1. In the introduction, Diaz uses relatively academic rhetoric sprinkled with slang and causal language (i.e:" No matter what its name or provenance, it believed that the arrival of the Europeans on Hispaniola unleashed the fuku on the world, and we've all been in the shit ever since" [1]). What effect, if any, does this rhetoric have on the reader? Does it enhance or hinder our understanding of the "fuku" Yunior is describing?
2. Why does Diaz decide to write extensive footnotes on certain terms and people, such as Trujillo (page 2) or "parigüayo" (pages 19-20) and omits to define others?
3. What effect does omitting quotation marks in the dialogue have on your understanding of the text? Why does Diaz choose to do so?
4. Why does Diaz choose to decide the first chapter into subcategories such as "Amor de pendejo" (36) and "The Moronic Inferno" (19)? Does it have an impact on our digestion of the chapter?
5. It's often emphasized that Oscar is the opposite of what a Dominican man should be: "he wasn't no home-run hitter or a fly bachatero, not a playboy with a million hots on his jock" (11). How is masculinity emphasized in Oscar's world? How does this idea of masculinity affect the way Oscar thinks of relationships? Consider Oscar's uncle and Oscar's relationship with Ana.
6. What do the characters of Olga and Martiza tells us of the role of women in this novel? Similarly, how does Oscar's sister, Lola, differ from the rest of the women introduced thus far?
7. What effect does Oscar visit to the Dominican Republic have on him? How does it relate to the idea that the Dominican republic and Northern Jersey are extensions of each other?
8. How does family help define Oscar? Throughout the text, the narrative is interlaced with interjections from Oscar's mother. What effect does this have on our understanding of character development thus far?
9. Oscar deals with a great deal of "othering" by family, friends, and foes alike. How does Oscar offer any parallels between other trans-nationalistic narratives we've discussed?
10. As we've been forewarned, this text is riddled with Dominican slang, specific fanboy terminology, and unfamiliar historical figures. Now that you've read the first chapter, was it difficult to follow the text or easier than you expected? Do you think Diaz intentionally tries to confuse the reader or educate them forcefully?
Diego Rivera, Pan-American Unity
Diego Rivera, Pan-American Unity
Alisa Oleneva wrote:
ReplyDelete1) The mix of slang and academic language sets the mood for the novel – the story is serious and noteworthy but personal and humorous at the same time. This is an effective way to communicate information: the reader is compelled by the authoritative but personable voice of the narrator (or, at least, I was). It also lends a globally superstitious vibe: according to the narrator, different nations and cultures have their own form of fuku due to the spread of the curse. The in/formal tone emphasizes the dual nature of fuku: it is personal and relatable, an accepted albeit feared part of culture, but at the same time it is other and foreign, disconnected from the familial and personal (“the arrival of Europeans on Hispaniola unleashed the fuku on the world”).
2) I think Diaz defines only the most distinct/important terms or phrases in the book. He gives a concise political history of the DR in order to ease the reader into the setting and provide a mood/backdrop for the story. By giving extensive footnotes on Trujillo, he emphasizes the dictator’s importance in the novel. There are a lot of things he doesn’t define (such as the frequent Spanish slang) and we are left to figure these out on our own. I think this is a good balance: it gives the novel a more “authentic” feel … and if he chose to define everything we would be bogged down with footnotes!
3) From what I understand, this is Diaz’s personal style (I’ve read Drown, which doesn’t utilize quotations either). I think his omission of quotation marks gives the book an informal, personal feel, which goes along with the “familiar” mood of the story. It feels more natural somehow, in a stream-of-consciousness kind of way.
4) The subtitles in the first chapter (and those to follow) “categorize” the characters’ lives into specific events. They give a preview of what is to come (ex. “Oscar in Love”). There is a sense that Oscar’s life is being chronicled and stored away for future reference, much like a history text.
5) Masculinity seems to be defined by a “tough-guy,” ladies’ man demeanor. Males are expected to be fit, athletic, muscular, aggressive, streetwise and – most importantly – promiscuous. Oscar, who is overweight, awkward, and nerdy, is the exact opposite of these standards. Thus, though he is a hopeless romantic, he is constantly pushed into the “friend zone” by all the girls he takes an interest in. This only intensifies Oscar’s anxiety and lowers his self-esteem. He is not considered a “true” Dominican (or even a “true” male) and is, in a sense, exiled from his own community due to his inability to fit in.
