After this semester my assumptions about novels have changed. After reading, Utopia, Signs Preceding The End Of The World, and Baho I saw how these authors created a novel to shine light on some of the many prominent issues in their societies. Prior to this semester, I often believed that novels were just some made up books that had no relative meaning to them. However, these three books have showed me how these authors do show real relative issues in their novels.
In the novel Utopia Towfik, creates these two societies, Utopia vs the others. These two societies mirror relative issues in our own societies. On page 66, the second narrator Gerber states, “ by age 9 any child has seen everything and been very hungry, and often has been raped 3 or 4 times…”. Here in California rape and hunger are very prominent issues. Towfik uses his novel as a mode of awareness for these issues.
In Signs Preceding The End Of The World , Yuri Herrera shows us a young girls journey when crossing the border. This is a journey that many individuals can relate to as many people create their own journeys while crossing the border.
In the novel Baho by Roland Roguero women are seen as passive objects of the community. On chapter IV of Baho, Roguero states, “there is a woman who measures almost six feet two inches. She was run out of the house by her husband for being too tall. The strict man of the house preferred to bring another, shorter woman” (pg.24). Women are treated as objects with no feelings. In our own societies we see this same issue, women being treated as passive objects rather than active participants of the community.
These 3 novels have helped me understand that novels do have relative meanings to them, they just have to be carefully analyze
Literary Genres in Translation 