Lola is sent to the DR to attend school and live with her great-aunt. Part 1, Introduction Summary. The Annotated Oscar Wao: Notes and Translations for The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao by Junot Díaz is an unofficial resource compiled by one reader to assist others with the novel’s numerous instances of Spanish, slang, historical references, and pop-culture allusions. Asking her not to abuse that power was akin to, as Díaz says it "asking the persecuted fat kid not to use his recently discovered mutant abilities" (94). "[52] One of Díaz's frequent references to J. R. R. Tolkien comes when he describes Trujillo: "Homeboy dominated Santo Domingo like it was his very own private Mordor. It was brought over to the islands of Antilles when the Europeans came, and has stayed ever since. Diaz creates irony using this strong dictator as a minor character and focusing on the characters that would have otherwise been marginalized. Because when she awildas out on your ass you'll know pain for real. Diaz ties in Lola’s daughters character with breaking the curse to show that the future of Dominican culture is to be defined by aspects others that a history of oppression and colonization. Thus, the empty pages in Yunior's dreams signify that the future has yet to be written despite the checkered past, in both his life and in the painful history of oppression and colonialism in the Dominican Republic. Title character Oscar Wao and his sister Lola each break with the rigid preset masculine and feminine ideals, respectively, that have defined and shaped their culture for generations. Speculative fiction is a sub-category of fiction that deals with ideas that are not directly real, but rather imaginative or futuristic. With these new curves she was thrown into a world where she could get what she wanted, where she was given attention without having to ask for it. "[8] Yunior thus builds the writing of the novel and his relationship with Oscar into the greater history of the Dominican Republic. Find a summary of this and each chapter of The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao! This runs in parallel to several central themes of the novel regarding identity, as Yunior's code switching … In The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao, Junot Diaz tells the story of a family of Dominican immigrants, focusing primarily on the life of Oscar de León, a descendant of the diaspora that directly experienced the horrors of the Trujillo regime of the mid 20th century. A great darkness descended on the Island and for the third time since the rise of Fidel people were being rounded up by Trujillo's son, Ramfis, and a good plenty were sacrificed in the most depraved fashion imaginable, the orgy of terror funeral goods for the father from the son. If the book's called The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao, then why is the madman Rafael Leónidas Trujillo one of the first characters we meet in it? [29] By referencing “nothing ever ends” on page 331 in the novel, Diaz proposes that the past cannot be changed, but must ultimately be accepted in order to create a better future and reclaim the culture. [29], Throughout the novel, Diaz uses metaphors and symbols to present Dominican history as well as the fuku curse. Violence is an aspect of the "fukú" or curse that haunts the Cabrals and de Leons. Oscar desperately wants to be successful with women but, from a young age, is unable to find love, largely because he is a nerd obsessed with science fiction and comic books. Oscar and Ybón finally spend one weekend together, where Oscar loses his virginity and finds true intimacy with her. The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao can be used as an example of speculative fiction. Rather than just provide factual background, Yunior's narrative continues in the footnotes just as it does in the body of the novel. Still, Yunior proves his friendship by coming back to room with Oscar for another year. However, Oscar is not done with Ybón or Santo Domingo. Detailed explanations, analysis, and citation info for every important quote on LitCharts. On the other hand, Isis potentially coming to Yunior to learn more about her uncle represents gaining an understanding of the past, which is key to decolonizing and pinpointing the structures that are systematically oppressive. His culture of placing appearance above all else does nothing to deemphasize appearance in Dominican culture, seeing as in a normal political atmosphere people follow their leaders, much less in the tightly controlled Trujillan dictatorship. VanBeest points out that in spite Oscar's lack of machismo, he possesses "other masculine traits that Yunior admires." The Brief and Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao contains several of the hallmarks of Latin American Magical Realism. [29] Lola’s daughter is a character that holds the future for the De Leon family and symbolically the entire Dominican culture. In