Week Fifteen

"O aprendes a querer la espina o no aceptes rosas" (Fuiste Tú, Ricardo Arjona)

I have a confession:

I don't know any Spanish. Listening to these Latin American songs was hard, because I only could read the translations. Even the best translations lose the original depth and meaning of words. So I think that this particular line talks about accepting roses, thorns and all. At least, that's how I'm going to interpret it.

 This whole song is about a broken relationship, so, the rose in this situation is the relationship. At least for a while, it's beautiful and sweet and enjoyable. But, despite all that, there are going to be bad parts- the thorns. Whether it's fighting or distrust or jealousy or anything else that can plague a relationship, something else is going on other than happiness. This creates an interesting paradox in my mind. When something is beautiful, I think of it as completely and totally beautiful. If The Mona Lisa was smudged, it wouldn't be as lovely as it is. But nothing about a thorn is beautiful. So how can the rose be lovely despite these thorns? Taking it back to Arjona's song, how can a relationship be beautiful or good if bad parts of it exist? I'm not sure that I can successfully give an answer to this question, but I can think of a song that addresses this issue.

 

It comes back to what we've said all semester: it's complicated. Why are the good and beautful things in life mixed with the bad and ugly things? Well, there must be opposition in all things. As much as I would love to have no sorrow, no pain, no suffering, I know that feeling these things enables me to feel happiness, joy, and all sorts of wonderful feelings. So, is it hard to accept a rose, thorns and all? Of course it is. But is it worth it?

Always.    

 

Week Fourteen

"But I think diseases have no eyes. They pick with a dizzy finger anyone, just anyone." (The House on Mango Street, Sandra Cisneros, 59)

The House on Mango Street pulled on my heartstrings from page one. And it never let up. Page after page, my heart ached for Esperanza and her situation. That's why I chose this quote to discuss this week. In my interpretation of this text, I feel that "diseases" can be replaced with "trials." Surely Esperanza knows what it's like to face trials that were not of her own choosing. And why does she have to face these trials, such as living in a house she hates, being surrounded by people who she can't help or change, and being abused by those she thought she could trust?

Because trials have no eyes. Sometimes our trials come from poor choices we make. But most times, they come unexpectedly and unwelcome. A family from my ward back home just lost their father and their brother in an airplane accident. Why does this family have to go through that trial? It's not because of something they did or didn't do. It's just part of the human experience. As hard as it is to think about, trials are for our good. Without these experiences, we would not have a chance to grow and become refined. 

Check out this video. Your trials might not be the same, but I'm going to assume that you can relate in some way to this situation.

I honestly have no idea what it's like to be an immigrant or part of that kind of community, like in The House on Mango Street. I don't know what trials people like Esperanza have to go through on a daily basis. But I have trials of my own- and you have trials of your own- and we're all just trying to get through it together. Maybe the really hard trial you're having right now will one day help you to relate to someone better in the future.

We just have to trust the Lord. He knows what He's doing.

Week Thirteen

Making choices is hard. When Professor Mack said that we could choose our favorite work to write about this week, I honestly froze up a bit. It's not that I don't have favorite things. For example, my favorite color is blue. My favorite book series OF ALL TIME is Harry Potter. My favorite food is pizza. But what is my favorite work/text/film from this class?

That's a tough choice. From Diego Rivera's murals to Bless Me, Ultima, the works we've looked at in this class have all been fantastic. But because I have to choose, I would say I particularly enjoyed Black Orpheus.

To me, this movie is a Gesamtkunstwerk. The cinematography is beautiful. Unlike the flat, insubstantial movies we have today, each angle meant something. The lighting meant something. The staging meant something. For example, at the end of the film, Orpfeu falls off the cliff and lands with arms outstretched as if he were hanging on a cross. We talked about this symbolism in class, and it is a very significant aspect of the film. 

 Another reason I think this film is a total work of art is because of its reference to ancient myth. The story of Orpheus and Eurydice comes from Greek mythology. The integration of a modern, Latin American theme with a Greek myth is very well done. This use of mythology helps me to connect better with other Latin American works. In my mind, Latin America art and literature and film seems so different than Western art and literature and film. The origins of Latin America are so different than the origins of my own country, that sometimes it's hard for me to relate to these works. But this film helped to realize that, although our cultures are very different, we often draw from the same sources. 

I guess what impacted me the most about this film is that it shows that, at the end of the day, we're all human. Despite cultural differences, we are all still human.    

Week Twelve

"'Is that how long eternity is?' Agnes asked bravely. 'Is that how long the souls have to burn?'

'No,' Father Byrnes said softly, and we looked to him for help, but instead he finished by saying, 'when the little bird has moved that mountain of sand across the ocean, that is only the first day of eternity!'"(Bless Me, Ultima, Rudolfo Anaya, 202.)

The context of this quote is that the Priest is trying to explain eternal suffering in Purgatory to Antonio and his friends. He uses the analogy of a small bird moving a mountain of sand, one piece at a time. Although it is a fitting analogy, the Priest is using scare tactics to frighten the children from making mistakes that could lead them to Purgatory.

How else do people use scare tactics to promote reform? 

Politicians are notorious for using intimidation to dissuade people from following their opponents. More often than not, a political ad is usually composed of misrepresentations. For example, this attack ad about women's rights sheds a frightfully bad light on President Obama. Although there is truth in this video, there is also more there that is not being acknowledged.

