This depiction of the novel makes it feel like a living, breathing, standalone piece of existence that thrives independent of the author or reader and I find that both beautiful and awesome.

The description of elements through the use of other elements reminds me of circular thinking in philosophy like the Cartesian Circle and brings to light how intricate and complex some of these ideas are to describe and how their origins must have been a bit murky as they arose early on.

It's interesting that motif is mentioned since a very narrow scale is being discussed here, a mere page or sentence. I would love to see how a motif could be established in practice in such a short span.

It's really important to always remember that place is not merely a physical attribute.

Super cool concept.

I used to box time frame as it relates to specific eras, ex the 18th century, in the real world but doing this completely undermines the relevance of a time frame's other implications such as the type of developments we can expect across the book.This isn't even including how time can be warped in a piece of complete fiction and makes time a much more useful tool than I could have imagined before.

Good subconscious hook worthy of noting for future references.

I always thought about tone on smaller scales such as looking for it in mere sentences or paragraphs but thinking about tone as something that can be identified and further applied to any amount of text that follows, even to the length of a whole novel, as an overarching force is an insightful practice.

The approach of placing sentences or paragraphs under microscopes especially in a work as long as a novel sounds unintuitive but also extremely interesting.

This feels true for a lot of good essay writing too. For example a good thesis is s promise of what will be delivered and effective first sentences in paragraphs lay out expectations. This also falls under the "Known to New Contract" style of writing.

The fact she keeps throwing these numbers around brings attention that the availability in programs usually inversely realted with the demand for them.

This probably creates a bad association for the kids :((

The discomfort the author describes is extremely well written and comes across very strongly.

Really highlights the disparity in labor and academic opportunities in both countries along with the differences in social mobility opportunities.

The experience that she is talking about is sad enough on its own but doing so in solitude makes this very depressing.

I wonder how her communication at home evolved as this took place?

It's unfortunate that even words of support from any staff or peers could not make their way to her due to the same language barrier that caused her to feel this way.

It's interesting that the very words that came out of him would resonate with him and create an independent response. He thinks, therefore he writes, and sequentially thinks more.

It's interesting that these feelings lay within him, dormant in a sense, but had no way to surface until then.

Beautiful description of a life filled with turmoil and a lack of stability.

This is an interesting generational transition where labor and action reign king in older generations until education and academia usurp their position in modernity.

He really wasn't even a player in the whole ordeal, just a pawn.

The men who ended up in jail were well versed in the works of great authors which is a great subversion of expectations. It's also unfortunate that the group of men being targeted likely share a cultural identity just how they share their taste in poetry.

This is similar to Anzaldua saying that she didn't forsake her country but that her country forsook her. Here he didn't fail in the system, the system failed him.

The depiction of marriage as a form of servitude is an awful but unfortunately often true description.

Very intense depiction of a desire for full freedom.

It's interesting how she doesn't speak about the choices as if one or the other was correct. The following statement feels purely expository and not persuasive in any way perhaps in order to be accepting and inclusive of everyone that has had to make either of those choices in order to cope.

This paints a scary and awful image that evokes a lot of emotion.

The way she imbeds these brief discussions feels like a great literary liberty since it is very informal speech in Spanish yet it gives her text a great deal of validity as those words are commonly heard in Mexican culture and resonate with anyone who has experienced them, me included.

The fact that this beast hates even self imposed constraints makes it feel like something innate that was within her and she discovered rather than something she developed as a consequence of her experiences.

The picture is well described and seems simple enough but it certainly can hold a lot of symbolism for the family unit being described. Details such as the hand holding and head cocked likely indicate the connection and reliance to her maternal figure yet hear head position indicates some degree of oddity.

The alliteration present here is awesome as it brings together terms in English and Spanish across and amongst the language that sound similar and mean both similar or completely different things. This is awesome.

This is a normal term when referring to rivers and rock formations but it gives the impression that the river is alive and moving.

simile that creates a beautiful and alive image.

Fences usually keep people out, but here it is keeping the people in and away from the beaches. brilliant subversion of expectations.

States he does not love his country but would give his life for a few things present within it such as people and places.

This imagery greatly illustrates the strength with which the author is experiencing their feelings in an artistic, cohesive, logical, and beautiful way.

The only difference between the first line of the first and last stanza are the words "a" and "the" which indicates the narrator has found an even greater sense of identity at the conclusion of his dialogue.

This repetition sends a really strong message about having a common background as humans but is instantly juxtaposed with the continued imagery of humans as metals that are different yet malleable (only under the right conditions). The poem is generally realistic and stern but this line is likely repeated for impact and for the reader to take an extra second with it as it is one of the only lines written in an optimistic or idealistic tone.

The sun serves as a metaphor for the harsh life that is experienced by those that engage in physical labor. It affects all three generations described here in the same way sending a message of despair. This is interesting since the sun is usually a source of light and warmth but here it is a source of pain and discomfort.

This rhetorical question leaves the source of guilt up to interpretation and brilliantly makes the reader engage in self reflection even if only for a brief moment.

This simile is interesting in two ways. First it makes an argument for the potential of street art and street artists for making something impactful and meaningful. On the other hand it makes the reader consider this as a modernized version of something ancient.

Interesting contrast of intimate physical contact in a church and no mingling of genders in party dances. Contrasts the back and front stage lives that people live and how doing things in hiding is reminiscent of childhood mischief discussed in this stanza.

This form of alliteration brings emphasis to the idea that these three concepts are very closely related to each other, just how the sounds of the words are almost identical.