The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao, author Junot Diaz provides a commentary on the social atmosphere of the Dominican culture in relation to a set of pre-established gender roles. With her dark skin and headstrong manner, Beli does not fit in at her prestigious private school. [34] While the mongoose is transplanted from Asia, it retroactively becomes a "norm" within the DR's plantation system. In Oscar Wao, it initially appears that the mongoose will serve a similar symbolic purpose. Throughout the novel, violence is transmitted from the system of colonialism and dictators to the domestic sphere and perpetuated through the generations. What more fantasy than the Antilles? It might have been a consequence being Antillean (who more sci-fi than us?) They're like having in-class notes for every discussion!”, “This is absolutely THE best teacher resource I have ever purchased. Abelard remains in prison for the rest of his life. Yunior even makes reference in the footnotes to his present life earlier in the novel than when he describes it in Chapter Eight. By utilizing her appearance, she gained a complete understanding of the influences of her body. Date: Jun 14, 2019; Category: ... identify with, or fit in the context or setting where they are wishfully present or to which they have a desire to belong. Struggling with distance learning? This runs in parallel to several central themes of the novel regarding identity, as Yunior's code switching alludes to a struggle between his Dominican identity and his identity as a writer. [29], Although Yunior is the narrator of the story, and everything that is said comes from his perspective, the story revolves around the unlikely hero, Oscar. The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao and societal views on finding love. Teachers and parents! Yunior attempts to reform Oscar in the image of the Dominican American “player,” but Oscar resists this transformation. The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao was widely praised and appeared in a number of "best of the year" book lists. Historically, the mongoose was imported from Asia during the 18th century. If "fukú" is "[the] manifestation of the masculine ideals imposed on the Dominican Republic herself," [42] then is Oscar the zafa of this fukú. Interweaved throughout, Yunior also tries to explain and understand his own failed relationship with Oscar’s sister, Lola, and the Dominican heritage that binds them all together. After "getting dissed by a girl", he attempts to kill himself by drinking two bottles of liquor and jumping off the New Brunswick train bridge. When Oscar meets Ana, one of the many women with whom he falls in love, he notices different aspects of her life and "there was something in the seamlessness with which she switched between these aspects that convinced him that both were masks". The book ends as Yunior, Lola, and Beli mourn Oscar. "[44], The novel opens with the epigraph: "Of what import are brief, nameless lives…to Galactus? Yunior provides analysis and commentary for the events he is relaying in the novel. Oscar de Leon, in The Brief and Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao by Junot Diaz, is a tragic hero because he is naturally virtuous, possesses tragic flaws, and is faced with undeserved misfortune. Brief phrases relating to games like Dungeons & Dragons and tabletop role-playing game terms are used as common colloquialisms: "He [Oscar] could have refused, could have made a saving throw against Torture, but instead he went with the flow."[20]. Within hours of El Jefe dancing bien pegao with those twenty-seven bullets, his minions ran amok−fulfilling, as it were, his last will and vengeance. The narrator—later revealed to be Yunior, a Dominican American man loosely based on the author—introduces the concept of fukú americanus. Actually, wait a minute. [1] The book chronicles both the life of Oscar de León, an overweight Dominican boy growing up in Paterson, New Jersey, who is obsessed with science fiction and fantasy novels and with falling in love, as well as a curse that has plagued his family for generations. Please be aware that this discussion guide may contain spoilers! These Beli and Oscar canefield scenes are haunted by the displacement and violence against enslaved Africans, the displacement and genocide of indigenous folks, and also the revolts and resistance to these systems. His speech often exemplifies code switching, switching rapidly from a lively, Caribbean-inflected vernacular, replete with frequent usage of profanity to wordy, eloquent, and academic prose. These references serve both to illuminate the world that Oscar lives in and create a parallel between the supernatural events in fantasy literature and the history of the Dominican Republic. Through the figure of Oscar, he explores alternatives to hypermasculinity. Beli Getting Pregnant The Brief Life Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao is a novel written by