Alisa Oleneva wrote:
ReplyDelete5) Masculinity seems to be defined by a “tough-guy,” ladies’ man demeanor. Males are expected to be fit, athletic, muscular, aggressive, streetwise and – most importantly – promiscuous. Oscar, who is overweight, awkward, and nerdy, is the exact opposite of these standards. Thus, though he is a hopeless romantic, he is constantly pushed into the “friend zone” by all the girls he takes an interest in. This only intensifies Oscar’s anxiety and lowers his self-esteem. He is not considered a “true” Dominican (or even a “true” male) and is, in a sense, exiled from his own community due to his inability to fit in.
6) I get the sense that women are objectified – Oscar chooses Maritza over Olga precisely because of her good looks and obsesses over her even after she dumps him. On the other hand, Olga is quickly swept into the sidelines because of her poor appearance and eventual weight gain. There is an emphasis on appearance and sensuality above all else when it comes to women (this becomes more apparent later in the case of Oscar’s mother, whose good looks ruin her, and when it is made known that Trujillo specifically hounds beautiful young girls). While Maritza and Olga aren’t full-fledged characters and aren’t expanded beyond their outward appearances, Lola is significantly more complex. She is a rebel who defies the standards of beauty by chopping her hair and dressing like a goth despite the ridicule this draws (her own mother refers to her as “fea”). While the other female characters seem focused on male attention and – in Belicia’s case – are possessed by their own sexuality, Lola is strongly self-assured and seems to radiate a masculine, confident energy. She is sporty, tough, and for the most part uses men (instead of the other way around).
7) Away from the pressures of his domineering mother, Oscar is able to relax and even flourish (albeit timidly) in the DR. His grandmother leaves him to his own devices, and because of this no-stress environment Oscar is “almost sad” to return home. However, Oscar doesn’t change much or experience a different culture in the DR (partly, perhaps, because he spends the majority of the time indoors). This also might suggest that the DR and New Jersey are not very different from each other: the home environment, the language, and the culture are closely connected. Oscar’s family seems to have carried a little piece of the DR with them to Jersey when their immigrated to the United States; despite travelling to an entirely different country, Oscar does not experience a “culture shock” on his visit.
Alisa Oleneva wrote:
ReplyDelete8) Oscar seems to feel isolated from his family: though they mean well and obviously love him, their pressure only drives Oscar back into his shell. His mother wants the best for him but utilizes tough love (ex: by attempting to force him out of the house), which becomes ineffective due to Oscar’s introverted nature. His sister Lola is the only one Oscar can relate to; despite – or even because of – their differences (their status as the “black sheep” of the family), their sibling bond is particularly strong and they look out for one another.
9) Oscar is part of his own individual culture, so to speak. He is Dominican but does not fit into the standards of the culture, and neither is he entirely American (despite everything, he identifies himself as Dominican). Thus he seems to be caught between two worlds: he is neither here nor there, but a blend of both influences. In a trans-nationalistic sense, he is between borders, in no place but in every place.
10) I’ve read Diaz’s work before, so perhaps I was not perturbed by the slang and pop-culture references because I am used to his writing style. Nevertheless, since I know next to nothing about the history of the DR, I was initially a little confused by the historical context (although the footnotes did help to set the scene). I loved the LotR and various fanboy references, particularly because they add a quirky edge to the story and punctuate Oscar’s (or even the narrator’s) nerdiness. I don’t think Diaz intended to confuse or intimidate the reader – I like the idea of “forceful education.” He plunges us into the story and forces us to understand and mingle with the characters. Over time the Spanish slang becomes less noticeable, and at times I was able to grasp the general meaning of Spanish terms without the help of a translator.
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ReplyDelete4. By dividing the first chapter into subcategories, it eases the readers into the story and makes the text easier to digest. The subcategories are comparable to anecdotes, and are likely to be preferred over text-heavy chapters. Additionally, these subtitles resemble the titles of television episodes, thereby enabling the short plot to be captured in a fragmented sentence. However, not all the chapters of the book contain these subcategories. Instead, these chapters present breaks within the pages. This allows the audience to absorb the material with less effort, yet not as efficiently as when the chapter uses subcategories. Overall, these techniques benefit the audience because when novels have lengthy chapters, this diminishes their interest due to an overwhelming feeling that the story will never end.
