Research Paper on:
Immigrant Cultural Identity in Jose Antonio Villarreal's Pocho

Unformatted Sample Text from the Research Paper:
are somehow caught between the culture of their people and the culture of the land in which they live. This is a very paramount theme in Jose Antonio Villarreals "Pocho."  In the following paper we examine the novel, illustrating how Pocho has difficulties in terms of cultural identity, for he is caught between the American culture and the culture of  Mexico. Because of this conflict that involves his cultural identity he is essentially left to create a new culture of sorts, something very common with second generation immigrants.  Pocho and Cultural Identity Pocho is a novel that centers on the Rubio family. They are a Mexican immigrant family who live in central California during the early portion  of the 20th century. The primary focus of the story is the son, Richard, who is the only son of the family. In the beginning of the story we see  the character of Richards father, Juan, who has come from Mexico to find opportunities for himself and his family in California. With the arrival of Richard the family heir  is set, for all other births in the family are girls. This reality presents us with many strong conditions and cultural realities throughout the book. For example, Richard, upon coming  home from school one day, looks at his house, and notes the following: "On the floor of the living room, where two of the girls slept, blankets and a mat  still lay, reeking strongly of urine, because the girls still wet their beds at the ages of eight and ten. Only his bed was made up, because his mother could  not neglect him" (Villarreal NA). This type of reality is very powerful for Richard for he knows that he is considered special in his culture, but he is also trying