Question 3: Particularly for an immigrant, a role model can be very important to maturing and developing one’s identity. Choose one character from Caramelo who seeks a role model and describe how the role model influences (or multiple role models influence) this character.
The story initiates by presenting Lala in the car with her family heading to Mexico. The narrator indicates that children sing songs from American cartoons and commercials before crossing the border (Cisneros 24). However, after crossing the border, the narrator notes that no one felt like singing. In some instances, Celaya presents her admiration of the Mexican culture. Besides being brought up America, Celaya takes pride in some aspects of the Mexican culture just like her grandmother. In essence, Celaya mostly establishes her position by comparing the two cultures. She describes the Mexican and American lifestyles by comparing the differences between America and Mexico.
Celaya, the main character provides an overview of her experience with her family members. She provides a story that highlights her relationship with the father and her dreadful grandmother. Celaya’s story indicates how she often presented as an outcast of the family. The role of the grandmother’s influence in the development of Celaya’s identity is affirmed by the fact that the Celaya eventually turns out to be similar with her. This is ironical considering Celaya’s attitude towards her grandmother. Characters in the novel particularly Celaya’s father perceive the grandmother as intimidating (Cisneros 36). This follows her stubborn stand and emphasize on the Mexican values. After migrating to the United States, Inocencio’s family faces cultural erosion as members of this family abandons some Mexicans values while embracing some aspects of the United State’s lifestyle. This however does not blend well with the Celaya’s grandmother who is a strong custodian of the Mexican lifestyle. In this context, member’s of Inocencio family and particularly Inocensio himself and Celaya are often disturbed by the grandmother’s arguments.
Celaya’s story starts one summer in Mexico when she was a little girl, which is followed by immediate recall of her childhood experience. She remembers her grandmother’s lovely and miserable childhood in a Mexico. Life in Mexico that had been adversely affected by the revolution of 1911 was distressing. She recalls ultimate union of her grandfather. Inocencio migrated to the United States as a young person where he met with Zoila, a Mexican-American woman. After the death of the Celaya’s grandfather, the family decided to move the grandmother to America to stay with her. Unfortunately, the grandmother dies after a while and Celaya is left struggling with her unsettled relationship with her (Cisneros 53). Celaya creates a picture of her parent’s love-based, but unstable marriage and the establishment of their own Mexican-American family. The desire of understanding the unresolved grandmother’s habit prompts Celaya into serious disturbing moments. Celaya often becomes very unsettled when she thought of her relationship with her late grandmother. She often admired her Mexican lifestyle while in other cases she becomes distressed to think of her grandmother’s terrible experience in Mexico.
Celaya’s grandmother presents mainly as unpleasant person with the habit of bringing people down around her. She believes that she is knowledgeable and other people who she considered her junior were obliged to listen and follow her advice. She is constantly causing conflicts in the family. In particular, she caused problems with Zoila by narrating the story of Candelaria. In this respect, Celaya’s grandmother appears, as an outcast since most members of the family dislikes her stand. It is however worthwhile noting that the grandmother seem to have a strong relationship with Celaya. The grandmother, who is Celaya’s role model essentially, influenced her identity considerably. For example, Celaya grows to assume habit that resembles that of her grandmother that makes her also become an outcast of her family. Throughout the story, Celaya is conflicting with her brothers and other member of the family. Her father who loves her a lot is in most cases, entangled in problems prompted by her following her unpleasant habit. Being the most favored child, her father mostly requested her brothers to understand her and ignore her actions to avoid conflicts. Celaya’s father attempted to protect her thus her actions were to be less questioned by other family members although she often engaged in outrageous actions.
Celaya struggles to establish her identity under the parenthood of parents who assumed a conservative Mexican view of customs and family. At the age of about 17 years, she constantly confronts her father. Her father needed her to behave like a Mexican girl and only move from the house when married (Cisneros 50). However, Celaya is stubborn just like her grandmother as evident in the persistent struggle to protect her position. She does not fear confronting her father especially when pursuing her course. This is characteristic of her grandmother’s attitude of feeling that she is knowledgeable over her juniors, which made her stubbornly defend her views. In most instances, Celaya seems to evaluate her experience from amused and participating perspectives. This follows her diverse cultural views that often rendered her confused. Growing up in America subjected her to the American lifestyle while her grandmother’s history fed her with rich Mexican culture values. In consequence, Celaya eventually develops a self-identity by embracing both cultures while being cautious of the stereotypic assumptions characterizing each culture.
Celaya presents as a vulnerable and self-conscious child who is constantly depressed and disturbed by the “Mexican-ness” of her family. Her multicultural status renders her in serious conflicts in most cases. For example, she strongly conflicts with catholic values failing to justify the basis of some of them. Growing in the United States meant that Celaya could essentially assume the American lifestyle; however, her family especially the members with extensive Mexican background could hardly abandon the Mexican lifestyle. This prompted conflicts as Celaya often failed to identify with individuals who championed the Mexican lifestyle. Her father constantly moves back and forth between San Antonio and Chicago, flirting through antique shops and nostalgically participating in toquerias to experience a taste of home (Cisneros 78). Accordingly, Celaya faces challenges in stabilizing and establishing self-identity in this environment. However, the history of her grandmother offers her the chance of viewing things from the Mexican’s perspective thus enabling her to understand the position assumed by the custodians of this culture. She eventually enables her establishes her own self-identity after realizing that she had to cope with her multicultural heritage.
Caramelo is a rich literature that highlights the impact of living between cultures. Celaya who was born of a Mexican immigrant father is entangled in the quest of establishing a self-identity as she faces a challenge of choosing between the two sides. Celaya’s grandmother assumes a strategic role in the establishment of Celaya’s self-identity and development of her character, which highlights the significance of role model in maturing and development of one’s identity. In essence, Celaya eventually establishes a self-identity by reflecting upon the history of her grandmother. Through revisiting the background of her grandmother, Celaya is able to accommodate attitudes presented by her family members who maintained conservative Mexican habits by identifying with them.
Work Cited
Cisneros, Sandra. Caramelo. New York: Vintage, 2013. Print.
