Fiesta (1980) Question

The father brings his children to the mistress’ house because of the power that he holds within the family. The husband for being a man automatically entitles him to be the man of the house and gives him the right to be controlling. In the family we see how controlling he is and if things don’t go his way he gets mad and aggressive. The family letting him do whatever he wants and obeying him lets him believe that he can do whatever he wants without any consequences. As a result he brings his children to the mistress house because he isn’t afraid of the consequences. In the story it states “ We were dressed by then, which was a smart move on our part. If Papi had walked in and caught us lounging in our underwear, he would have kicked our asses something serious”. This illustrates the fear that the children have with their father and it is due to this that the children obey him. They know that if they make their father upset, they will be punished in order to learn their lesson. In order to prevent getting hit by their father they need to get into the habit of knowing how to make their father happy and not making him upset. The father knowing the power that he possesses and the fear that the children have on him gives him another reason to bring his kids to his mistress’ house. The children know that if they tell their mother the truth about him they will be punished and will probably get a beating so hard for snitching.