ReplyDelete5. After Oscar’s “golden age” passes, his luck rapidly decreases and he is frequently characterized as the polar opposite of what would be deemed as the proper Dominican man. During his youth, Oscar “grew fatter and fatter” and “couldn’t make friends for the life of him, too dorky, too shy” (Díaz 16, 17). However, his miserable adolescence was made worse by the fact that he was a Dominican male who was unable to meet the expectations of this role. Some of these expectations, which Oscar did not possess, included being appealing towards women, playing sports skillfully, and being talented in music, business, and dance.
Oscar put a lot of importance on his relationship with Ana. One could surmise that this was connected to the assumption that a Dominican man should be a ladies’ man. When his sister Lola asked if he had had sex with Ana on their date, Oscar replied with shame “I do not move so precipitously….in other words, I didn’t even get her scarf off” (Díaz 39). Lola was unsure whether Oscar was lying, and she commented, “I know you Dominican men” (Díaz 40). This shows the pressure Oscar dealt with in trying to live up to the Dominican idea of masculinity.
Furthermore, Ana continuously resumed her relationship with her on-again-and-off again boyfriend, Manny. Manny was described as physically abusive towards Ana, and Ana told Oscar she had “forgotten how big Manny’s cock was” (Díaz 42). Ana’s choice of Manny over Oscar, who had “no game,” shows that this society prefers the more aggressive and macho man.
Additionally, Oscar’s uncle, Tío Rudolfo, promoted masculinity. Tío Rudolfo encouraged Oscar to use women as sexual objects by “grab[ing] a muchacha, y metéselo” as it “will take care of everything” (Díaz 24). Clearly, Oscar’s uncle rejected the idea of relationships.
Aleksey writes:
ReplyDelete10 - It was easy to follow the text due to the detailed way that it is written. I don't believe that it would be difficult to read due to the slang because the way that the text is written, the slang is used more as an opinion description. You don't need to understand the slang in order to understand what the author is trying to say. In this sense i also believe that Diaz tries to educate those who read the text and are curious as to the references/ slang. The footnotes help, but they aren't really necessary.
1 & 10) I found the mixture of academic language and slang both refreshing and a little amusing. It kind of reminded me of how my sisters talk to each other. The language that the narrator employs doesn't necessarily hinder my understanding, and I think that the slang adds "oomph," or a little something extra, to what would otherwise be a less interesting narration. I’m not sure what the author’s intentions were when he riddled the text with “fanboy terminology and unfamiliar historical figures,” but after reading over many of the footnotes, I got the distinct impression that I was sitting in a history class, taking notes on all the things that the textbooks neglected to tell me about U.S relations when I was in high school. Already familiar with many of the fanboy terms I didn’t have too much trouble with the reading and whenever I did come across something I hadn’t heard about, I knew it was simply one of Oscar’s numerous sci-fi/fantasy interests.
ReplyDelete5) My understanding of how masculinity is emphasized in the novel has something to do with “Machismo,” which is characterized by an exaggerated sense of what it means to be a man. In Oscar’s world they are supposed to be brave, with domineering personalities. Chastity is also looked down upon because in Oscar’s world, a man is not a virgin. This can be seen when Oscar’s uncle gives him condoms and tells him to use them when he’s in college. “Use them all, he said, and then added: On girls.” As for Oscar’s relationship with Anna, it is implied that Oscar didn’t act quick enough to secure her as a girlfriend and since he didn’t make any advances, (what men in his life are supposed to do) they swiftly fell into the “just friends” category. When he finally gathered the courage to admit his feelings, it was too late and Ana had a boyfriend, who appeared to exemplify a personality along the lines of machismo.
Cindi Widerker wrote:
ReplyDelete5. Masculinity materializes into a number of different forms in this novel. Being able to pick up girls is a huge part of displaying one's machismo, which makes it all the more difficult when Oscar can't land himself a girl because it calls his sexual orientation--and his manhood by extension--into question. His uncle gives him a package of condoms before he goes off to college with the advice of "use them all" and then adding "on girls" (49). Oscar's failure to be able to get a date and/or get laid is emphasized throughout the novel, especially when Yunior is narrating. Masculinity also plays out whenever Oscar finds a girl companion who has a boyfriend. When the boyfriend returns from wherever he had been while Oscar was befriending the girl, Oscar is in deep trouble. Masculinity means being very protective over your women and trying to intimidate any guy that comes near her--even an obese nerd like Oscar. This is what ultimately ends his life. In the United States, there was only so much of a threat that Ana's boyfriend could pose to Oscar since Oscar had more protection under the law. In the Dominican Republic, however, Oscar is fair game and ultimately killed as an expression of masculinity by a macho officer protecting his woman.