Week 16

"Sin Nombre"

"Sin Nombre" a feature debut film written and directed by Cary Fukunaga in 2009, is a modern immigration saga of two young people on a journey to escape their past.  “Sin Nombre”, which means “without a name” won awards in 2009 for best direction and cinematography at the Sundance Film Festival.  The Oakland native writer-director was inspired to create this film after learning about 80 illegal immigrants who were found locked in an abandoned truck in Texas in 2003, where 19 people died.

Sayra, along with her father and uncle, leave Honduras for New Jersey, USA in the hopes of a better life.  They journey on foot to Mexico and then continue through Mexico on the top of freight trains.  Casper is a young gang member who, along with the heavily tattooed leader, “Lil’ Mago” of the gang “Mara Salvatrucha” and a 12 year-old recruit “Smiley”, boards the train to rob those traveling on top.  After robbing and beating many of the travelers on the train, Mago attempts to rape Sayra.  Casper intervenes and ends up killing Mago.  Now, with a death sentence on his head, Casper must attempt to escape this influential Mexican gang in the effort to save his life.  Sayra and Casper form a bond of friendship and continue their northbound journey together.

The story line is simple and straightforward.  However, the implications of the story are compelling, frightening and thought provoking.  The story illustrates the difficult journey many people attempt in the effort to obtain a better life.   The travelers are willing to endure many obstacles and challenges during their journey – robbery, starvation, humiliation, deportation, weather and death.  During their journey, Casper decides to leave Sayra and her family in order to keep them from harm and when Sayra realizes that he has gone, she leaves the train to go after Casper.  When her father and uncle notice that Sayra is missing, they realize that there is nothing they can do to help her – she’s on her own.  The border patrol boards the train and in their attempt to escape, Sayra’s father falls off the train and is killed when he is trapped under the moving wheels.  Her uncle is captured and deported back to Honduras.  Sayra and Casper manage to make it to the boarder and while Sayra is crossing the river with the assistance of paid help, the gang catches up with Casper and guns him down, with Smiley being the first one to fire a shot.

What I find most frightening is the psychological hold the gang has on a member’s life; especially with vulnerable young kids.  Smiley, attracted to the power and peer status of gang life, is willing to undergo the initiation process of “13 seconds of hell”, where the recruit is savagely beaten by all members for 13 seconds.  Afterwards, the leader, Mago, lovingly takes Smiley into his arms and kisses him.  The next step in the initiation process, Smiley has to kill a rival gang member.  A target has been captured and caged like a wild animal.  Smiley is given a homemade gun and Casper guides him through the steps to help him complete his initiation.  Afterward, a shaken Smiley is comforted by Mago and Casper.  Smiley struggles with his internal moral conscious but is reassured by the gang, that he is loved and part of the family.  By this time, all previous perceptions of morality evaporate.

Freire and his Ideas on Oppression...

This movie clearly illustrates the power of oppression but also the equally powerful desire to escape an oppressive life. Sayra wanted to leave a life that had no promise for her future.  Casper became disillusioned with the gang after Mago kills the one woman he loved.  Casper comes to understand that loyalty to the gang is upmost and that the gang will not allow anything to interfere with this loyalty.  Love is a powerful threat to the gang and Mago understands that Casper’s love will always be more important than the needs of the gang or the motives of its leader.  This type of power and control is very similar to abusive relationships which provide a false sense of love, belonging, and security.  Freire discusses the psychological hold the oppressor has on its victims and how difficult it is to break away from the cycle of abuse.  Casper got a taste of true love and a life outside of the gang and although I don’t believe he planned to kill Mago, when Casper saw Mago attempting to rape Sayra, he reacted out of pent-up rage to justify the loss of his true love.  Fearing for his life, Casper attempts to escape, even though he knows that escape is futile.

Additionally, Freire noted that sometimes, those who were previously oppressed, in turn, become the oppressors.  Although once oppressed, Smiley becomes the oppressor through his involvement with the gang. 

While watching the movie, I was reminded of the painting from MOLaa titled, “The Exodus”.  Both the painting and the movie illustrate the pain and suffering people are willing to endure in order to leave an oppressive or futureless life.  The road or exodus is not easy and the individuals are sad and frightened to leave, but looking ahead allows the only hope for a future.  For many, the powerful desire for escape, freedom and a future is so strong that many are willing to risk everything.  Like Casper, many would rather die than continue their oppressive situations.

