Post #2

 Summary: Pg. 42- 82

Even though Richard didn't speak a lot of English, he was determined to become successful. Supported and influenced by the nuns, Richard became interested in reading. He wanted to learn to speak proper English, different from what his mom and dad spoke. He liked to read a lot. Sometimes the members of his family would find him in the closet reading a book. He was amazed by how much information and knowledge the books held and he wouldn’t understand it when his mom would ask him what was so special about the books. Sometimes he would feel embarrassed from the way his mother and his father spoke to the teacher whenever they would ask about Richard. When it was time for him to go to college, Richard wanted to move away from his home and live on campus. His mother and father wouldn’t agree with him. Money wasn’t the only reason they didn’t want Richard to leave. They didn’t want their family to grow apart. Every time Richard went home, he felt more and more distant from his family. He remembered the old days when they all would sit in the dinner table and talk. Now it seemed like they had nothing to say. His mom would ask him about the awards he had won proudly but after a while silence would take over. “Nothing is said of the silence that comes to separate the boy from his parents” (Rodriguez 72). When he heard two Spanish academics speaking to each other, he realized how far away had he moved from his past. He wanted to get part of it back and to feel less alone. But he found really little of it in his memories.

Quote:

“He sits on the seminar room- a man with brown skin, the son of a working-class Mexican immigrant parents. (Addressing the professor at the head of the table, his voice catches nervousness.) There is no trace of his parents’ accent in his speech. Instead he approximates the accents of teachers and classmates.” (Rodriguez 70)

Reflection:

Richard has come a long way, from the little boy who didn’t speak English to this grown successful man with no trace of Spanish accent. He has become someone really different from what he was before. From that innocent little boy, proud of his family and his Mexican origin, to this man who is very distant from his family. The guy who feels the need to correct his mother and father when they don’t use the right words to express their feelings. The guy that wished his parents knew more and were better educated.