Mary Szeliga Professor Erin Dietel-McLaughlin Community-Based Writing and Rhetoric 07 October 2011 The Brief and Wondrous

Life of Oscar Wao: A Boys Escape from a Violent Cultural Mold Violence as a social act inevitably proves detrimental; Violence in combination with love is lethal. The classic love story involves a prince fighting off a competing suitor, triumphing, through violence, for the hand of his beloved. This situation - fluffed and manipulated by time, authors, and countless circumstantial details is a cross-cultural phenomenon. The story of Sleeping Beauty, for example, depicts a dashing young man fighting dragons, witches, and time to finally reach the woman he loves. A young man awakens Snow White with true loves first kiss after her stepmother poisons her. Violence plays a key role in winning the girls heart. Without violence, the prince seems to lack the masculinity and courage he needs to win her love. This portrays him as unworthy of her love as he is unable, or unwilling, to fight for it. Couple this lack of courage with a tendency toward the abnormal, say science-fiction novels and video games in replacement of campouts and barbeques, and one has a recipe for disaster. Societys pinnacle is its peoples social actions, if people are introverts, then they are seen as not contributing to, not fitting into society. Often times, the nerds at a high school are bullied and ostracized. Athletes, on the other hand, are almost exalted as they bring people together, connecting socially with everyone at the school who has an interest in the athletic program. Cultural, generational, social, educational, and physical factors provide fuel for the perpetual taunting of the controversial hero, Oscar Wao, in Junot Diazs novel The Brief and

Szeliga 2 Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao. Violence exists as a fundamental aspect of Oscars life before he is even born. Oscars cultural surroundings teach of masculinity defined by sexuality and violence, a mold that Oscar eventually finds happiness in defying. This rebellion, however, is a process rather than a single action, as Oscars trials in America prove the far-reaching and devastating effects that historically significant violence in a cultural context can have both across time and seas. The political undertones of the novel reveal the cruelties of Dominican-Republic dictatorships as well as their violent implications. Oscar Wao grew up in a household where he was perpetually held under a violent curse. His grandfather, Abelard Cabral, a well-regarded surgeon and businessman, had a wife and two daughters during the Trujillo dictatorship in the Dominican Republic. He did his best to ignore the political suppression and corruption of Trujillo, until he was unable to keep his beautiful daughters safe from the lust of the greedy dictator. Trujillo was a power-hungry dictator to whom, corresponding to Professor Walter Winks theory, violence has become an aphrodisiac, sheer titillation, an addictive high, as substitute for relationships (Facing). Trujillo created an environment of violence in close connection with sexuality for his people. This setting provides the basis for Oscar Waos story, as a violent history that follows him wherever he goes. Also a part of that history, however, is Abelards undying opposition to Trujillos rule. He refused to let his daughters attend a party at Trujillos house, so Trujillos secret service arrested Abelard under false pretenses and held him captive, torturing him, until his death. Oscars search for the perfect girl leads him to his first heartbreak and long-lasting misfortune with the women in his life. A Dominican boy in New Jersey, seven-year-old Oscar had two girlfriends of the names Maritza and Olga. After a week, Maritza demanded that Oscar

Szeliga 3 choose between the two, causing him to choose Maritza, the prettier one. Olga, crushed, grows up with a self-deprivation that leads her to obesity and unhappiness. Only a week after the choice, Oscar saw Maritza professing her love to another boy. Oscar said nothing, eventually reaching the same fate as Olga, as Maritza blossoms into the greatest catch of New Jersey. The type of girl Maritza portrays and the hurt that Oscar feels as a result of her actions represents a common theme of social violence in gender relations. Journalist Elizabeth Wurtzel explains, The erotic value of this girl emanates directly from the layer of truth hidden beneath her false exterior. It is the very fact of her lie that arouses us. Maritza knows Oscar will choose her, but she needs the reassurance that she is the prettier one. Whether or not she recognizes, at this young age, that beauty is a dominating function of society, Maritza manipulates what she has to keep up her self-esteem. Maritza knows that she is pretty, but she needs the assurance in the form of being Oscars first choice. Novelist Rachel Simmons Im so fat argument parallels this need of assurance. Girls use the statement, Im so fat, to gauge what other people think about them. Girls are really competitive but they dont make it seem that way (123). Maritza does not consider herself fat, and she knows deep down that she is prettier than Olga, but she feels threatened by another girl. Her competitive nature has a side effect, however. When Maritza discards Oscar, he is devastated. This first rejection jump-starts Oscars downward spiral in life. In the modern society, women often find power in their sexuality, manipulating men in such a way considered hurtful to both genders. This trickery constitutes as violence as it hurts the male party in the end. By tricking a partner into thinking that one is interested in the relationship leads only to the other being left to wonder what happened when it comes to an end. On the contrary, a critic might argue Rachel Simmons point from Odd Girl Out: The Hidden Culture of Aggression in Girls, that the feminine mystique has been a part of the woman

