The "Lamento Borincano" A sociological interpretation REFLECTION

This story exhibited a great deal of cultural intermixture as well as intermarriage, except for the few, white residents who dominated the political life of the island. Blacks, mulattos, and poor whites had no say in the government or church as members of the working classes and despised races, but they influenced the island's development in other ways. There is a long-standing myth that the white jibaros, these working class people, were the first 'pure' Puerto Ricans. However really if there were ever substantial numbers of white jibaros, their culture was a mix of slave and native cultures, not a direct descendent Hispanic or European culture. The fact remains first true Puerto Rican culture, regardless of the exact racial composition of the individual, was at least partially made up of the cultures of the enslaved, runaway, or formerly enslaved Africans who had been owned by early Spanish colonists."
In the reading that was assigned to me Luis Gonzalez describes the time he went to mexico for the first time more than 30 years ago and people knew very little about Puerto Rico. Gonzalez then goes on to talk about Rafael Hernandez;s wrting "lamento Boriqueno".
One of the main ideas in this writing is the potential to create a political art. This to me means either a movement or piece of writing tat can influence a nation. I never knew that there were so many writers that have influenced Puerto Rico. Whether it be Lola who influence the independence movement or Pachin. I also was fascinated by the references to Luis Marin Munoz and Jose de Diego because i drive by those streets every single day.

When Women Love Men by: Rosario Ferre Reflection

The story is about two , Isabel Luberza and Isabel la Negra. One is the wife of Ambrosio and the other a mistress who each inherit half of his estate. Ferré shows the fragility of upper class women, class and women’s exploitation and their response to it. The language used by the two women reflects respective realisations of the expectations of a woman. Sexually explicit language is used extensively in “When Women Love Men”. Isabel la Negra describes herself as “the Cunt of Chichamba, the sharpest-shooting whore in Barrio de la Cantera, the harlot of Cuatro Calles, the fuck of Singapur” . Ferré’s purpose is not just to be vulgar to entice readership, it serves the purpose of using stereotypes and insults against the men that employ them. Isabel de negra is sexually exploited by men, however, she converts the exploitation to independence by exploiting men’s carnal weakness. It is fear of loosing her that Ambrosio leaves her half his estate. With the estate she then moves up in the social ladder and owns a brothel, and now exploits men’s desires for the maintenance of her independence. The two women never faced each other but when Ambrosio dies it becomes inevitable to be in each others company. Isabel la Negra describes “this confusion between her and her, or between her and me, or between me and me, because as time passed, from loving her so much, it became more difficult for me to tell this story, it became harder to differentiate between the two”.
It seems that Ferré gives Isabel la Negra the initial realisation of the necessity of female solidarity and independence. This is due to the character being initially the stronger woman. Isabel la Negra, however, commits herself to the changing of men through her profession. Through her sexual encounters with them she seeks to show them the necessity of loving a woman not due solely to sex, and ornamental value but to love them as persons. She seeks to teach men “that the most macho man is not the one that allures the woman but who has the courage to let himself be allured” Ferre shows her strong feelings about a woman when she says

"A real woman is not a sack of flour that lets a man throw her on a bed, just as a real man is not a raping macho, but one that has the courage to let himself be raped.

This basically shows the importance of Women in society and love.

Through this story , Ferré develops a new personality of woman, one not bound by class and race but a mixture of all women and their respective struggle against a society that needs but does not appreciate them. I learned many woman virues and values, and also the strength of the inner woman to change the lives of individuals.

A Mongo Affair by: Miguel Algarin Reflection

Miguel Algarin's , A Mongo Affair attacks the misconceptions, and the American Dream inspired thoughts that some islanders may have life when they move to the United States from Puerto Rico. The Poem exhibits anger when recognizing and accepting the loss of "home". The Poem claims that Puerto Rican men in the United States are doing better than those on the Island. This in turn has sucked out the motivation a drive of the Puerto Rican man to strive to do the best he can. This is exemplified by a explicit metaphor related the unmotivated Puerto Rican man to a flaccid penis when Miguel says :
" Mongo mean Flojo
Mongo means Bloodless
Mongo means Soft
Mongo cannot penetrate
Mongo can only tease"
He develops a character that has a love/hate relationship when it comes to talking about the Island of Puerto Rico. Miguel also uses a type of Nuyorican language whihc is a mix between Ne Yorker and Puerto Rican. Ultimately Miguel calls himself a nomad in which he says he finds himself a foreinger everwhere he goes. If i had a chance I would love to see the play in New York on 'A mongo Affair" I believe it would be very insightful

