On The Latino Machismo In Junot Díaz's The Brief Wondrous Life Of Oscar Wao

Junot Díaz is one of the most distinguished contemporary writers.In The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao,set in the background of the Trujillo's dictatorial regime in the Dominican Republic,Díaz has depicted a traumatic history of a Dominican American family and the vital influence of Latino machismo among the immigrants through generations.Through a textual analysis,this thesis explores the Latino masculinity represented by Díaz and investigates the trans-generational trauma of the de Leons,demonstrating their relentless endeavors in confrontation with the social restraints and injustices towards both sexes within an internalized cultural discourse of machismo and trying to reconstruct a more positive and ideal alternative of masculinity.The main body of this thesis consists of three parts.Based on historical references and textual analyses,this thesis first investigates the Latino machismo represented in the novel and explores the origins of the family trauma of the de Leons.Then,it describes the endeavors of the female characters of the family in confronting the dominance and gender-based injustice within a patriarchal discourse.Finally,the thesis analyzes Oscar's marginalized identity and the implication of his ultimate transformation.Through textual analyses,this thesis explores the traumatic family history of the de Leons and investigated their persistent endeavors in confronting the dominant machismo.Though it was a journey filled with frustrations and predicaments,the de Leons have ultimately managed to shed some light on the process of deconstructing the internalized discourse of machismo and illuminating a possibility of reconstructing a more positive alternative of masculinity that could liberate both men and women from the traditional construct of machismo.In the novel,Díaz has represented the oppression and injustice towards both sexes of the dominant machismo from the Trujillo regime to the contemporary society,revealing his concerns and criticisms of the negative construct of machismo as well as expressing his ideal vision of constructing a stronger loving world through Oscar's final transformation.