For the Catholics in Bless Me, Ultima, God seems to be like a politician in this regard. God is not merciful. He is not kind. He is not gracious. He punishes those that need to be punished. His purpose is to be intimidating to keep His people righteous. He makes it clear that, if you choose to follow his opponent, you'll end up suffering in Purgatory for eternity. And quite frankly, this scare tactic is effective. Fear is a great motivator.

Although the Priest has good intentions- he wants the children to stay righteous- creating fear is not always helpful.

But there is hope. For the people in Bless Me, Ultima, this hope comes from Mary. She is the merciful protector that will ultimately prevent us from suffering. This would also be like the kind politician that simply states his agenda and moves on without attacking his opponents. (Okay, there aren't actually any American politicians like that. Let's pretend.)

Ultimately, we just have to remember to hope.

Week Eleven

"'You are to bring honor to your family,' my mother cautioned. 'Do nothing that will bring disrespect on our good name.'" (Bless Me, Ultima, Rudolfo Anaya, 53)

Why are names so important? I have theories, but I don't feel they adequately delve into the subject. However, for the sake of this post, my main theory is simply this:

Names create a sense of individual identity. Within a group, they create a sense of unity.

This is a crucial component of Bless Me, Ultima. Although I have only read a portion of the novel, it's clear that the Márez and Luna families place much emphasis on their name. This is something we discussed in class. But I want to take it a step further.

Why do we need a name to identify who we are?
Antonio is not simply Antonio. He is Antonio Juan Márez y Luna. He has his father's name and his mother's name. He is identified as an individual (Antonio) but within an established group- in his case, two established groups. He is a culmination of everyone that has come before. Expectations, behaviors, everything is based off of who preceded him in his family.

 We are a product of what has come before. Whether or not we were raised by biological parents, aunts, uncles, adoptive parents, whoever, the idea is the same.

We were raised by someone who was raised by someone else, who was raised by someone else, who was raised by someone else. I could go on, but you get the point.

Our names connect us to the chain. Maybe they aren't actually important when it really comes down to it. But the symbolism of a name, that identifiable, connecting component, is important.

Does this make sense?

Week Ten

"He stopped before the canopy adorned with his coat of arms. Two crowned lions upheld a shield displaying a crowned phoenix, with a device reading I rise from my ashes." (The Kingdom of This World, Alejo Carpentier, 140)

This is concept art of Fawkes the phoenix from Harry Potter. Since reading those books, I have been intrigued by the phoenix. Although I know it's a mythical creature, I find the concept of rebirth comforting. 

In my last post, I referenced the passage from The Kingdom of This World where Macandal is tossed into the fire. Although his followers believed that he escaped the fire by turning into another creature- in a sense, rising from the ashes- the reality is something quite different. Macandal's experience is not like our own though. We get tossed into fires on a frequent basis. These fires may come in the form of school, work, family issues, relationship problems, illness, and anything else that causes us stress. But unlike Macandal, we can actually rise from the ashes of these fires. 

We go through trials and tests that sometimes seem too hard to bear. Even small trials can be difficult to get through. Like the phoenix, though, we can get roughed up from these trials to the point that we figuratively burst into flames. We yell at our roommates because we are so tired of them not washing the dishes. Or we get so mad about a failed test that we can't forgive ourselves for not studying harder or paying more attention in class. Or we break down because we just can't fight with a friend anymore.

But then, after our moment (or moments) of weakness in whatever form it takes, we rise from the ashes. We find that we've grown and that we are stronger than before. It wasn't easy, but nothing in life is. 

I would say that this is a subtle, but recurring, theme in The Kingdom of This World.

Do you have any experiences where you've had the chance to rise from the ashes?

Week Nine

"Pandemonium followed. The guards fell with rifle butts on the howling blacks, who now seemed to overflow the streets, climbing toward the windows. And the noise and screaming and uproar were such that very few saw that Macandal, held by ten soldiers, had been thrust head first into the fire, and that a flame fed by his burning hair had drowned his last cry.... That afternoon the slaves returned to their plantations laughing all the way. Macandal had kept his word, remaining in the Kingdom of This World." (The Kingdom of This World, Alejo Carpentier, 46)

 As I scanned my memory for a time I may have witnessed such chaos, I stumbled on an event that, even though I may want to forget, I never will:

September 11, 2001

 I was just a kid when I saw the attacks unfold on that somber morning. I didn't understand the magnitude of what was happening. But I remember the news coverage showing people running and screaming and crying. I was going to include a video of a news report from that morning, but it was just too much.

I would venture to say that you can remember this tragedy anyway. If not, there are videos on YouTube.

What interests me the most about 9/11 and the pandemonium that occurred around Macandal's death is how much our perception can be skewed, our memories can falter. Or, in other cases, we may completely ignore reality. I think of all the conspiracy theories revolving around the terrorist attacks. The slaves that followed Macandal were entirely convinced that he made an escape. They were completely unaware that he was burned in the fire.

What do we overlook while we're amongst the pandemonium?

We are rarely in such devastating and chaotic situations. But our lives are busy. The pandemonium of daily life can consume us, and, if we're not careful, we may miss what is really happening, good or bad. 

Next time you find yourself getting caught up in the maelstrom of life, take a step back and understand what is going on around you. Otherwise, you may miss something that you'll regret.