Mirar Morir: La Noche De Iguala

Through the voice of Palo Alto, a mesquite tree, Elena Zamora O’Shea relates the story of one Spanish-Mexican family’s history, spanning over two hundred years, in South Texas, the area encompassing between the Nueces and the Rio Grande. As the narration of the Garcia’s family history progresses through the different generations, becoming more Mexican-American, or Tejano, peoples and things indigenous gradually grow faint. In her account of South Texas history, Elena devalues the importance and impact of Indians, placing a greater precedence on the Spanish settlers.

In La Mentira chapter 1, Demetrio returned home to Mexico and discovered that his brother Ricardo suicide himself. He finds a letter from a mysterious woman detailing how she never loved Ricardo and that she is getting married to someone else, how she aborted their child and how she spent all his money and realizes that she was the cause of his death.

In many schools throughout the country, there are populations of students that have been pushed to the side, with their education thought of as just their specialized teachers’ responsibility. While this situation is changing for some students, such as those with disabilities and students who are lucky enough to have dual language immersion programs in their school, many students who are learning English are still struggling to access the same curriculum that everyone else in the school has a chance to learn. Guadalupe Valdés (2001) looked at the English as a Second Language (ESL) program at a school which she called Garden Middle School. Although Valdés completed this study over fifteen years ago, the experience that her focal students had

Mariachi is a lot more than just a band playing; it's a tradition that has been in Mexico for almost two centuries and is enriched with a huge history and deep meaning to for the Mexican culture. Mariachi music started in the nineteen century as a way for the common people of Mexico to find a way to express their ideas and feelings in which their ideas later become lyrics and their feelings become music. Mariachi music as we know it today results from the confluence of several different influences. It originated in the Mexican state of Jalisco, in the town of Cocula, in the 19th century. It was a way in which people were able to say what they were feeling in a new and unique way. From the music and lyrics to the dress attire and

Dedé Mirabal was the sister who survived and persevered through constant grief and loss. She felt forced to fake a smile and pretend that her life was perfect. On page 65 it states, “I’m my own person. I’m tired of being the daughter of a legend,” (Alvarez.) Most of her life she was overlooked because of the death of her sisters, but she was a hero too. Despite the marvelous life’s that her sisters lived , she was forced to live most of her life without them. Dedé is a symbol of the one who was left behind. Her sisters’ left her to live in their legacy. She had a lot to live up to, but managed to rise above and make a name for herself.

Few historical figures from the period of colonial Mexico tower as high as Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz. Sor Juana was a criolla woman who lived from 1651 to 1695. She was born as an illegitimate child but was eventually taken in by the Mexican viceroy’s family. A voracious reader as a child, Sor Juana tirelessly pursued an educating herself. As a young woman, she chose to enter into the cloister so that she could avoid marriage and thus devote herself to her scholarship. She became a prominent writer and her works were widely read in both New Spain and Spain. However, in 1990 she published one of her most famous works: “Reply to Sor Philothea”. This critique of a sermon written by a prominent member of the Church proclaimed the ability of women to participate in intellectual pursuits. Facing intensifying pressure from the Church, Sor Juana publically renounced her work before her death in 1965. Sor Juana’s story was shaped by the societal rules governing gender, race, and class during Mexico’s colonial period and, despite the effort of many to consign her voice to oblivion, she holds tremendous influence upon modern Mexican culture and feminist thought.

"La Malinche." Slave, interpreter, secretary, mistress, mother of the first "Mexican." her very name still stirs up controversy. Many Mexicans continue to revile the woman called Doña Marina by the Spaniards and La Malinche by the Aztecs, labeling her a traitor and harlot for her role as the alter-ego of Cortes as he conquered Mexico.

The above image is a painting by Antonio Ruiz and is called “El sueño de la Malinche” meaning “The Dream of Malinche”. It depicts a Mexican town within the Aztec Empire, that is built upon a resting woman named Malinche. The image depicts the woman sleeping with the the Mexican city lying on her, therefore with one toss or turn being catastrophic to the city, and is further depicted to have lightning striking her head, which means to further risk the Mexican City being destroyed by Malinche’s action.

