Chapter two of Junot Diaz’s book, The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao, makes the fictional character feel personal and relatable. Diaz accomplishes this by doing a play-by-play of events, describing everything in detail. This chapter is told from the perspective of Lola at the age of around 14. As an 18-year old, I am basically still a teenager who has a fresh memory of living and coexisting with my parents, being a struggling teenager and having many feelings about life on a daily basis. Many times throughout the chapter, I felt like I could easily relate to Lola and some of the things the character goes through in the book. Several places in chapter two, I would think in my head “I completely understand” while reading the text. Diaz writes, “This is how it all starts: with your mother calling you into the bathroom… You were reading Watership Down… the book has to go back to your brother tomorrow, but then she called you again, louder, her I’m-not-fucking-around voice, and you mumbled irritably. Sì señora” (51). I think every child and teenager has experienced being called by their parents frustratingly. Another spot in chapter two, Lola says, “All you do is complain, she said to me. But you have no idea what life really is. Sì señora” (57). As a child of your parents, many times you hear how you don’t know what “real” life is and are told that you basically don’t know anything, at least not yet. Although it is understandable and valid because children haven’t experienced what their parents have, it is annoying to constantly hear that you know nothing. I completely felt and related to the character’s situation, thought, and reaction. Another aspect of being a human, but specifically a child or teenager, is feeling like what you are doing is not enough or significant. Often times, parents don’t help this feeling by not supporting the children in an effective way. Personally, I strongly connected to Lola when Diaz wrote, “What it’s like to be the perfect Dominican daughter, which is just a nice way of saying a perfect Dominican slave… to grow up with a mother who never said a positive thing in her life, not about her children or the world, who was always suspicious, always tearing you down and splitting your dreams straight down the seams” (56). This passage is both powerful and informative; I knew exactly what Lola meant and was feeling, not only because I experienced something similar, but because I knew what she was feeling through the detail and tone of the text. In this chapter, there is a lot of talk about change: Lola not only talks about her mother’s being ill but also her feelings of change with her physical and emotional self. Lola says, “It was a message more than a feeling, a message that tolled like a bell: change, change, change” (58). Change is something that many of us often hope for, often wait for, and also often dread. However, for Lola, she was fed up with her mother and her life, so change was something she wanted. Lola says, “I looked at the girl in the mirror for a long time. All I knew was that I didn’t want to see her ever again” (59). She is speaking of, what I assume, her reflection in the mirror: the reflection that holds and symbolizes the struggles and frustration in connection to her mother that she wants to rid of. In an attempt to rebel against her mother after being frustrated with her and their relationship, Lola cuts her hair into a short hairstyle that is frowned upon by her mother and culture. This passage and play-by-play of events add to Lola being a personable character. The frustration and feeling being passed through the text make the reader feel what Lola is feeling. The relatable frustration makes the reader be able to connect to the character and understand what she is going through. Lola might be a fictional character, however, Diaz writes her experience and story in a way so descriptive, detailed, relatable, and with feeling that the reader is able to connect, relate, and feel with the character.