Transcends Borders…

This story, based upon real life situations, illustrates occurrences of oppression still happening today.  In every culture, oppression still occurs and people attempt to escape from these chains.  Spousal abuse, child abuse, sex-slave trade, and prostitution still occur in all countries.  This compelling and haunting story transformed my thought process about illegal immigration and provided a context for understanding what people are willing to go through to get to America.  This movie planted a seed of compassion that allowed me the opportunity to view this situation through a different viewpoint and provide some of the many reasons why people put their lives on the line for weeks and months and endure incredible hardships to come north.  This movie might help to shatter illusions as to how and why people are compelled to struggle through oppressive and difficult situations in order to bring about change in their own lives.  This desire and compelling force is universal and transcends all borders. 

Classmates Review from Week 14

Beatriz was able to see how a culture, personal struggle and a country's way of life was displayed and represented through art and sculpture.

Kelsey looked at Hugo Lugo's artwork, The Speech (El Discurso) 2006, which reminds her of how it is so hard to speak your mind because of everyone's opinions about certain topics.

Kim has a greater appreciation for the museum because she can now see how it expresses the lives and struggles of the artists. 

Logan feels he has a better appreciation for the museum and the artists of Latin America as a result of this class, Freire, and the films we've watched.

Maria found that in this visit to MOLAA, she paid more attention to the intentions of the artists.

Michael previously wrote mostly about Carlos Luna's style of art and of the materials and techniques that he used.  Looking back and seeing the art again, Michael was able to see Luna's view of culture expressed through the different art work that he has created.

Michele has a greater appreciation for the museum than while I viewed the artwork in week 5.

Robert now understands so much more about the contributing factors of history, which all directly affect today’s culture in these Latin American countries and is reflected in the work of MOLAA's artists.

Sara now wonders how different things influence the artists and their work or even their social or economical status at the time the art was created.

Susan now appreciates how the history of a culture, its beliefs, and customs of the artists and their country is reflect in the artwork.

Week 14

Museum of Latin American Art

In this week's assignment, I went back and viewed the three video's I originally viewed in our week 5 assignment.  Although I enjoyed watching again the YouTube videos on the "Night's In" series and the Art Tour news special, I found myself looking closely at the art pieces in the YouTube virtual tour of MoLAA.  I often paused during the video to observe closely the various paintings and sculptures.  I wondered what prompted the artist to draw, paint or sculpt that particular piece of work.  What personal life experiences are illustrated in the works displayed at the museum?  The one piece that I was drawn to this time was the oil painting by Arnold Belkin titled "Exodus".  This piece seemed to sum up what we've been exploring this semester - oppression - the various ways oppression takes place in Latin American cultures and how people attempt to escape their oppressors.

The texture and colors of the painting suggests pain, suffering and movement, which add to the emotion in the painting.  The viewer gets the sense that the couple is leaving an oppressive situation due to the deep emotion it elicits - sadness, fear and hopefulness.  The woman is looking back, sullen and sad, as if she is looking back at the life and the love ones she's leaving behind.  However, the man is looking forward as if he is hopeful of their future.  The additional people in the dark background suggest that they are all attempting to escape some type of dark, difficult or oppressive life.

In the recent movies we've watched and Freire's book, "Pedagogy of the Oppressed", I've come to understand that the cycle of oppression is difficult to break.  Although oppressed people want a better life for themselves, it is sometimes difficult to break the cycle because oppression is what they know and it can provide a sense of "false" safety and security.  So, naturally, it is difficult and frightening to walk away from this life into a life of uncertainty, freedom and hope.  This painting makes me wonder what they are leaving behind and what the future has in store for this young couple.  The exodus journey will not be easy, but if they reach their destination, there may be hope for their future.

MoLAA - Museum of Latin American Art, March 2007

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kUaZHgJElTQ&feature=related

Classmate Reviews of Week 13

Beatriz wrote how Mama Elena had once been oppressed and later on become the oppressor.

Kathy wrote how Like Water for Chocolate is yet another powerful story about forbidden love and unyielding tradition; something she finds to be a common theme in Latin American culture.

Kelsey wrote that having someone else run a person's life makes them oppressed because they cannot express themselves on who they really are.

Logan wrote that Freire’s Ideas were displayed throughout this film in regards to oppression, tradition, and politics.

Michael This story also illustrates how oppression kills your spirit as demonstrated with Tita’s breakdown and depression.

Nancy wrote that we each need to learn how to separate our sense of self from our family and societal traditions and definitions of who we each are - and are not - in order to fully become the person we were made to be, to reach our full potential as a person.

