The Flowers Essay

Sarah Lopez                                                                                                              Lopez 1

Professor Stacey Knapp

English 1B

March 22, 2011

Sonny Becoming A Man

     After reading the novel, The Flowers by Dagaberto Gilb, a reader could come to the conclusion that many of the different cultural views and backgrounds from different characters in the novel help influence Sonny into becoming a man. Cloyd and Pink have very opposing views on many topics, but these two key characters help shape and form Sonny into his development of becoming a man. In this essay I will be discussing my topic using Reader response theory and Sociological criticism.

     In the novel Sonny is introduced to several characters, but one he is forced to be around the most, which is his new stepfather is Cloyd. Cloyd just recently married Sonny’s mother, Sylvia. Although Sonny and Cloyd don’t get along very well, Cloyd is a major influence on the development of Sonny becoming a man. Cloyd and Sonny have very opposing views on many different things, but these different cultural views help shape Sonny into becoming a man.

     In one scene during the novel, Cloyd is talking to Sonny about how he was always raised to be a hunter and that he himself hunted Elk. Cloyd explains to Sonny, “You got a lot to learn boy. That there is Elk. A Black Elk.”(30). What Cloyd is implying by saying

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this statement is that Sonny should learn how to hunt. Sonny goes on to explain in his head that, “I didn’t care so much that he killed them. It was how killing them meant how much better he thought he was than me. How it meant he was a man, and I couldn’t be one if I didn’t blow away a dumb deer with a shotgun.”(30). Cloyd was trying to impose his cultural views on Sonny about hunting but Sonny doesn’t agree with Cloyd. This scene helps show the reader that Sonny feels he doesn’t need to kill a deer or yet even be a hunter to be a man, he can do what he wants and he himself has to decide what makes him a man.

     Another key character Sonny meets in the novel is Pink. Sonny is first introduced to Pink while he is doing his daily task of cleaning up around the apartment complex. Pink nicely offers Sonny a beer by stating, “My advice, little brother, is that you need a beer.” Offering Sonny a beer, which is an adult decision. Pink later offers Sonny to take a break and they both hop into a four door Pontiac. Pink heads down the boulevard and stops on the side of the street to pick up some beers. Sonny states in his head, “Two beers in two wrapped up lunch bags were delivered to him, and he handed on to each of us.”(65). As they are leaving Pink ask Sonny, “You wanna drive this?”(65). Sonny refuses to drive as they head over to the car shop. A reader can clearly see how Pink meets Sonny at an eye o eye level of being a man by allowing him to do more adult things such as drink a beer or drive a car. Ultimately giving Sonny the option to make his own decisions, such as a man would do.

     In another scene with Pink and Sonny, both of them are inside the car shop and Pink is talking to the worker behind the register. Pink goes on to explain to Sonny that, “That is a

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good man in the making, one who ain’t gonna be led by nobody. Ain’t that right Sonny?”(67). In this quote Pink is refereeing to Sonny about how he will grow up to be a great man, who will be wise enough to make his own decisions.

     Pinks character is important in the novel, The Flowers, because Pink helps develop Sonny into becoming a man by helping him realize that men can make by helping him realize that men can make their own decisions. Pink is also key to the development of Sonny becoming a man by also encouraging and telling Sonny of his confidence that he will grow up to be a great man. Unlike Cloyd who doesn’t really meet Sonny eye to eye on things and trys to tell him that his cultural views such as hunting is what Sonny should do.

     By the end of the novel, The Flowers ,Cloyd and Pink are the two main men  and characters in Sonny’s life who he has to learn from in his journey in the novel into becoming a man. Sonny learns that he feels he doesn’t  need to hunt in order to be a man from Cloyd and from Pink he learns that a grown man makes his own decisions based on his own ideas.

Transitions

addition- again,also,and,and then,besides,equally important
comparison- also,in the samw way,likewise,similarly
concession- granted,naturally,of course
contrast- although,and yet,at the same time,but at the same time,despite that,evenso,even thought,for all that
emphasis- certainly,indeed,infact,of course
example or illustration- after all,as an illustration,even,for example,for instance,in conclusion,in fact
summary- all in all,altogether,as has been said,finally,in conclusion,in other words,in particular,in simpler terms,in summary
time sequence- after a while,afterward,again,also,and then,as long as,at last,at length,at that time,before,besides,earlier,eventually,finally,fomeraly, further,subsequently