Junot Diaz, a Dominican writer. [42] At the end of the novel, Yunior manages to develop a healthier form of masculinity that allows him to love others and to achieve intimacy. Even under Trujillo, however, the power of appearance is called into the question, as appearance's power ultimately takes second place to the power of words. She gets back in touch with Oscar, planning to meet him at a café, but their mother catches her there. Maybe you should be really, really alarmed. Abelard Luis Cabral, Oscar's grandfather, learned this first hand after repeatedly refusing to bring his first-born daughter Jacquelyn to Trujillo's events. Her loneliness derived from her "defensive and aggressive and mad overactive" personality that pushed people miles away from her. [14] He often gives his own commentary and analysis on the events he is relating in the story and sometimes reveals failings in his own life, both as a narrator and a person: "Players: never never never fuck with a bitch named Awilda. A lot of the emotions and the atmosphere laid out in Oscar's canefield scene parallels Beli's. While the encounters with the creature may or may not have happened, their significance in the book still holds strong just like the superstitions, because "no matter what you believe, the fukú believes in you" (5). Abelard, by withholding his daughter's "off-the-hook looks" (216) from Trujillo, he was in effect committing "treason" (217). The many science fiction references throughout the novel and footnotes emphasize (Yunior believes) the fantastical elements of Dominican history. [62] Director Walter Salles and writer Jose Rivera (The Motorcycle Diaries) were hired by Rudin to adapt the novel. [27] By combining all of these elements, Diaz creates a work of speculative fiction that holds various social critiques. [33] Yunior also shows that he and Oscar were not so different after all, but the difference was in the fact that Oscar was not able to hide the fact that he was an outcast while Yunior was able to fit in while keeping his unique qualities and interests to himself.[33]. Many of the footnotes ultimately connect back to themes of coming to a new world (underscored through the novel's references to fantasy and sci-fi) or having one's own world completely changed. [41] Much later, after Oscar returns home to La Inca's to try to be with Ybón, he also ends up assaulted in a canefield, but this time by the Capitan's friends. Introduction. Oscar is a shy, overweight teenager who loves to read and write science fiction and fantasy and is searching for love. No one finds out about Oscar’s plan until he is on the plane to the DR. Oscar stays for a month at La Inca’s house before he sees Ybón again. His actions eventually resulted in Trujillo arranging for his arrest and eighteen-year sentence, where he was brutally beaten and treated to an endless series of electric shock treatments (237). He survives, and Yunior tries to help Lola pick up the pieces of her life, but mostly struggles to maintain the large network of girls he is sleeping with. [64], Reexamining masculinity through Yunior and Oscar, Filling the blank pages – stories as "zafa" for the fukú of violence, The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Literary Terms, 3rd ed., 2008, Thiem, Jon, "The Textualization of the Reader in Magical Realist Fiction" from, D'haen, Theo, "Magical realism and postmodernism: decentering privileged centers" from, Learn how and when to remove this template message, "Pulitzer winner stays true to Jersey roots", "Junot Díaz's Novel, 'Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao,' Wins Pulitzer", "The Book Bench: This Week in Fiction: Questions for Junot Díaz", "New American short stories: The curse of machismo", "Junot Díaz reflects on love in his latest book", "Mortality Threats to Birds - Small Indian Mongoose (Herpestes javanicus)", "Dueling Masculinities: Oscar's and Yunior's Journey to Manhood", "The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao declared 21st century's best novel so far", "The Best Fiction of the Millennium (So Far): An Introduction", "Best of the Millennium, Pros Versus Readers", "Pulitzer Prize-Winner Junot Díaz Writes the Book on Heartbreak (Video)", Audio recording of Junot Díaz reading from, The Collected Stories of Katherine Anne Porter, Martin Dressler: The Tale of an American Dreamer, The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=The_Brief_Wondrous_Life_of_Oscar_Wao&oldid=991109881, Short description is different from Wikidata, Wikipedia articles with plot summary needing attention from February 2016, All Wikipedia articles with plot summary needing attention, Articles needing additional references from March 2015, All articles needing additional references, Wikipedia articles with WorldCat-VIAF identifiers, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License, This page was last edited on 28 November 2020, at 09:08. For example, when Beli is beaten in the canefield, a "creature that would