All the Pretty Horses Pd. 3 Connector Paula Ferrara
Ok, so I’d like to connect what has happened so far in the book to a real-life crisis that America is facing right now: illegal immigration. Mexicans are crossing the U.S./Mexican border so they can start a new and better life in the United States. In the story, the same thing has happened, only the other way around. John Grady, Rawlins, and Blevins are Americans who cross the border illegally.
The U.S. is known as the land of opportunity. That is why Mexicans are trying to sneek across the border. They want to start better lives. Those illegal immigrants who are caught are usually deported back to their own country, whether it be Mexico or somewhere else, unless they get some sort of special permission.
In the book, the reason the three Americans cross the border isn’t really made clear. It’s assumed Blevins has had a hard life at home with his stepfather, but with John Grady and Rawlins the reason they left is sketchy. Rawlin’s seems to be sick beyond the help of medicine and John Grady doesn’t want to leave the home he’s always known to go live in some city where he’d have to start all over again. Did these three characters cross the border for the same reason illegal immigrants are now? To start a better life? Or did they just want to “get away from it all”? Also, what do you think will happen to them if the Mexican government finds them? The people they’ve met so far don’t really care if they are illegal immigrants, but the government may think differently. Do you think they’ll be deported, or killed, or…. what?
Category: Per 3 WotW Con 5 comments »
March 22nd, 2009 at 10:24 am
The reason that John Grady and Lacey Rawlins are leaving America for Mexico is because they are pursuing their old way of life. John Grady has worked on his grandfathers land all his life, but now that he is dead and the land is going to be sold, his life is going to change. He enjoys the life of a cowboy more than anything else, and he thinks that if he goes south to Mexico he will find it there again.
I do not know what will happen to the three if they are caught by the Mexican government because i don’t know what the law for Mexican immigration was in the 1950’s. But from the violence we have seen shown from the Mexicans so far, i would say that getting caught would be a very bad thing for them.
-Ditz
March 22nd, 2009 at 12:11 pm
I think that the three boys immigrated to Mexico to get away from it all. They seemed to be having troubles in their families, or in their ownselves. I think that they moved to Mexico so that they could get away and live a life with no strings attached. If the Mexican government finds them I don’t know what will happen to them becuase I have never heard of an American illegaly immigrating to Mexico. A little funny? But if the Mexican government found them, my guess would be that they would either send them back to the United States (just like we do to them) or they will just let them go. Hard to answer that question.
-Abbey Stefanides
March 22nd, 2009 at 1:19 pm
I agree with Abbey that they are just trying to get away from it all. They just want to start over, noone in Mexico knows them so they can try again. However I think that it is a bad move for John. He loved the Ranch back home so why move away from it?
-Kody
March 22nd, 2009 at 1:26 pm
Ohhh and to answer the second question I don’t think that the Mexican Government would do anything to stop them because they have too manhy other things to deal with.
-Kody
March 22nd, 2009 at 9:28 pm
In response to Kody’s first comment, he can’t stay home to live on the ranch because it is being sold. That is why John is going to Mexico in the first place.
-Ditz