Nicole noted that Tita was oppressed by her mother and the traditions of her family.

Paul  noted that this movie transcends borders. Love, revolutions, family traditions and rebelious teenagers, these are things that happen all over the world.

Shannon noted that Elena refuses to acknowledge the dynamic reality of time and the world. As a result she fails to see the magic that results from the love between her youngest daughter Tita and Pedro.

Stacy wrote how Tita finally found her voice and stood up to her oppressors (her mother). She found her strength.

Week 13

Like Water for Chocolate

Like Water For Chocolate, written by Laura Esquirel, is one of my favorite books.  I routinely watch the movie version of this novel, directed by Alfonso Arau.  Although the movie is a good representation of the book, the book develops the characters more fully and fills in the details that bring fuller meaning that add deeper emotion to specific situations.  Instead of chapters, the book is organized into months where at the beginning of each chapter, a recipe is listed with directions for preparation of the dish and the story continues and correlates to that recipe.  Not only does the reader envision themselves preparing and eating the delicious dish, but also gets caught up in the emotion of the events of that time.  Regardless of the media, both the movie and the novel recount the same story.

The story begins as a narrative from Tita’s great-niece.  Like Tita, she is very sensitive to onions and whenever she chops onions, tears begin to well up and before she knows it, she can’t stop crying.  Tita is born in the late 1800’s.  Her mother, Elena, is chopping onions, and Tita, while still in the womb, begins to cry and her wailing brings about an early labor.  Tita’s birth comes on so fast that she is born on the kitchen table and her tears flow like a waterfall from Elena’s womb.  Once the tears dry up, Nacha, the family cook, sweeps them up and is able to fill a 10-pound sack.  A few days later, Tita’s father dies from a heart attack an Elena’s milk dries up.  Nacha takes over the care and feeding of Tita and from then on Tita’s “domain” is the kitchen.

As a young woman, Tita meets Pedro at a family party.  She feels Pedro’s glances toward her and understands as a result of these looks, how dough feels when it is “plunged into boiling oil”.  The heat that “invaded her body was so real Tita was afraid she would start to bubble”.  From that point on, she and Pedro are deeply in love with each other.  However, close to Tita’s 16th birthday, Pedro and his father come to the house to ask for Tita’s hand in marriage, Elena tells them that it is impossible for Tita to marry because as the youngest daughter in the family, it is her duty to take care of her until her death.  Elena offers Rosaura, her other daughter, as a marriage substitute for Tita, and Pedro accepts in an attempt to be near his one true love.  Upon hearing that her love had agreed to marry her sister, Tita falls into a state of depression and her heart feels as if she has a hole with infinite coldness flowing through it.  In an attempt to free herself from the cold, she begins to knit / crochet a bedspread/blanket.

It is the day before the wedding.  After Elena heads off to bed, Nacha gives Tita permission to cry. While preparing the wedding cake, one of Tita’s tears falls into the batter.  (In the book, her multiple tears fall into the batter and the meringue frosting.)  Upon eating the cake, everyone, except Tita, is overcome by a strange melancholy and yearning for lost loves.  Their weeping is followed by collective vomiting.  Afterwards, Elena blames Tita and Nacha for ruining Rosaura’s wedding, but Tita stops her mother’s scolding with the news that Nacha has died. 

Pedro and Tita’s love for each other simmers throughout the years.  On the anniversary of Tita becoming the ranches head cook, Pedro gives her a bouquet of roses.  Elena demands that they are thrown out.  In lieu of throwing them away, Tita makes Quail in Rose Petal Sauce.  She lovingly prepares the dish and the completed dish stirs passion in the blood of all who eat this decadent dish.  Tita comes to understand that she is able to invade the body of Pedro through her cooking as a new form of communication.  Tita is the transmitter, Pedro the receiver and Gertrudis, Tita’s sister, the medium. This dish produces a sexual synthesis in Gertrudis where the passion inside of her is so intense that she runs to cool off in the shower but instead, sets the outside shower room on fire with the heat from her body.  With the shed on fire, Gertrudis runs out of the shower room, naked.  Upon smelling the fragrant scent of roses emanating from Gertrudis’ body, the rebel, Juan, abandons a battle being fought with the federal troops and rides his horse toward Elena’s ranch.  Seeing Gertrudis running through the field naked, he rides up to her, picks her up and carries her away on his horse.   Later, the local priest tells Elena that Gertrudis is working at a local brothel and Elena burns her birth certificate and demands that her name never be spoken in the house again. 