I Became my own Path Julia de Burgos Reflection

Julia de Burgos was orn in 1917 in Carolina, Puerto Rico, she graduated from the University of Puerto Rico and later taught there. Too rebellious and too independent to accept the limitations of traditional women’s roles in Latino culture of time she made her own way to not accept the reality of the Woman be a lesser person. In her famous poem "I became my own path" she writes "I wanted to be like men wanted me to be". This basically shows the inferiority of the treatment of Women in the Puerto Rican culture back in the day. She goes on to say that it was like playing a game of hide and seek to find the real her. This poem was all about defining herself as an independent person, not to be gripped by the fear of man. I believe that Julia brought the aspect of women wanting to be free from the materialistic and overbearing society to light. This poem opened up my mind to the reality of a submissive women in the Puerto rican culture.

When I was Puerto Rican Photo Journal

These are just some of the mental images that came to my mind while reading the wonderful book , "When I was Puerto Rican" by : Esmeralda Santiago

The Youngest Doll reflection

The story was set in Puerto Rico in the era in which the old sugar cane aristocracy was giving way to the new industrial wealth, each class patriarchal in its own way, "The Youngest Doll" has a doctor-patient scene showing how social classes use their power and, in particular, how they use women as objects. Males with a prawn bite would probably have been cured, without even having to ask for cure; research studies would have been done, if necessary, to find cures. A woman was not treated, however, even when a cure was possible. The patient is reduced to a mere commodity and nothing else; the physician uses the aunt's treatment payments to fund his son's education.
This symbolism of woman as object is made particularly clear in the young doctor's using both his wife and her doll. But the aunt encourages her nieces' helplessness and even sacrifices her youngest niece in order to get even with the physicians, both of whom refuse to cure her. This story really hit home to me because I can relate it to the Caste system back home where I live in India. Women are looked at as people that stay home and do no work except watching the children. In this story we can really see the struggle of whether the physician wants to cure someone from the bottom of his heart or not.

The Challenge to Puerto Rican Identity reflection

Puerto Rican culture is somewhat complex, - others will call it colorful. Culture is a series of visual manifestations and interactions with the environment that make a region and/or a group of people different from the rest of the world. Puerto Rico, without a doubt has several unique characteristics that distinguish their culture from any other. The debate over how to refer to Spanish-speaking people in the U.S. is one that has contributed to the confusion of identifying members of this group. In the 1970s, U.S. government came up with “Hispanic” to resolve the problem. The term is still used today as an umbrella name that includes all Spanish-speaking people living in the United States. But some members of the Spanish-speaking community have continued to opt for an identity which is connected with other aspects of their lives such as their countries of origin, their culture and the race with which they affiliate. In this article it talks about how much U.S. influence has affected the identity of a traditional Puerto Rican. A concensus is that Puerto Rico has had more direct exposure to the United States than other Latin American countries have had.
Since 1898 Puerto Rico has had close to 80 years of cultural penetration by the United States. One interviewee even said that Puerto Rican's were never tied to material comforts, but rather human virtues. I believe that the media has a huge role to play in this. When I walk around here in Puerto Rico I see a need in the women here to dress up everywhere they go. This to me shows a materialistic point of view. I think the biggest assimilation of the United states culture is seen in music. Nowadays the music here in Puerto Rico focuses on the same aspects as the music in the States. "Sex, drugs, and Money". The reading also talked about cable television and Christmas celebrations being two of the main factors that are threatening the Puerto Rican culture. One thing I also agree upon in the reading is that it said there are a lot of spanish radio stations that play mostly American music . This has also affected the culture. This was a very interesting reading I enjoyed it very much.