have been an amiable mongoose if not for its golden lion eyes and the absolute black of its pelt" [37] motivates Beli and sings to her to guide her out of the canefield. This article focuses a feminist lens of criticism on the characters and their actions in The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao.Specifically, through the examination of this text in the feminist criticism, the author presents the idea that the masculinity of the Dominican men in the novel actually helps to shape strong, "no-nonsense, domineering women" (Heck, 2009, 1). He also respects Oscar's writing style and his ability to "write dialogue, crack snappy exposition, keep the narrative moving" (173). Likewise, there is a mention of being "flung into the macroverse" by "the ritual of Chud", a nod to the ending of It. [59], A staged version of the novel, called Fukú Americanus, was adapted by Sean San Jose and co-directed by San Jose and Marc Bamuthi Joseph through San Jose's Campo Santo theatre company in 2009. [27] In order to emphasize the brutality of the past, the novel blends aspects of sci-fi and fantasy with horror as well as popular culture. Oscar falls into a deep depression and attempts suicide on the last day of the school year. How di… At the end of The Return of the King, Sauron's evil was taken by "a great wind" and neatly "blown away", with no lasting consequences to our heroes; but Trujillo was too powerful, too toxic a radiation to be dispelled so easily. In the case of Beli in the cane fields, the narrator shares that whether her encounter with the mongoose "was a figment of Beli's wracked imagination or something else altogether" cannot be determined (149). Lola is Oscar’s older sister, and her daughter serves as a symbol of the potential to break the fuku curse. Find a summary of this and each chapter of The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao! Used to protect sugar cane fields from rat infestations, mongooses were pivotal in the DR's growing sugar economy. When he and his sister Lola spend summers with their great-aunt in the Dominican Republic (DR), Oscar realizes that he wants to become an author. That's why I thought the book was somewhat hopeful at the end. Subsequent sections detail Beli's backstory growing up as an orphan in the Dominican Republic after her father was imprisoned and her mother and two sisters died. Both political critique and metafiction are typical features of Magical Realism.[24][25]. The main characters, like Oscar and Lola, are down-and-out outsiders to many aspects of American and Dominican cultures. "[43], Comic books, science-fiction, and fantasy literature all play an important role in Oscar's upbringing and identity, and each is incorporated into the novel to reflect the world he lives in. Just be a smart bookish boy of color in a contemporary U.S. ghetto...Like having bat wings or a pair of tentacles growing out of your chest. Yunior is given the power to represent Trujillo which lessens Trujillos dominance in the power scale, allowing the novel to have a strong stance against the dictatorship, stripping Trujillo of the meaning behind his title. His sister's boyfriend Yunior (the narrator of much of the novel) moves in with Oscar and tries to help him get in shape and become more "normal". Blame the fukú—a curse that has haunted Oscar’s family for generations, following them on their epic journey from Santo Domingo to the USA. Introduction Winner of the Pulitzer Prize for fiction, The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao tells the story of Oscar, a sweet but disastrously overweight ghetto nerd, a New Jersey romantic who dreams of becoming the Dominican J. R. R. Tolkien and, most of all, of finding love. [40] In this section of the book Yunior says, "Canefields are no fucking joke, and even the cleverest of adults can get mazed in their endlessness, only to reappear months later as a cameo of bones". Yunior also has hope that Isis, Lola's daughter, will one day come to him asking for stories about her family history, and "if she's smart and as brave as I'm expecting she'll be, she'll take all we've done and all we've learned and add her own insights and she'll put an end to it [the fukú]" (331). [63] According to Díaz, Miramax's rights on the book have since expired. The beginning of chapter two also features the use of second person narration, rarely used in literature. New York magazine named it the Best Novel of the Year and Time magazine's Lev Grossman named it the best work of fiction published in 2007, praising it as "a massive, heaving, sparking tragicomedy". The third daughter, Beli, is sold as a maid to cover family debts. Yunior and Oscar are character foils that illustrate two different types of masculinity: if Oscar's nerdiness, fatness and awkwardness make him the antithesis of Dominican hypermasculinity, then Yunior, as a Don Juan and a state school player who can "bench 340 pounds" (170), is the embodiment of that identity. Told by Oscar’s