Pedro and Rosaura eventually have a child and Tita ends up being the midwife and wet nurse for their little boy.  The silent romance between Pedro and Rosaura continues until Elena sends Pedro, Rosaura and Roberto to San Antonio, Texas.  Meanwhile, Elena continues to kill Tita’s spirit bit by bit through degrading and constant verbal abuse.  Upon hearing of the death of baby Roberto, Tita snaps and blames Roberto’s death on Elena.  She suffers from a mental breakdown and is taken away by the local doctor, John Brown, for rest and nurturing. 

There is a scene in the movie that is better developed in the book and in my opinion, is the true theme of the entire story.  During Tita’s stay with Doctor Brown, he shared with her something his Kickapu Indian grandmother, Morning Star, had shared with him.  Also a healer, his grandmother told him that we are all born with a box of matches inside that cannot be lit by ourselves.  The lighting comes from the combination of various experiences:  the breath of a lover, a sound, music, food or sound that lights and explodes one of our matches.  The glow of these experiences gives us the desire and fuel to live – it nourishes our soul.  Without these combustions in life, our book of matches becomes damp and may never be lighted.  Many things can prevent our matches from being lit and it is important to stay away from those influences.  However, there is always a cure for drying out a box of damp matches.  Dr. Brown continues to warn Tita that it is important to light the matches one at a time because if an “intense burst of emotion were to ignite them all at once, they would produce such a strong brilliance that before our eyes would appear a tunnel of such radiance showing us the path we forgot at birth: the same path that calls us back to our divine origins. In other words, such intense emotion can kill us. 

Tita continues to heal and upon her mother’s death, returns to the ranch to live with Pedro and Rosaura.  John Brown asks Tita to marry him and she agrees.  While John is away she finds that she is pregnant from a sexual encounter with Pedro.  At this same time, her abusive mother haunts her. Tita confronts her mother’s ghost by letting her know that she is aware of her own promiscuity and that she gave birth to an illegitimate daughter, Gertrudis, and tells her that she has the right to live as she pleases.  After this encounter, the hauntings disappear.  The tormenting from Elena was causing a psychological pregnancy and once freed from Elena, she was free of the false pregnancy.  Tita tells John that she cannot marry him because she’s no longer a virgin and that she loves another man, Pedro.  John assures her that he still loves her but that she alone can make the decision to marry him. 

The story fast-forwards to a wedding preparation.  Tita is preparing chilies in walnut sauce, which requires the shelling of 1000 nuts.  Tita lovingly sees to all the banquet arrangements and wants this special day to go off without a hitch.  The reader or viewer is left believing that she is preparing her own wedding feast when in fact, she is preparing the wedding feast for her niece, Esperanza and John’s son, Alex.  Tita’s sister, Rosaura had recently died from digestive problems thus leaving Esperanza free from the family tradition of taking care of the mother until her death.  The chilies are served at the wedding feast and all the guests are overcome with intense sexual desires and quickly make their excuses to leave the festivities.  Tita and Pedro are left alone for the first time in their lives.  As they enter the small cottage, the spirit of Nacha is there and she has lit hundreds of candles.  As they begin to make love, thunder and lightening are heard in the distance.  Pedro shouts, “I love you” and rolls over, dead from his ecstasy.   Using her knitted quilt, Tita covers her and Pedro, and begins to eat a match one at a time.  Remembering their love and experiences over the years, she ignites the matches inside of her.  Her body and the cottage is engulfs in flames and she joins Pedro in eternal happiness.

Freire's Ideas…

This story illustrates the power of oppression and the crippling affects it has on the individuals being oppressed.  Freire believes that once a person is relived of their oppression, they can become oppressors to others.  Elena was unable to fulfill her own love’s destiny by being with the man she truly loved.  Out of anger and frustration with her own oppressive life, she retaliates and oppresses Tita with her own critical and abusive treatment.  Elena was in a state of denial and couldn’t acknowledge her affair and illegitimate daughter.  In her own personal torment, she takes out her internals suffering on Tita.  This story also illustrates that oppression can kill the soul as demonstrated with Tita’s emotional breakdown. Additionally, there is the scene in the story when men raid the ranch and rape Chencha and push Elena over the cliff, killing her, which illustrates another type of oppression, physical and sexual abuse.

Transcends All Borders...