In this extraordinary novel , you are taken on the journey of the Mirabal sisters during Trujillo's reign. First you are introduced to Dede the only surviving sister. She is having flashbacks to when her sisters lived, while doing an interview. The interview starts off telling about the girls early years. When Minerva convinces her Papa to send them away for school she meets Sinita. Minerva shares her beliefs and knowledge of Trujillo and how she is sure he was responsible for the death of her family. When Minerva and and her friends are asked to perform a play for Trujillo himself they quickly accept. When performing Sinita pulls a fatal stunt, she tries to attack Trujillo with a bow and arrow. Minerva had to quickly pull the play back

Halfway down the long hotel vestibule, he thought that probably hewas going to be late, and hurried on into the street to get out hismotorcycle from the corner where the next-door superintendent let himkeep it. On the jewelry store at the corner he read that it was ten to nine;he had time to spare. The sun filtered through the tall downtown buildings,and he--because for himself, for just going along thinking, he did not havea name-he swung onto the machine, savoring the idea of the ride. Themotor whirred between his legs, and a cool wind whipped his pantslegs.

The Cantigas de Santa Maria is one of the largest collections of monophonic songs from the Middle Ages and is branded by the mention of the Virgin Mary in all 427 songs. The Cantigas are written in Galician-Portuguese, a poetic language in Castile at the time. The musical forms within the Cantigas, are still being studied. There is a plethora of variations, but no musical forms have been considered standard.

In the essay “The Myth of a Latin Woman: I Just Met a Girl Named Maria” written by Judith Ortiz Cofer, she talks about her struggles growing up as a Latina. She tells multiple stories of experiences she has had with being stereotyped as a Hispanic woman. Judith does a good job describing her situations and emphasizing the problem with the way society treats these women.

The Mexican Revolution was a period in Mexico’s history that sought to overthrow one of the most long standing tyrannical presidents, Porfirio Diaz, and to do so rebel alliances were formed to fight for economic and social reforms of the middle class. Among the celebrated men of the Revolution who fought for or against the cause are Emiliano Zapata, Pancho Villa, Francisco Madero, Victoriano Huerta, Venustiano Carranza and Alvaro Obregon. Unfortunately, However, The Mexican Revolution is a series of battles often eclipsed by The American or French Revolution. Few, can recall the purpose or the names and roles of the men who contributed to the Mexican Revolution and fewer still can recall the influence female had. These women are known as Soldaderas, who served in military positions during a time of chaos from commanding officers to combatants.

"The Cask of Amontillado", by Edgar Allen Poe, is the best short story because the setting, style and syntax of language, and point of view from which the story is told allows the reader to understand some of the complexities of character and motives of the protagonist. In this story, Montresor, a member of the French aristocracy and the protagonist, seeks revenge on Fortunato, a Nuevo riche member of French nobility, because of an unnamed insult. Montresor leads Fortunato into his family's catacombs, chains him to a wall, and encases him in brick, leaving him to die. This story is told from the point of view of Montresor and as a confession as he remembers the details of his vengeance. Poe deliberately chooses his setting as a symbolic metaphor of the protagonist and his actions. The style of the first-person point of view narration further illustrates the complexity of Montresor's character. All of these elements combine to reveal a highly complex protagonist with a motive that is much deeper in meaning than what appears on the surface.

“Allá Ajuera” is a dramatic poem that shows the exchange between a mother and a son. The son wants to play outside, but his mom is afraid for him. He does not understand why his mother is so against him going outside. He says to his mother “quiero vivir allá ajuera” showing that the child feels like he is not allowed to live freely if he is inside all of the time. His mother responds and tells him “no mijo, allá ajüera no no con los niños no con los del patrón.” It is safe to make the assumption that the boss is a white man and does not want her son to go outside and play where the boss’s children are playing in fear of the children causing problems and her son being blamed and her having to face any consequences. To avoid this, she does not want her son to play outside. The son wants to be a child and be happy, but his mother wants to shield him from the harsh reality that the world that he lived in did not want him to be happy. The son questions his mother and asks her “Father Josue says God loves us And he says we gonna be happy/When we die…tell me why we gotta wait Why we gotta die/To be happy.” His mother responds “así lo quiso diocito, mijo.” The son is innocent and naive and does not know why he cannot be like the other children and have fun playing outside. The only explanation the mother is able to offer to him is that this is the way God intended it to be and there is nothing that can be done to change the circumstances. Lastly, after the mother has made her