América

Fiction | Poem | Adult | Published in 1998

A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.

Download PDF

Summary

Background

Poem Analysis

Themes

Symbols & Motifs

Literary Devices

Symbols & Motifs

Peanut Butter

Peanut butter, which is at the heart of stanza one, may at first seem an unlikely symbol, but the poet uses it with very deliberate intent. Here, peanut butter signifies something typically American, to which millions of children over many generations can testify. The widespread use of peanut butter in America started in earnest in the Great Depression, and has since become an American tradition. A childhood without peanut butter would surely not really be an American childhood—at least, not a traditional one—and for many people the habit formed in childhood continues into adulthood and is associated with happy memories. When peanut butter is combined with jelly, as the narrator’s mother learns how to do at the end of the stanza, another staple American food appears. Like a moment of epiphany, the mother’s discovery of peanut butter and jelly sandwiches symbolizes a meaningful cultural connection for the family that plays out on a basic, culinary level.

Turkey at Thanksgiving

Turkey at Thanksgiving is a symbol that suggests something uniquely American. It conjures up America’s past and its traditions. The very first Thanksgiving took place in 1621, when the Pilgrims in Massachusetts shared a meal with the Wampanoag Indians as a way of giving thanks for the harvest. Since 1941, the annual tradition of Thanksgiving has been celebrated on the fourth Thursday in November. In the United States, this national holiday is also inextricably linked to eating turkey. Thanksgiving without turkey would hardly be Thanksgiving at all for millions of Americans. According to a survey by the National Turkey Federation, 88 percent of Americans eat turkey on Thanksgiving. This amounts to 46 million turkeys. When the Cuban American family in the poem celebrate Thanksgiving with turkey, then, they are participating in an event that symbolically represents part of the essence of being American. The act also requires them to set aside their own cultural preference for pork, though the family does not abandon it entirely.

Spanish Words and Phrases

A recurring motif in the poem is the use of Spanish words and phrases. This emphasizes the language difference between Cuba and the United States, and the fact that the family portrayed are Spanish-speakers. Examples include the use of “Tía” (Line 1) and “Tío” (Line 69), aunt and uncle, respectively, “Abuelita” (Line 45) (grandmother), “Abuelo” (grandfather, Line 80), “Mamá” (Line 6), “yuca con mojito” (Line 16), “guayaberas” (Line 19), and the phrases, “Ese hijo de puta!” (Line 20), and “esa mierda roja” (Line 76), as well as the Spanish form of the name of the country: “América” (Line 85). Moreover, Spanish names such as “Guadalupe, Lázaro, or Mercedes” (Line 38) are contrasted with the American-sounding names of “Greg, Peter, or Marcia” (Line 34). The frequency with which the Spanish words and phrases occur reminds the reader that the poem presents two very different cultures, including differences of language.