I immediately fell in love with this book when I first read it in the early 1990’s.  Needless to say I was thrilled to find it on our syllabus.  To me, it is not just another love story.  It is a story of how love can penetrate the entire senses and transform a person beyond the physical realm.  The story illustrates how love and passion can be kindled through food, glances, thoughts, etc.  Although many love stories have the common theme of overcoming obstacles, this story is a classic because the obstacles are generated from years of family traditions, of which there is no known reason why it started.  The story sub-theme illustrates how pride can prevent people from taking the steps toward healing and love as shown when Elena refuses to cry or feel anything when Gertrudis runs away with Juan.  (Similar to the classic, “An Affair to Remember” when Terry is too proud to tell Nickie that she’s unable to walk and that is why she didn’t meet him.) The story also illustrates the power of love and how it can transform and motivate a person to do things they would not normally do.  Such as when Pedro marries Rosaura and Gertrudis running off with Juan.  This story captures some of the qualities of the Post Modern Era with its element of Magic Realism, with Tita’s unwilling ability to infuse magical properties and consequences to the food she prepares; Morning Star’s apparitions when Tita is suffering from her mental breakdown (book version), Nacha’s appearance and placement of candles after Alex and Esperanza’s wedding; and the effects of the food on the people consuming it: Rosaura’s wedding, quail and rose petal sauce, and Alex and Esperanza’s wedding.  In summary, this love story illustrates the power of love, how love can conquer evil and/or oppression, and how love is eternal.

Classmate Reviews of Week 12 
Alyssa noted that this is both a love story and a true story.
Brandon wrote how the execution and persecution that Camila and Ladislao faced were all part of the oppression in Argentina at that time.
Candace wrote that the people were oppressed by the rules of the dictator and Camila was oppressed by the obligations of her family.
Kim wrote that one of the reasons her death caused such turmoil among the people was that execution of pregnant women was against the law.
Maria wrote how from the beginning of the movie, the theme illustrated that knowledge can make a person stronger.
Melissa wrote how no one can control whom they fall in love with. This transcends borders and time, today people are being oppressed because of the sex of the person they love, gay marriage is being shunned by our government and by many people who believe it is wrong. 
Michael wrote that this story transcends borders as it could happen in any country with strong cultural views on a religious custom, cultural style or belief. 
Robert feels it was very hard not to admire her courage and perseverance given the male dominant culture she was born into, and her free-thinking ways. 
Sara wrote how Camila transcended many borders. She read and hid books that she was not supposed to have, was more educated than the government would have like her to be, and fell in love with a man that was forbidden to love.
Susan wrote that the people in Argentina were afraid not to follow the dictator and Camila's execution is an example of oppression if you did not obey and follow the rules.

Week 12

"Camila, Love Against All Odds"

Nominated for the Oscar for Best Foreign film in 1984, the movie, "Camila, Love Against All Odds", recounts the true story of a young Buenos Aires socialite, Camila O'Gorman, and a young Jesuit priest, Ladislao Gutierrez who fall in love.  Challenging parental, religious and state authority, the elope and run away.

The story begins in the 1830's when Camila was a young girl and her paternal grandmother is exiled to her father's home for scandalous love affair with a prominent politician and accused of being a spy.  During this time, a ruthless and tyrannical dictator, Juan Manuel de Rosas, who rules through fear and absolute power, runs the government.  Likewise, Camila's father, Adolfo O'Gorman, runs the household through intimidation, far and oppression. 

Camila's brother, Eduardo, introduces Ladislao to the family at Camila's birthday party.  Ladislao and Eduardo were friends and attended seminary together.  In spite of his own attraction toward Camila, he resists her advances.  However, he is unable to repress his feelings and desires and they allow their love to blossom.  They struggle between their love for each other and their obligation and commitment to the church and family.  They finally decide to elope.

Their action causes serious upheaval in the government, the church, and in Camila's family.  Adolfo O'Gorman writes a letter to Rosas with exaggerated embellishment describing their action as "the most atrocious and unheard of event in this country".  Rosas views their actions as extreme disobedience of a moral and social code imposed by his regime.  Rosas issues a warrant for their arrest to prevent further cases of immorality and disorder to religion, family order and the law.

Unwilling to accept their love as a crime, Camila and Ladislao take on new identities, Maxim Brandier and Valentina Desan, and settle in the small village of Corrientes, where they become the village teachers.  The villagers grow to love and accept this young couple that are devoted to each other.  As their popularity grows, they are invited to a gathering at Justice of the Peace, Esteban Perichon's place.  Perichon is Camila's grandmother's brother but the two of them only met once when Camila was an infant.  Although aware of the dangers of public exposure at this gathering, their absence would cause suspicion and they cannot refuse this invitation.  Unfortunately, Miguel Gannon, a priest, recognizes them and although they had an opportunity for escape, they stay together to await their fate.

