La Maravilla Story Authored by Alfredo Vea - Essay Example

 There also was his pagan grandfather - the character inspired by the author's grandfather - who, being a Yaqui Indian could leave his mortal body and soar high in the sky; the same person who introduced Beto the Yaqui knowledge by way of initiation: "I will give you a sight of your blood so that someday years from now you will not be made anxious by wrong questions and you will not look for answers in the wrong place.

You don't need to see a psychiatrist, Beto. Never. Nunca. You just need to look into yourself and beyond, past yourself. Remember, you are not white, and if someday you find yourself asking a white man's questions, the answer will not be there for you" [Vea, 217-218]. In Spanish, "maravilla" means marvel; something that is regarded as wonderful, probably because of its rare beauty. The title of Alfredo Vea's novel, La Maravilla vividly symbolizes Buckeye Road. Adobe homes, shacks made up of tarpaper, Cadillacs adorned with rust, and of course, out-of-shape trailer trucks that were popularly known as "Buckeye".

It was in the desert outside of the city of Phoenix wherein the wonders of various cultural myths were brought to life. La Maravilla symbolizes being a part of two different worlds and of being pulled apart by love and fear of both. It depicts the blanket of marigolds - the flower of the dead - adorning the graves of Mexican cemeteries as well as the imaginary dog considered consecrated by the Aztecs; a dog that was believed to have returned from the lower world to guide a person to the land of the dead known as Mictlan.

The gaps were represented by the two different worlds which were not far from being reached by a person.