It is hard to like or feel any sympathy for the American-raised Dominican Harvard professor at the centre of this story by Junot Diaz. The serial cheater who slept with fifty other women over the course of a six-year relationship belatedly realizes that the fiancé who dumped him was “the one”. Over the next six years he struggles to deal with the consequences of losing her while facing debilitating physical conditions and constant racial taunts and profiling. Themes include love vs. desire, infidelity and its consequences, heartbreak, depression, self-awareness and redemption, racism. More…
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The Sun, the Moon, the Stars
This story by Junot Díaz examines transnational relationships between young Hispanic Americans. It focuses on the doomed love affair between a Dominican-American man and his long-suffering Cuban girlfriend and, in doing so, the pressures they face from family and friends. It contrasts the woman’s desire for true love and commitment with the man’s unsuccessful attempts to shake off the stereotype of Latino machismo. The man maintains he is not a bad guy, but doesn’t seem to understand how to treat a woman with consideration and respect. Themes include responsibility in relationships, infidelity, self-deception, national pride, socioeconomic differences. More…