ENC 1102
Daddy and Fiesta 1980
Introduction and Thesis Statement
Fiesta 1980 by Junot Diaz, and Daddy by Sylvia Plath, are works of literature that focus on the distinct characteristics of fathers. While Fiesta 1980 is a short story, Daddy is a poem and what makes them similar is the theme and style. In Daddy, the poet describes the figurative image of her father and her turbulent relationship with him, while in Fiesta 1980; Yunior describes his relationship with his father. In Daddy, the poet uses a number of metaphors to describe her relationship with her father and even tries to reconcile, while Yunior describes his father as displaying demonic characteristics, but in his heart, prays that his father would love him.
Quotation: You do not do, you do not doBarely daring to breathe or Achoo. [Lines 1-5]
The poem would not have written like this if the poetess is treated the way she is. She is making a bold statement that she cannot put up with the kind of treatment she is being subjected to all these years and that the time has come for her to rebel. She isn’t given proper food and lives a life of seclusion amid fear, and that the thirty-odd years of humiliation cannot be tolerated any longer. She has had enough of living ‘with the black shoe she’s lived in.’
In Fiesta 1980, Diaz uses the character of Yunior to describe the father figure of Papi:
Everybody decided that we should have a party. Actually, my pops decided, but everybody - meaning Mami, tía Yrma, tío Miguel and their neighbors - thought it a dope idea.
Here, it is evident that the author categorically states the influence the father has over everyone in the family and neighbourhood. When Yunior says that ‘everybody decided, ‘and follows it up with, ‘actually, my pops,’ it is clear that Papi is the influencer and aggressor. By revealing his father this way, Yunior is clearly not happy with his father.
It’s true that the poetess sees her father as a threat to her survival. She has to put up with his tyrannical behaviour without protest for the past thirty years of her life, and has to continue it for the rest of her life. Therefore, she plans to kill him when the opportunity comes, but to her dismay, he dies before she can execute her plan. These two lines suggest that her father is extremely cruel to her. Why else will a daughter think of killing her father? Generally, the bond between a father and his daughter is very cordial, but if the poetess reacts the way she does, it does reveal certain sinister behaviour in her father.
In Fiesta 1980 too, one sees the author mention the word, ‘killing.’ Yunior was so frustrated that his father behaved so rudely in front of so many guests, that he felt like killing him.
If you eat anything, I'm going to beat you. ¿Entiendes? And if your brother gives you any food, I'll beat him toI nodded again. I wanted to kill him and he must have sensed it
Yunior isn’t angry with his father for the way he takes the food from his hands, but because of the situation in which it is taken from him. According to Yunior, the only thing that matters to Papi is his brand-new, lime-green color Volkswagen van. Whenever Yunior vomits in his car after consuming food, his dad gets angry. Instead of pitying Yunior for his predicament, Papi is more bothered about his car and stature in society rather than the predicament of Yunior. To see a young boy being punished for vomiting in the car is cruel, but to stop him from eating food when others his age are enjoying it is atrocious. This embarrassment of snatching food from his hands in front of other children makes Yunior think of killing his father.
These lines show the humane characteristic of the poetess. Despite the treatment she undergoes, she feels that she would love to have him love her. She knows that no matter how much she hates him, there is still that semblance of hope in her that he will change and live happily with her; he is after all, her father. She is losing him and she prays that he will understand his mistakes and come back to her.
I still wanted him to love me something that never seemed strange or contradictory until years later, when he was out of our lives.
In his heart of heart, Yunior wants things to change. He wants his father’s love, and he is sure that it wouldn’t happen as long as long as they lived together. Yunior, like any other kid, wants his dad to love him and shower him with gifts and treat him well. However, this never happens, because it looks like as though he is born to irritate his dad and ensure that no enmity will ever be lost between to the two of them. All this will change when years later, his father leaves them. His absence has a refreshing change in the way Yunior lives his life. However, he has lost most of his childhood under the glare of his father’s eyes, and those years will never return. This thought makes him think how it would be, if his loved him then.
The story Fiesta 1980 seems to deal with the theme in a more constructive, realistic and positive way. I telling a story which is like a narrative, the author gives a lot of information on the events surrounding the young Yunior’s predicament and strained relationship with his father. It is obvious that frictions within families occur due to strained relationships within them, and when Yunior’s father has a relationship with another woman, the relationship between man and wife at home is bound to charge up. While the author feels that there would be a commotion when his mother dances with his Papi, he is amusingly surprised no such thing occurs. For Papi, his car came before everyone else, and that was why he showed more aggression against young Yunior.
Conclusion
In studying Fiesta 1980 by Junot Diaz, and Daddy by Sylvia Plath, a lot of similarities can be drawn. While one was a poem written in discontent about a daughter’s relationship with her more than middle-aged father, the other is about a young boy reflecting on how his life would have changed had his father loved him as a young boy. While both; the author and the poetess, criticized and attacked their father for their scorching behaviour toward them, they still felt that they were willing to accept them had they shown some remorse for their actions. In the end, they can only recollect what they could have hoped for, and what they were destined to live through.
References
Scribd.com. 'Junot Diaz Fiesta 1980'. N.p., 2014. Web. 28 Oct. 2014.
Plath, Sylvia. 'Daddy'. Poets.org. Web. 28 Oct. 2014.