The two are arrested and sent to Santos Lugares de Rosas.  They continue to express their love for each other and show no signs of repenting for their actions because they know in their hearts that their love for each other is not a crime.  In spite of his wife's pleas, Adolfo O'Gorman refuses to intercede on his daughter's behalf and helps to seal Camila's fate.  Rosas is  enraged by the two lovers and their defiance toward his authority and power, and orders their execution.  Camila is found to be pregnant and the Argentine law states that a pregnant woman should not be murdered until the baby is born.  Rosas disregards the law and without any trial, the two are condemned to death.  On the day of their execution, Camila is given holy water to drink in order to baptize the unborn child.  The two are brought to the execution yard, blindfolded, and placed side-by-side.  When the order to fire is given, Ladislao falls over, dead.  Understanding that this is not an ordinary execution, not one soldier aims his rifle at Camila.   The commander orders his men to fire again at Camila and their shots are aimed away from Camila.  The commander, aiming his firearm at the soldiers and threatening their lives, orders them again to fire at Camila.  This time, their shots kill Camila.  On August 18, 1848, Camila O'Gorman, a pregnant 20-year-old socialite and her lover. Ladislao Gutierrez, were executed for their attempt to escape from a society that would never understand their love for each other.

Freire's Ideas...

This story exemplifies the struggles of oppression in the Argentine society as a result of Rosas' dictatorship and the affect of his rule over personal and political freedom.  Freire believed that people have the desire to become more complete individuals and breaking oppressive situations is one of the paths toward completeness and personal freedom.  Refusing to give into the repressive roles dictated by society, Camila and Ladislao attempted to escape that world and create a better life for themselves.  The current political conditions and their experiences in their lives, made them realize that their love for each other would never be accepted by their family, the church, the government and society, so they chose to elope to honor their love for each other.

What I find interesting is that Rosas felt his power and control threatened by this couple.  Not just from Camila and Ladislao but also by the unborn child.  If the baby were allowed to be born, the baby would symbolize the disobedience of the moral code and his regime and illustrate to the world the possibility of choosing a way of life where there is personal freedom.  Therefore, Rosas had to murder both the mother and unborn child to get rid of any reference to this attempt on his control and power.  In hindsight, Camila and her unborn child's death created social awareness and defiance to the dictator and government which contributed to Rosas' fall from power in 1852. 

Human Story that Transcends Borders

Like a Shakespearean tragedy, the story of Camila and Ladislao stirs emotion in the depths of our soul.  Love stories are universal and this story, just like "Love in the Time of Cholera", proves that you can't control whom you love.  What makes this particular story transcend borders is that Camila and Ladislao were willing to follow their hearts by refusing to become victims of an oppressive society.  The fact that this is a story based upon true events captures our attention and helps to make us aware of injustices in our world.

Classmate Reviews from Week 11

Beatriz - Florentino never lost faith and never gave up the love that he felt for Fermina.

Kathy - Love exists across all borders and is stronger than social standing.

Kelsey - believes that throughout the movie, Fermina loves Florentino, but wants to obey her father's wishes of her being with a man of high status.

Michael -  Florentino's life is is about the relentless pursuit of lost love and Juvenal's life is about stability and doing everything the "right"or properly accepted way. This is what makes the story interesting and spices it up with real world meaning.

Michele - Money provided a class significance that Florentino was unable to achieve in the beginning to win over Lorenzo. This class stigma is what Paulo Freire worked so hard to eliminate through education.

Nancy - Freire’s themes of liberation through learning are important in this movie as Fermina and Florentino both come to know themselves in a way that is needed before they can be united together.

Nicole - Florentino made the choice to become rich and successful like Dr. Juvenal Urbino in order to be worthy of his true love.

Robert - It is the human aspect of any story that is usually the most interesting and wrote in his blog about the characters, their motivations, and the feelings they experienced which effected their motivations and actions.  I like how you pointed out that Fermina is a metaphor for Cholera - good point.  I thoroughly enjoyed reading your blog.

Shannon - This is a is a story of love and rejection, struggle and triumph, good, evil and the gray area in between.

Stacy - Freire's idea that people fear freedom also hold true in this movie. Fermina played a part of ridding her own ideal and heart out of fear of the challenges and pressures of stepping out of class. This was carried into a seemingly superficial marriage of security.