In an interview with Peter Segal, Junot Diaz says that his books are a shorthand for matters people need to talk about. This is noted within his book Drown. This story by Junot Diaz is a collection of short stories that deal with multiple different themes that play out through the interaction of all the different characters. It takes place in areas of the Dominican Republic, and, through the characters migration, the United States of America. In one of the short stories, “Fiesta 1980,” the narrator Yunior, his brother Rafa, and his mother, have already migrated to the United States of America from Santo Domingo for about three years to reunite with their father. Their father, Ramon, had already been in the USA, working to eventually bring …show more content…
When Ramon got home from work, “He just pushed past [his wife], held up his hand when she tried to talk to him and headed right into the shower” (Diaz, “Fiesta 1980” 23). Here the reader sees how Ramon is apathetic towards his wife. He does not regard her as an equal. The narrator says, “Mami didn’t think these excursions would cure anything, but the one time she had brought it up to Papi he had told her to shut up, what did she know about anything anyway?” (Diaz, “Fiesta 1980” 35). This reinforces the idea that he does not see her as an equal. He puts her down and does not believe she has any valid opinions. He is an assertive character that uses his masculinity to put down his wife. Ramon’s masculinity can be seen when he sees his brother in-law. Yunior says, “[Ramon] and Miguel gave each other the sort of handshakes that would have turned my fingers into Wonder bread” (Diaz, “Fiesta 1980” 31). It is as if their handshake is either a symbol of power, or strength, as if it were a broadcasting of their machismo. Ramon is asserting his masculinity. The reader sees how Ramon’s masculinity affects his wife when Yunior says, “[she] seemed anxious, in her usual dispassionate way. Her hands adjusted the buckle of her belt over and over again” (Diaz, “Fiesta 1980” 24). The mother is apprehensive unlike Ramon’s extremely firm personality. The mother is restless, which is seen as she repeatedly …show more content…
There is an obvious shift in the way the mother is shown here. The absence of the patriarchy in their life, allows the mother to become a personality. In Fiesta, she is perceived as a submissive character who does not seem to have a voice. However, in “Aguantando,” she becomes a voice because she is not living in oppression from the dominance of Ramon’s personality. This push against the patriarchy is seen as she puts in endless hours at the “Embajador Chocolate” factory (Diaz, “Aguantando” 71). Unlike “Fiesta 1980,” here the mother becomes the provider. There is also a shift in the way Yunior describes his mother in “Aguantando” than how he talks about her in “Fiesta.” Here he says that she is smart and funny (Diaz, “Aguantando” 73). Yet, In “Fiesta,” Ramon disregards her opinion because he believes she knows nothing, establishing the patriarchy and his wife's role. Without the presence of Ramon in “Aguantando”, Yunior believes otherwise. The mother’s character shines here rather than disappears with the apparent display of machismo. This is shows when Yunior says his mother has a sense of humor, while in “Fiesta” he says she barely smiles (Diaz 39). The absence of Ramons overshadowing masculinity, prevented his wife from being gripped into his