college roommate, Yunior, the book also includes flashbacks into the lives of Oscar’s mother and his grandfather, as they suffered during the Trujillo regime in the Dominican Republic and finally came to America. In having this character take on such a surreal nature with characteristics not found in most mongooses, such as the ability to talk and vanishing in the blink of an eye, Díaz establishes an uncertainty that mirrors the controversies over whether superstitions exist. His speech often exemplifies code switching, switching rapidly from a lively, Caribbean-inflected vernacular, replete with frequent usage of profanity to wordy, eloquent, and academic prose. The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao: Analysis Essay; The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao: Analysis Essay. VanBeest argues that Oscar "succeeds in educating Yunior, indirectly, in the responsibilities of manhood; after Oscar's death, Yunior claims that it is Oscar's influence that encourages him to stop following the dictates of el machismo and finally settle down and get married." So we think New Jersey is a perfect setting for Wao. LitCharts Teacher Editions. She had to choose whether or not to take advantage of her new curvaceous body which puberty had generously bestowed upon her. Ybon's boyfriend's goons then find Oscar, take him back to the sugarcane fields, and kill him. Díaz frequently uses references to works of science-fiction and fantasy. The gangster reveals that he is actually married to Trujillo’s sister, and that Beli will have to get rid of the child and disappear. Yunior also adds footnotes throughout the book with humorous asides, stories of Dominican history, or quotes from other books that help illuminate Oscar’s life. Yunior and his friends give Oscar the nickname “Oscar Wao” and tease him mercilessly. In one interview, Díaz talks about how NJ is … The novel then comes back to Oscar’s life, during his college years when Yunior himself enters the story. Beli, the mother of Oscar and Lola, was raised in the Dominican Republic by her foster-mother (La Inca), who expected great things of her. Yunior implies that storytelling is a way to acknowledge the past and its influence over one's life, a way to make sense of what has happened, and is the starting point for healing. Oscar's speech reflects an autodidactic language based on his knowledge of fantasy, 'nerd' literature and his speech is filled with phrases such as "I think she's orchidaceous"[13] and "I do not move so precipitously",[13] whereas Yunior "affects a bilingual b-boy flow"[14] and intersperses it with literary language. Lola marries a Cuban man and moves to Miami. With the absence of any embodiments of white characters to emphasize the lasting impact of the colonial imaginary, the mysticism behind the fuku and zafa become that much more convincing. Although a work of fiction, the novel is set in New Jersey in the United States, where Díaz was raised, and it deals with the Dominican Republic experience under dictator Rafael Trujillo. Here, the canefields are surrounded by the context of the Trujillato. [32] By reconstructing the De Leon family story, and not letting the characters speak for themselves, Yunior subconsciously follows the ‘Trujillan model of narration’, suppressing their own stories for his own mental gain whether it be a recreated connection to Lola, his ex-girlfriend or Oscar, his friend. Rather than return to teaching high school, Oscar asks Yunior for money. Contemporary masculinity and contemporary power structures leave no room for vulnerability, but for Díaz, "the only way to encounter a human is by being vulnerable. So he's important enough to put up front. Oscar recovers from the beating, borrows money from Yunior, and returns to the Dominican Republic. Abelard and Socorro's third child, a daughter they name Belicia, was born "black", a terrible thing for the Dominicans, who viewed having a child of "black complexion as an ill omen" (248). "[49] Oscar's vast memory of comic books and Fantasy/Science-fiction is recalled whenever he is involved in the text, and his identity is multiform, composed of scraps of comic book marginalia. As for Yunior, Oscar models an alternative form of masculinity and ultimately pushes him to reexamine his ideas about manhood. Than just provide factual background, Yunior proves his friendship by coming back the. Novel opens with the epigraph: `` of what import are Brief, nameless lives…to Galactus writer Jose Rivera the... Plantation system imaginative or futuristic ’ s older sister, and has stayed ever since best of Trujillato... Resists this transformation marries a Cuban man and moves to Miami 's rights on the author—introduces the concept of americanus! Sugar cane fields from rat infestations, mongooses were pivotal in the footnotes to his Life...! ”, “ this is absolutely the best teacher resource I have ever purchased New curvaceous which... 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