Viramontes

Helena Maria Viramontes' "The Cariboo Cafe" depicts, from all angles, the struggle of Mexican immigrants. In the process, it inspects many of the elements that are applicable to people who do not fall under this category, such as "good" and evil, loss, and compassion. My favorite thing about this story, however, was the way in which it was written. The use of narrative and voice is extraordinarily complex. In truth, this was one of the things that made a bit confusing and difficult to follow. With that in mind, I think there is much to be said about possible motivations with respect to the narrative.

Viramontes writes the story from three different perspectives, establishing a context for each and then aggressively alternating between perspectives. The first is a third person narrative, which follows Sonya and her brother, Macky. The second is the owner of the Cariboo cafe who, despite the rough exterior the voice of his narrative portrays, seems to genuinely care about many people, including strangers. The last is the first person narrative of a women who has lost her son, Geraldo. I think Geraldo (or Macky?) is a very important figure in the story, primarily because he is the only character throughout the story who is given three separate names- one for each narrative. In the first, under the care of Sonya, he is Macky. To the owner of the Cariboo cafe, he is Short Order, and to the women who believes that he is her child, he is Geraldo. I think this, in combination with the aggressive alternation of the narratives, suggests that the people in the story are interchangeable. These problems are not specific to one family, or even specific at all. The constantly shifting narrative keeps the reader on their feet, always asking who is telling the story and who is being spoken about when in reality, in the context of the immigration problem, it could apply to any immigrant who is suffering in this manner. This is supported when the women is first looking for her child, Geraldo. The narrator claims "The women came up from the depths of sorrow to search for their children. I join them" and that she "hears the wailing of the women and knows it to be her own" (Viramontes 72-73). Both of these quotes support the idea that she is one of many people facing the same struggle, which is, in this case, losing their children to police officers fighting illegal immigrants. More evidence to support this concept stems from quotes that make characters vague or interchangeable. For example, the narrator claims "as time passed, buses came less frequently, and every other person seemed to resemble popi" (Viramontes 66). The fact that the women and the cafe owner are not given names further support the same idea.
 As an end / side note, this story reminds me of an anime (I'm a closet anime fan) called Baccano, which plays with narrative and voice in a similar manner, switching vigorously between protagonists, and even points in time, making it very difficult to watch and grasp after one try. One of the points made in the very beginning (or end) of the show is that people should "free themselves from the illusion that stories have beginnings and endings" as well as "main characters". Just some food for thought. Though I'm not sure if the two relate in content, they most certainly relate in their narratives.