Dreaming in Cuban by Cristina Garcia - Essay Example

Dreaming in Cuban by Cristina Garcia Introduction The Dreaming in Cuban novel was the first novel by Christina Garcia where the year of publication for the novel was in 1992. Christina Garcia is a journalist who has roots in both the USA and Cuba whose career began as a reporter, but later changed in to fictional writing (Kort 103). Her family’s relocation to the USA drew influence form the fact that Fidel Castro dictatorial regime had taken shape in Cuba in 1961.The novel setting is in between Cuba and the USA where the focus is on a single family of three generations. Ideally, the novel narration in the novel is the third person narration with countable instances written in the first person narration. One of the key aspects witnessed across the novel is the fact that the narration jumps from one point in time to another hence going contrary to the linear fashion of narration. The novel has a number of themes witnessed all through the plot that vary from memory, living in exile, family ties and political divisions that characterized the Cuban history. Therefore, this essay will delve on the writing techniques used by Garcia in the development of her story and presentation of ideas. Writing techniques used by Garcia I. Retrospection All through the novel, the narrator seems to be giving accounts of events that they might have experienced in the past without interfering with the flow of the story. The purpose of using this technique is to illustrate the suffering of the Del Pino family that spreads across the generations. The family members that plotline focuses on are Pilar, Celia del Pino’s grand daughter, Lourdes and Felicia who are Celia’s daughters. The author relies on the accounts of the narrator as the author was in exile that did not interact with Castro’s rule. Therefore, the narrators pat makes the author to have a glimpse of how it used to be back in the day when Garcia was residing in the USA. This aspect of narrations relatively appears in films hence making Garcia a formidable author as not many may use this technique in their literature works. II. Projection The projection technique is a technique that blends well with science fiction stories where the predicted future tends to be imaginary, but at the same time appears real to the reader. In the novel, projection is a clear element that affects the narrator’s story as the mental instability that had struck Celia befalls on her daughter Felicia. In essence, Celia became mentally unstable when her husband Jorge died while Felicia became mentally unstable because of the ill treatment that she received form her husband. In the end, Felicia attempts to kill Hugo, her husband as the torture proves immense on her. On the other hand, Celia becomes mentally unstable because of the cruelty that received from Jorge’s mother and sister all through her pregnancy. Therefore, the obvious projection here is that cruelty and pregnancy were the probable causes of mental disorders for these two women. III. Different period and structure The author uses this technique within the characters of the novel to suggest reflections that they have of the future. The constant throws in between time helps in the illustration of the turmoil that the characters were experiencing although at different times. In essence, the psychological torment that the characters portrayed illustrated the gravity of their situation that justified some of their actions. For instance, the author asserts that the minds of Celia and Felicia snapped at some point although the time of their occurrence was not the same. Another similarity presented by the author is that both Celia and Felicia gave birth to daughters as their first children. Therefore, the author uses this technique to present the striking similarities in the occurrence of events that occurred at different times. IV. Straight forward Evidently, the format of the narration is no different from the normal presentation of a story as the novel begins with a clear beginning that smoothly connects to the body and edges out to the conclusion. However, the story has confusing elements as most of the characters seem to disappear from the novel’s scenes only for a reader to realize that they had died mysteriously. The story line embedded in the novel is a tragic one in that there are many indications of death and misery. For instance, the death of Jorge, Gustavo, Ernesto, and the mysterious disappearance of Javier that later emerges as the cause of his death. V. Characterization Characterization within a novel refers to the presentation of characters from the narrator’s perspective as other characters tend to bring out this aspect. This means that the characters tend to reveal the personalities of the characters during the development of the plot. Essentially, this aspect is visible in the novel by Garcia as certain characters are vital in influencing the behavior of other characters. For instance, Hugo facilitated unstable state of mind that Felicia portrayed all through the novel. Additionally, the rape incident that occurred on Lourdes by the Cuban police influence Lourdes to work harder as she is the sole breadwinner for her family. This is because her husband Rufino refused to engage in active employment after they flee north to America. On the other hand, Lourdes’s character also portrays how an individual may accept, mature, and