Rough Draft: The Flowers

     After reading the novel, The Flowers  by Dagaberto Gilbs, a reader could come to the conclusion that one of the novel's main theme's is racism and diversity concerning the community at The Flowers apartment complex. There seems to be a visible tension and dislike between Pink and Cloyd as they both have opposite views regarding the topic of people who are of African American ethnicity. Another thing to take notice to is how many of the people who live in the apartment complex come from diverse cultural backgrounds. In this essay I will be discussing my topic using Sociological Critiscism and Reader Response to depict the two main controlling themes of the novel.
     Throughout The Flowers there are important various reoccuring scenes during the novel that support and display one of the theme's of racism through the book. For example in one scene when Cloyd asks Sonny information about Pink by stating, " Did Pink sell a car to those colored again?"(pg.109). Then one of Cloyd's friends , Bud, enters the room and joins the conversation and say's, "What's to them Blacks anyway?"(pg.110). In this scene you can clearly see that Cloyd and Bud have some sort of a disliking towards black people because why would it matter who he sells the car to.
     Later on in the scene Cloyd goes on to say, "I didn't say I would."(pg.110). Refering to him not allowing people who are of African American descent to live in The Flowers apartment complex. Then Cloyd continues his statement by saying, "Fact I wouldn't. But that don't mean they aren't coming. They're all around us, multiply like mexicans."(pg.110). What Cloyd is saying is that he wouldn't allow black people to live in his apartment complex because they "multiply like mexicans".  This displays stereotyping people and discrimination on behalf of their ethnic background, which is ultimatly racism.
     Another important them in the novel is diversity. As Sonny is given the job duty to clean up at The Flowers apartments he begins to get to know the other characters throughout the novel. So the reader can also begin to see all the cultural differences between all the charactesrs as well. For example Cloyd and Sonny have different views of what defines a man. In one specific scene Cloyd is talking to Sonny about the elk he had and Sonny goes on to explain in his head that, "I didn't care so much that he killed them. It was how killing them meant how much better he thought he was than me. How it mean he was a man, and I couldn't be one if I didn't blow away a dumb deer with a shotgun."(pg.30). This is a firm example of how two people, Cloyd who is of a white background, and Sonny who is of mexican background, have different points of what defines a man. Now its not because the tone of their skin that makes this diverse its that they both come from two different cultural backgrounds and that may be what makes them different from one another.
     The theme of diversity carries out throughout the novel by Sonny observing the different characters. For example Bud was a big white guy who for some reason did not like black people, Nica was a sky mexican girl who could barly speak english. While Pink who lived in apartment number six was albino. As well as Sonny was of mexican descent. There are very many different cultural background differences between all the characters thus supporting the them of diversity in The Flowers.
     In many of the various scenes explain in this essay  from The Flowers a reader could come to the conclusion  that the two main themes of the novel are racism and diversity.

Idea

For my essay I will be using the Reader Response because I feel like I can express more of my own ideas versus following a formalist response. I will be writing about how Sonny feels displaced from his own home and how other characters of the novel help shape and change his character throughout the novel, The Flowes.

Prediction about the money.

     I am predictin that Sonny will run away with the money beacause he doesnt like his home life of the fact that he has to live with Cloyd. To be more specific about where Sonny will, go I predict that maybe Sonny will go out in the world and observe more people. My other prediction is that Sonny took the money from Cloyd just to get back at him for never paying him to clean up around the apartment. Sonny would always complain that "The Cloyd" would never pay him for his duties, and that really pissed him off.
     If I were Sonny I would have not taken the money because, stealing from someone regardless of what they have said or done to you is not right. Even though Cloyd doesn't pay Sonny for his work. Sonny should try and talk to Cloyd about the situation as an alternative.

What is the significance of Pink?

     The cars salesman is another character introduced in the novel as, Pink. He lives in apartment number six and is new to the apartment building. Pink is first introduced in the novel when Sonny is doing one of his usual routines of cleaning up around the apartment complex and Pink offered Sonny a beer, " I been watching you....my advice, little brother, is that you need a beer."(pg.63). Then Pink offers Sonny to let him drive the Bel Air when he says, "you wanna drive this?"(pg.65). It seems like Sonny and Pink are both observesr at this point in the novel and they seem to get along well too, maybe because they are both outcasts.
     In one particular scene from the novel Sonny walks up to Pink and he offers Sonny the Bel Air that was sitting in his car space. Pink later goes on to say, "This one's yours, you want it, little brother."(pg.118). In this scene Sonny later goes on toask Pink, "You're not asking cause of Longpre, are you?" I think that Pink wants to give Sonny theBel Air in exchange for Sonny to "keep his ears open" about what Cloyd and Bud have been saying about him. From this scene I predict that Sonny and Pink will become closer and that Sonny will keep his ear open for Pink.
     The significance of Pink is that he is different from Cloyd in the simple fact that Pink interacts with African Americans and Cloyd dissaproves of this. Therefore I predict that Sonny will keep an ear open for ink so Pink can see what is being said behind his back.

Character Description of Sylvia

     Sylvia seems to be an outgoing, social, friendly person, but behind that she is seen in the novel as being a bad mom. Sonny proclaims in the beginning of the novel that his mom was hardly ever around. Sonny states, "It was that my mom, if she wasn't at her job, was out on dates and whateve. And sometimes she'd get in so late I wouldn't be awake"(pg. 5). You would think that if you were a mother you would try and spend as much time with your child as possible, but not Sylivia, she seems to be more occupied by herself. Sylvia also seems to care more about her apperance as well. She always has nice clothes, pretty hair, and prefume. Sonny explains this when he says, "My mom was dressed too pretty to take serious, shampoo in her hair  and body lotion smell, and she was trying to hard to sound happy. Nobody'd believe her except her."(pg.17)Sylvia also appears to be a bad housewife too. In one scene Sonny explains how he mom can't cook when he says, "He (Cloyd) said, ' I love to eat them tacos, and now i even got myself married to a pretty mexican gal, he said that. Really. The dude who my mom married. She had some rice on the stove, and something was going wrong there, because her face was close to the burner, watching it boil through the glass cover. I knew something was more messed up when Cloyd complimented her on her chili salsa. He might as well have complimented her on the tortilla chips, because she bought them at the store too."(pg.51).  In this scene you can clearly see how Sylvia does not fit in quite well with the whole housewife stereotype.
     Sylvia seems to be a stay at home mom, who doesn't work and goes out shopping a lot, while Sonny is left to fend for himself. So far in the novel it seems to be that Sylvia is a bad mom and is very selfish. Who knows though, maybe Sylvia will change during the novel and become a better mom and a better cook.