In 6 pages this paper discusses how 5 Central American novels feature difficult protagonist childhood experiences. Five sources are cited in the bibliography.
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a connection between the early life of the protagonists and the way that their characters later develop. However, it is also the case that childhood experiences invariably have some impact
on adult life, and therefore it would be impossible to delineate a particular aspect of adult behaviour which could not, to some extent, be traced back to earlier formative experiences.
It is true that many of the characters in the five novels undergo particular unpleasant experiences as children, and therefore their reactions to such incidents might well be expected to
have a significant impact not only on the way that their personalities develop, but also the way in which they interact with others.
In Rain of Gold, for example, it is clear that Salvador has been thrown, from a very
early age, into situations where he is obliged to focus solely on survival, whether this requires using his own inherent cleverness and cunning or on using his physical strength. The
graphic description of the ambush which he witnesses as a young child demonstrates that his main priority, even at this early age, is survival, as he takes advantage of the
butchery of the horses to try and rip off chunks of horsemeat to take back to feed his family.
This pragmatism and instinct is reflected in his later life in the USA, when he takes up a life on the streets and
manages to fend for himself most efficiently. He notes at one point that this hard-headed and common-sense approach to life is something in which the Mexicans are superior to the