resolve their inward issues. Lourdes goes ahead to become a successful businessperson in America despite her past to the extent that her savings allow her to open a second bakery. Pilar on the other hand, recollects herself after an attack in the pack and does not opt to waste her life unlike many other characters in the novel that misfortunes befell them. Another aspect of characterization witnessed across the novel is that some characters are prototypes in that they have no significant impact towards the presentation of themes by the writer. They appear as innocent parties who do not engage in form of evil and minimal information is available concerning them. For instance, the twins born of Felicia named Luz and Millagro do not have any relevance to Garcia’s storyline, but appear as children and nothing more. On the other hand, characterization aspect is visible in the novel through the interweaving of the author’s real life story to that of the narrator. In essence, Garcia left Cuba at a tender age, which reflects in the story through Lourdes who relocates to America because of the oppression witnessed in Cuba after the revolution. VI. Themes in the novel In the novel, three themes lie within the plot lines that include the theme of exile, family ties, and political divisions. First, the theme or exile is most predominant aspect spread across the novel. Ideally, the author illustrates the impact of exile upon those that flee oppression and on those that tend to be left after others have fled. The experiences of the Rufino family were a reflection of the struggles of many Cubans had to go through during the Cuban revolution of 1961. For instance, Pilar fell victim to the separation to her Cuban culture as she is foreign to the Spanish culture and can only dream because her family had lived in exile for far too long (Kort 104). Moreover, the impacts of living in exile make Pilar to yearn for a relationship with her grandmother because of her separation to her Cuban culture. The other predominant theme in the novel is the aspect of having family ties with as most of the characters in the novel have unhealthy relationships with members of their respective families. Evidently, daughters in the novel seem to also have unhealthy relationships with their mothers through the characters of Lourdes and her mother Celia together with Pilar and her mother Lourdes (Kort 105). However, Celia seems to have a remarkable relationship with her grandchildren Pilar and Ivanito, which illustrates that there is hope for restoration for the third generation of the del Pino family. Another aspect of relationship is that fathers are close to their daughters and vice versa for example the relationship between Ivanito and her mother Felicia. The last theme eminent in the novel is the theme of divided politics in Cuba in that the political revolution forced the Puente family to vacate their native country and live in exile abroad. On the other political affiliations and interest, also facilitate ill relationship between characters in the novel like that of Celia and Jorge. Essentially, Celia was in support of the revolution while Jorge objected to the move to revolt by the Cuban administration. However, she connects intensely with her son Javier because of her support of the socialism concept, which influences sour relations between her and her two daughters. With this, Celia remains in Cuba by herself because of her political beliefs while Lourdes has sour relations with her daughter and husband because of the choices she made relating to their living in exile. The writer of the novel had a diverse audience in that she addressed both the victims of the political oppression and the oppressors themselves. In essence, her tone in the novel illustrates the effects of political instability that may also lead to mental imbalance. In a way, the writer sought to influence change to the politically unstable nation of Cuba that has been under dictatorial rule. However, the message embedded in the novel cuts across cultures as it only addresses the Cuban population, but it also addresses the nations that have entanglement to dictatorship and forces people their natives to live in exile abroad. The plot of the novel is a complex one in that it traverses through time and regions making it hard for a reader that does not have high concentration on the read. Despite the fact that the events occur at different times, they are consequent of other events meaning that the events are sequential and not spontaneous. The novel does not reflect the true events that happened to the author, but the narrator’s presentation of the events appear as though they were real. Therefore, the narration may be in retrospect but it is in relation to the narrator and not the author. Finally, the novel is an allegory because the characters in the novel have a direct relation to one another and aid in the development of the plot. In addition, the writer uses the Spanish language as a symbol of the Cuban culture that many of the characters have affiliation to. The writer also uses symbolism in the novel through the del Pino family to illustrate the suffering of Cubans. Therefore, this literature piece focuses on a significant number of literature techniques to address the author’s concerns. Works Cited Kort, Carol. A to Z of American Women Writers. New York: Facts on File, 2007. Internet resource. Read More