Book Of Unknown American Analysis
Cathy Do
Professor Wurzbacher
ENGL 2305
April 19, 2015
The Meaning of “Home” in Love Medicine and The Book of Unknown Americans Home is a word that has an emotional feel to it. Home can mean when we are talking about where we belong, a place be need, somewhere to feel safe, and someplace to be loved or to love. Some may say that home is wherever family is or where you loved ones are. Home can be seen as a physical location like the house you live in or general area you live in. Home can also be seen in the emotional aspect like somewhere you feel safe and belong or somewhere your loved ones are.
"Love Medicine" is a novel composed of many interrelated short stories. The characters live on a Chippewa reservation in North Dakota. The novel …show more content…
In The Book of Unknown Americans, the sense of home can be very complicated when they are away from the homeland home of theirs. In the sense of home the language, political aspect, and race relations create complications. Language is a barrier for the families because they are going around and not being able to speak freely with their native language and everybody around them understanding them constantly. For example, Alma went to the police station and they had to get an officer who spoke Spanish to help her. Also Alma informs us that she “pulled my dictionary from my purse to look up the words I wanted” (Henriquez 150). In other words Alma isn’t able to easily use words to tell what she wants to say. In the political aspect of the story Alma at first felt that American police was better than the police they had back home in Mexico. Alma described the police station in Mexico as “corrupt and oftem powerless” (Henriquez 147). With the way the situation at the police station had ended Alma’s state of mind about the police station in America may have changed. With race relations with each race is treated differently. For example, while driving Mayor’s mother was telling Mayor’s father to drive a certain speed limit but Mayor’s father is concerened about the police because “if you’re white, or maybe Oriental, they let you drive however you want. But if you’re not they …show more content…
To them home means that it is somewhere they can call their own or they can say that it is somewhere they fell safe and secure. For Adolfo he says that “people want to tell me to go home, I just turn to them and smile politely and say, I’m already there” (Henriquez 146). In other words with moving away form his home he still calls Deleware his home. For Alma whenever she’s with her husband or within the surrounding of what she remembers and loves in Mexico that is when she feels at home even though the surroundings isn’t the exact same as what they
Professor Wurzbacher
ENGL 2305
April 19, 2015
The Meaning of “Home” in Love Medicine and The Book of Unknown Americans Home is a word that has an emotional feel to it. Home can mean when we are talking about where we belong, a place be need, somewhere to feel safe, and someplace to be loved or to love. Some may say that home is wherever family is or where you loved ones are. Home can be seen as a physical location like the house you live in or general area you live in. Home can also be seen in the emotional aspect like somewhere you feel safe and belong or somewhere your loved ones are.
"Love Medicine" is a novel composed of many interrelated short stories. The characters live on a Chippewa reservation in North Dakota. The novel …show more content…
In The Book of Unknown Americans, the sense of home can be very complicated when they are away from the homeland home of theirs. In the sense of home the language, political aspect, and race relations create complications. Language is a barrier for the families because they are going around and not being able to speak freely with their native language and everybody around them understanding them constantly. For example, Alma went to the police station and they had to get an officer who spoke Spanish to help her. Also Alma informs us that she “pulled my dictionary from my purse to look up the words I wanted” (Henriquez 150). In other words Alma isn’t able to easily use words to tell what she wants to say. In the political aspect of the story Alma at first felt that American police was better than the police they had back home in Mexico. Alma described the police station in Mexico as “corrupt and oftem powerless” (Henriquez 147). With the way the situation at the police station had ended Alma’s state of mind about the police station in America may have changed. With race relations with each race is treated differently. For example, while driving Mayor’s mother was telling Mayor’s father to drive a certain speed limit but Mayor’s father is concerened about the police because “if you’re white, or maybe Oriental, they let you drive however you want. But if you’re not they …show more content…
To them home means that it is somewhere they can call their own or they can say that it is somewhere they fell safe and secure. For Adolfo he says that “people want to tell me to go home, I just turn to them and smile politely and say, I’m already there” (Henriquez 146). In other words with moving away form his home he still calls Deleware his home. For Alma whenever she’s with her husband or within the surrounding of what she remembers and loves in Mexico that is when she feels at home even though the surroundings isn’t the exact same as what they