Szeliga 4 since the creation of Eve. While women, from creation, are portrayed as mysterious and tempting, it is a matter of values and morals that keeps this virtue from becoming violent. For example, God punishes the biblical Eve for her misleading actions, giving the pain of childbirth (The Catholic Study Bible, Genesis 3). This reaction is meant as a lesson to remind that though the feminine mystique is a powerful existence, women must use it in such a way as to morally uphold society, not cause detriment to it. Maritza uses her feminine mystique to manipulate Oscar into breaking up with his girlfriend. Though she has no feelings for him, she wants to feel powerful in what she can make him do. Men, on the other hand, outwardly promote their sexuality as a sign of manliness. Before his heartbreak, Oscars mother was proud of his talent with women, taking his early onset of manliness as a sign for his bright future. Throughout his time at a catholic, boys high school, Oscar gains weight as he spends more time with science-fiction novels than with the opposite sex or rough-housing with other boys. His family constantly encourages him to find a girlfriend, his sister admonishing him, Youre going to die a virgin (24). When Oscar finally makes friends in college, they find girlfriends and leave him out of the social experience. Though everyone is disappointed in his lack of charm, no one is more downtrodden than Oscar. It is part of his Dominican culture to be a strong lover, and he feels less of a man without a girlfriend. Virginia Woolf suggests that for men, the insults that are most powerfully shaming, and hence violenceprovoking, are those what call into question either their courage or their manliness anything that throws doubt on ones status as a normal, potent, sexually adequate, adult heterosexual male (qtd in Gilligan 57). Constantly taunted by his family and schoolmates as being inadequate in the realm of females, Oscar focuses his violence inward. He never lashes out at any of his

Szeliga 5 surrounding counterparts, turning his anger into hatred of himself. This outwardly nonviolent attitude only amplifies his Dominican lack of masculinity, causing more shame for his family. Violence, like energy, is never destroyed, only converted. Oscar encounters many negative forces in his life, perpetually hearing that he is not good enough. Holding in all of his hostility ultimately results in a few failed suicide attempts and a self-hatred that crippled his life. In college, Oscars roommate, Yunior, attempted to change Oscar into someone he could be proud of. Oscar cut his hair, got contacts, and began regularly running. Even in this improved state, Oscar did not find happiness. After his attempted suicide, he went to his Grandmothers home to do what he could stand - write in seclusion. He met a girl, fell in love, and once again focused hatred on himself as she ultimately rejected him. The turning point, however, occurred when Oscar heroically saved his love, Ybn, from her jealous boyfriend. When this man catches her kissing Oscar, he rallies his friends for murder. Oscar, on the other hand, stands up for what he believes, like his grandfather did before him, a valiant action that resulted in his death. The Dominican tradition values violence and sexuality as a prerequisite for manliness, a mold that Oscar consistently failed to meet. Though he struggled all his life to meet the expectations of others, Oscar remains true to his personal ideals. Violence, an integral part of his surroundings, was never on Oscars agenda. He did his best to ignore the taunts and jabs of his family and friends, eventually reaching happiness at the end of the story as he falls into his place as a science-fiction writer and loses his virginity to Ybn. Oscar Wau, against all odds, developed into a martyr by the end of the novel. His complete abandonment of violence, coupled with his dedication to the love of his life stand perpendicular to everything that he knows as his culture. Beat into his head starting day one,

Szeliga 6 Oscar shies away from the violent and blatant sexuality that he believes classifies him as male. Though this staunch radicalism leads to many unfortunate circumstances in his life, Oscar holds true to his beliefs until the end. His heroic death by the hands of who might be considered a meathead proves that one may rise above an inherently violent culture. Oscar is a figurehead against violence, giving hope to anyone struggling with violence and removing the excuse that it is a part of humanity.

Szeliga 7 Works Cited Gilligan, James. Preventing Violence. New York: Thames and Hudson, 2001. Print. Simmons, Rachel. Odd Girl Out: The Hidden Culture of Aggression in Girls. New York: Harcourt, 2002. Print. The Catholic Study Bible. Ed. Donald Senior. New York: Oxford University Press, 2006. Print. Wink, Walter. "Facing the Myth of Redemptive Violence." (2007). Ekklesia. Web. 1 Oct. 2011.