Family Lore

Though the Marte women in Family Lore love one another, their relationships are nevertheless strained by silencing. Elizabeth Acevado suggests the Marte family’s gaps in knowledge not only perpetuate misunderstanding but patriarchy. As a member of the family’s youngest generation, Ona explicitly poses the question, “How do lineages of women from colonized places, where emphasis is put on silent enduring, learn when and where to confide in their own family if forbearance is the only attitude elevated and modeled?” (131). In the novel, the answer lies in silence, isolation: Despite being surrounded by other women, the Martes lack support due to self-isolation. For example, the Martes lack medical knowledge of the female body, leading to painful situations such as Ona’s reliance on pornography to reclaim her vaginal gift and Mamá Silvia and Matilde’s miscarriages. Outside of medical issues, Pastora never learns of her mother’s hatred for the Santana family on her behalf. The Martes’ refusal to clarify and question norms upholds patriarchy, as it thrives on keeping women ignorant. For example, though Matilde’s husband Rafa is an adulterer, Silvia insists the couple stay together, as Matilde’s inability to conceive makes her “broken.” Silvia accepts Rafa’s behavior as the norm, dooming her daughter for years.

Ona’s question (131) also foreshadows her research project, as amassing her mother Flor’s, aunts, and cousin’s experiences is what finally breaks their silence. The novel ends with an abstract, revealing the novel as Ona’s project; in completing the story, the reader is made privy to the Martes’ knowledge and becomes a part of their history. However, Ona admits her project is incomplete: “I had to make up the parts you could not tell me […] all the things you barred behind your teeth” (338). Like Flor’s unspoken story for Yadi (Chapter 39), this quote underlines the Martes’ history as “barred behind teeth,” clenched in collective pain. Ona cannot collect all memories, but despite this limitation, her project begins to fill in gaps left behind by past and present generations of silenced women—and promises dialogue for future generations such as her own baby (perhaps, a daughter).