear the air-conditioning turn off suddenly in the home next door, and then in another, leaving a disconcerting silence that soon took on an idiotic, satirical quality, as if she were standing not in a real neighborhood, but rather on a stage set crafted to represent vacant American suburbia” (Tobar 133), thus, the boundary she set for herself strengthens her solitude, which brings a great impact on her perspective of isolation. After finishing her work, Araceli goes into her room which is

The boxy uniform that renders her shapeless silhouette, “Araceli was standing with her arms folded across her chest, dressed from head to toe in a pink filipina, looking back at her jefa with bemused irritation” (Tobar 56), which remains her inscrutable and unknowable in the eyes of others. As the story keeps moving, Araceli wears the pink filipina when she takes care of the children in the park since the former nanny has left, “She wanted to feel something cold or warm, because in this uniform, in the amphitheater of this park, she felt like a stiff pink box and not like a human being”(Tobar 59), which illustrates the apparent effect on her disconnection of other objects in the park by this pink figure standing out among all the others, provoking her awareness of being isolated. She continuously wears it all the time, the matching pink pants and the blouse reminds her of the home countries that hardly anyone wears in California, which emphasizes her persistence of being isolated by wearing the traditional pink uniform, representing the significance of the border that separates the isolation and the