Extra Credit: "Drown"

“Drown” by Junot Diaz has a rather interesting take on life as an immigrant and how becoming an American doesn’t change the perspective. The main character of the story seems to embody both typical stereotypes as well as ones that contrast with said stereotypes. It seems to me that the character, and narrator, seems to struggle with his identity when it comes to how an immigrant is “suppose” to act and conform to the stereotype that is given to them.

In the beginning, his mother enters the room to tell him that Beto is home. This doesn’t seem to have much of an effect on him because he says he continues to watch the television. I thought it was interesting that in the first few lines, he mentions, “He’s a pato now. . .” (Diaz 1666), pato being Dominican slang for a gay man. He goes on to say that they had been friends, yet, that’s the first tidbit of information we get about Bato. I think the fact the narrator repeats that his friend is gay, and that he’s in college, proves that he’s jealous. Bato has broken out of the norms by being gay and educated and has become who he wants -- not what society wants.

Before Bato left, we get a sense that the narrator seems to be fighting between his punk-kid life and one that is more than that. Bato didn’t know what the word “expectorating” meant, and when the narrator explained it to him, he said that even though Bato was going off to college, “He hated when I knew something he didn’t. . . Even then I didn’t tell him; he thought I didn’t read, not even dictionaries” (Diaz 1667). This quote gives us some insight one of the stereotypes of immigrants, which is that they don’t know, or won’t learn, how to read or write and become successful.

On the top of page, a teacher compared the immigrants in school to shuttles, “A few of you are going to make it. Those are the orbiters. But the majority of you are just going to burn out. Going nowhere” (1673). This kind of stereotype, in my opinion, hurts people who it applies to because they believe they need to stick to it. If immigrants are known for being illiterate, many other immigrants -- some who may even enjoy learning -- may not take part in learning how to read and write due to the stereotype. I feel that this applies to the narrator due to the fact he sells “shitty dope” (1667) and hides from the Army recruiter when the recruiter is circling around his neighborhood. I think he’s afraid to break out of his stereotype, which is a drug dealer, and become something more, which perhaps could be a member of the Army. This story highlights the fact that being an immigrant in America is challenging. The past has elevated particular stereotypes immigrants feel they need to live up to and it makes it hard for them (and people from all races, including white people) to break out and become nonconformists and be who they want to be.