Love is when one loves someone so much they will do almost anything for the person they love. The feeling that one is loved is a substance that no one can take away and love is an existence that can make one feel special. Maria feels she is too old to be going on family vacations and is sick of them, will she go with them on the trip and spend time with her family? Or will she tell her family, she sick of going and stay home while her family has a lot of fun? This is all from “Growing Up” written by Gary Soto. The overall idea is love, the opinion that one may have is that one should always have love for someone to be happy and the 3 literary elements that may support one’s topic and opinion is symbols, setting, and characterization.
First, symbols in “Growing Up” written by Gary Soto supports the theme that one shouldn’t take anger out on the people they love because something could happen at any time and they will regret what they said. The symbol “garden hose” shows that Maria is upset with her father for not wanting her to stay home. She takes anger out on her father, but she realizes after they leave there has been a horrible accident and so she starts to regret not saying goodbye to her father. She know longer knows if they are safe, so she starts to worry. Soto explains, “Reluctantly, she walked out in her robe to the front yard and, looking down at the ground, said goodbye to the garden hose at his feet.” The symbol “saving money” shows that Maria is growing up,