This happy note gets sullied after considering that it's a single day after many years.

This appears to be the first selfless and genuine expression of concern from his father.

By taking a glance at the past he can truly see what has changed from that point on. It's likely that most of the growth he's experienced has been in large part very synthetic at the mercy of his father.

The narrator sparingly uses curse words so far even though those around him do quite often. This word choice gives the sentence a lot of impact.

Using the remembering of detailed information and contrasting it with what was broadly forgotten by his father really puts into perspective how much thought he dedicates to his child.

Not the safest environment for a kid.

The mirroring of learned behavior by him makes sense here since it's all he's known.

This is an interesting shift from the beginning of the story where he refused to engage in any fighting and just brushed it off quickly.

It seems like this became his most direct definition of a paternal interaction. It's unfortunate how dry and stale this is.

It's sad how these bare bones of interaction are just close enough to caring for him to appreciate them.

This can be viewed as paternal authority being exercised within reason. However, considering the kid's childhood and the fact that they just met makes the statement degrading and humiliating.

He lived with a physically absent father and a mentally absent mother for long periods of time. It's interesting that at this point in time he doesn't assign any blame or cry for more attention while being almost fully autonomous. I wonder if this is due to his lack of ability to self actualize at such a young age, the necessity to survive, or the lack of communication he experienced.

It's interesting how so much information gets around with such minimal communication. It's likely true that the mother also knew her kid wasn't ignorant yet probably chose to avoid any talks for as long as physically possible.

I wonder how?

This repetition instead of using more complex words or adding adjectives paints an image of the child-like experience being described.

St. Martin: Christian figure associated with luck or good fortune.

Similar description of living partially in different worlds like in I Am Joaquin.

Really cute simile gives a vibrant picture.

Interesting anaphora where the earth is referred to in two contrasting yet true and overlapping ways.

The choice to describe visuals through auditory cues is really unique.

This figure is regarded as the saint of lost causes. Prayers addressed to him are generally related to causes that are desperate or near impossible.

The draw of the border/Mexico or even the longing for it by anyone who has any relationship to it is a common theme discussed by other authors in different media.

These are Swallows. It seems like the more common and less interesting birds were referred to in English while the more exotic looking or more interesting birds were referred to in Spanish.

This may seem odd when being used to refer to a grown man but I've noticed it is common practice for women who are any bit older than a male to use this word when trying to address them endearingly yet respectfully.

It's so interesting to me how this notion develops the more time is spent by anyone who is living on the American side of the border and peering at the Mexican side from a distance. Growing up in Mexico made me severely desensitized to a lot of the dangers that every day life presented, especially when any sort of travel is involved. It wasn't until I spent more time living in Austin while studying that this mindset of safety began to develop in me as well.

It's extremely interesting to see some of the negative and rigid ideas of a patriarchal society that are prevalent in Mexican culture, such as a woman being the one to follow a man, being dismissed by the narrator. However more interestingly, the positive aspects such as the intense sense of unity present in serious romance that also finds its roots in Mexican culture is being embraced so sincerely.

Want the culture to stay alive and breathe, not to be preserved in textbooks as ancient history where they gather dust.

The tone in this text is mournful at the reality that heritage is often casted away by children in order to move on in life. However, this unfortunately leads to the disappearance, erasure, and end of stories, traditions, and practices if enough people forget.

This was a peace treaty signed by the United States and Mexico in 1848 that ended the Mexican-American War.

https://www.archives.gov/education/lessons/guadalupe-hidalgo#:~:text=The%20Treaty%20of%20Guadalupe%20Hidalgo%2C%20that%20brought%20an%20official%20end,the%20advance%20of%20U.S.%20forces.

The concept having to things added together to equal nothing is an interesting one. The shame and conflict displayed in this metaphor is very intense as non existence is considered a better alternative.

Names are synonymous with identity as they separate us from those that surround us. However, men who are rich, poor, brave, or cowards can all share the same name uniting them although they are completely different and unique individuals. Similarly a group of people can share a sense of identity and end up as neighbors while varying wildly in beliefs, values, and heritage. They are still part of a whole, yet the range present for their individual identities can be extreme and severely contrasting.

This list creates a gradient stating that the author is not of one origin, not of a mix, but belongs to every single one of them individually, fully, and all at once.

As someone who identifies with both sides, the author can take pride in the victories of both but must also feel the pain that each party went through at every point. The pride in success seems to be overshadowed by the saddened tone of self inflicted harm.

This idea of duality as the conquerer and conquered is a key element of identity for the Chicano movement that gained a lot of momentum during the time that this was published.

Although the Conquistadors sought to take over and establish modern concepts such as organized cities sand religious practices in the lands of the people they considered savages, it must have been conflictive to realize complex societies such as the Aztecs with advanced infrastructural and farming practices already existed and thrived.

This Juxtaposition illustrates how complex the feelings that arise from such an experience can be and how they don't only lie on the opposite spectrum of helpless sorrow and vengeful hate but also everything that lays in between as well.

I find it extremely interesting that both of these aspects which are spiritual/mental and physical which are often thought to exist independent of each other discussed as fully dichotomous and influenced by the other. This brings importance to how restrictive the pull from each side of himself is, leaving no room for solutions that leave him "in between" and satisfied in this regard.

By definition this refers to an American who is not of Hispanic or Latino Descent. However, this term is often derogatory or has negative connotations in practice. This sets up the dynamics of struggle and conflict that follow.