The Devil's Highway by Luis Alberto Urrea is a great piece of work when it comes to looking into the border and immigration issues. When reading the book I saw something more then just a Physical border. I saw Borders and Boundaries that are formed by this Mexican and American Border. I noticed that language, and class are boundaries and with borders I found that Nationality is a big one.
Language is a really big issue, not just in the book but nowadays as well. I see language as a boundary that limits us from being able to interact with one another. In Urrea's book the border patrol officers usually can't communicate well with the Immigrants. This one reason, leads to the mistreatment of immigrants. In other words not being able to speak or communicate causes separation. My family is a great example of this; at their jobs they only speak to Spanish speaking people (Mostly Mexicans). And when they try to interact with English speakers its usually hard to get a point across. So they usually try to avoid one another.
Class is another boundary that leads us to separation. It develops preconceived ideas of one another, examples are most immigrants (people of color) are poor, us Mexicans have the idea that most Americans are rich and snobby. These ideas of one another cause problems because we are not considering each other equal. Urrea speaks of Class throughout most of the book by talking, and going more depth on the immigrants lives. Most immigrants are poor and have little to nothing to their names. And it's usually the poor people that get signaled as bad people, while the rich are considered good.
Nationally sticks out like a sore thumb in this book. For immigrants its usually the back bone of why they migrate to other places. Where I'm from, we are given so little opportunity to prosper. People in my hometown struggle everyday to get food on the table for their families. Just because of these reasons and many more it led to the migrating of my family to the United States. Even though most immigrants don't want leave their towns, they are forced to go in the end just like Ann said in class. I find it very true coming from an Immigrant family.
Separation occurs when people don't actually take the time to understand where these immigrants are coming from. Most people think that "WE" are criminals and what not. But they never take the time to understand or learn more about the reasons of immigrating. Understanding the nationality of people, should lead to a better connection with one another. This is the challenge that separates us from them.
This Novel did a wonderful job talking about the reasons of immigrating and I think that it will definitely serve as bridge between the United States and Mexico. Even though we don't speak the same language nor do we come from the same Class at times. It all comes down to understanding and developing dialogue between each other.
Once a Language boundary is relinquished it will help shape how we look at each other from a point of view. We will start to look at each other as equals not just Mexicans (poor) and Americans (rich), but just Normal people!
I really enjoyed reading your blog post. Your personal experiences and connections between both the US and Mexico only strengthen your arguments.
ReplyDeleteI remember watching a "Ted Talk" video (educational/informative video) about an African-American woman talking about how stereotyping is such a terrible thing. Like you mentioned, we often see a person (like a Mexican or American) and think we know who they are and what they are going through. It's so hard not to stereotype people though!--It's our natural response.
I especially appreciated your last sentence: "We will start to look at each other as equals, not just as Mexicans (poor) and Americans (rich), but just normal people!"
I agree with you that language is a huge border between people – no matter how much they may want to relate to each other, it is impossible if they cannot understand each other’s words. I appreciate your inclusion of your own personal anecdote with this section! It is really helpful to have multiple perspectives on topics, especially within our own classroom setting. When you talk about the language boundary being relinquished, would you see that happening in a setting where everyone speaks the same universal language, or learning to speak multiple languages? I think the distinction is important and could change the issue greatly.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you! When dealing with borders, bridges, and boundaries concerning the law, you're bound to find something! It's very interesting to see you relate this to your family and yourself. I can only imagine what a language barrier would be like. It's a primary source of communication, and in this book, it plays an interesting role. And with language, comes nationality and cultural traits. You picked two great topics to talk about because they both go hand in hand. Good job!
ReplyDeleteYour combination of personal experience along with your analysis of the borders of language, nationality, and class is powerful.Your post raises some questions for further discussion: why do the poor get signaled as bad, and who has the power to create that signal? In your conclusion you suggest that we relinquish the language boundary. How do we do that? I'd love to see a few more specific examples from the book to illustrate how Urrea reveals these borders in his work. The Devil's Highway is not a novel, however--it's a work of creative nonfiction. This means that the book is true, although it reads somewhat like a novel. Your paper could benefit from some proofreading and attention to mechanical issues.
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