29 thoughts on “Asynchronous Assignment on The Poet Slave of Cuba (Pages 87-129)”

1. Option 1
   Juan’s description of la Zafra expresses a disconnect from the Spanish calendar and the way time passes for slaves compared to those who are free. Before talking about la Zafra, Juan writes about the Holy Week that comes before it where noble women “have to be humble / so that even the dark ones / aren’t allowed / to look light” (87). This description illustrates the colorism of Cuba’s racial hierarchy that places him at the bottom. Juan also describes the willful ignorance of some noble women/slave owners of their half-sibling slaves, ignoring the horrors of slavery. While describing la Zafra, Juan points out the contrast between the sweetness of the sugarcane and the tortuous work that the slaves endure while harvesting it. It’s extremely ironic that the sweetness of the sugarcane is only able to be enjoyed due to the bitterness with which it was harvested. Juan writes extremely visual images of slaves dying for the sweet syrup and sugar produced for export, and the enjoyment of those higher up on the hierarchy. They are so overworked that they chop off their own limbs, get crushed by wheels, and fall into boiling vats of syrup. These images evoke emotions in the reader and portray the pain slaves go through for the sake of producing goods. Juan also seems to be losing the hope that he showed in his previous poems; he compares his heart to the bagasse, the dry and fibrous trash produced by the sugarcane. It also shows that the slaves get no enjoyment from the sugarcane, they only receive the bitter fibrous excess of it.

   1. I agree that Juan’s description of la Zafra, the sugarcane harvest, stands out because of the image of the canecutters, who suffer and die when they harvest the sugarcane, only for it to be enjoyed by the people at the top of the hierarchy. The sweetness of the sugarcane and the bitterness of the harvest relate to Juan calling Cuba a “bittersweet island of sugar and dreams.” Dreams are significant because Juan sees Cuba as a “land of dreams and legends, island of fantasies where I almost exist.” In the chapel, Juan is wounded and feels that he does not exist for three days, then he feels pain for three more days. This connects to how Juan was so overwhelmed when he was in the fields because he did not need to see the scratches or scars of the canecutters in order to feel their pain. “Out in the fields there are faces/ the faces of slaves/ chopping cane/ faces scratched/ by the razor-sharp leaves/ faces trapped/ so I keep my eyes closed/ it’s enough just feeling/ their pain” (98). Juan appears to be losing hope because he compares his heart to the bagasse as “dry, fibrous trash.” But Juan regains hope when he suddenly belongs to Don Nicolás, calling it a miracle.

   2. I found this section to stand out the most. I agree with you, there is an evil irony of how sweet the sugar is compared to the cruel way it comes to be. It becomes more and more clear that slave owners, and even the overseer at some point REALLY do not see those enslaved as people. I believe it comes as a result of greed and power. They want to produce as much as possible, no matter how long or horrible it is for them. Like you said, it bring emotions to the reader. Continuing, we read about the physical horrors of this slavery, as well as the emotional damage he experiences. Juan writes about how eventually he learned to just close his eyes during punishment , so he can just feel and hear the pain being imposed on him and others. His eyes are too fed up with seeing all of the blood and pain of himself and the others. He is making the reader get the sense that he is surely getting fed up. Especially after the accidental death of a boy who was also a native like him. I think it is so important how he was thinking about how if he didn’t move out of the way he would also be dead, but it’s surprising to him that he did since he has been begging for death for so long. I love how he acknowledges that he still has his human instinct to survive, even though he feels completely hopeless.

   3. I agree that Juan is losing hope that we have been seeing through out his poetry. After he was severely beaten and locked away for 9 days, he starts really losing sight of himself and and questioning his own thoughts, actions and emotions. Also, the comparison of slaves to sugar cane is very important in these pages. Juan writes in great detail about the sweetness of the sugar cane and how to make something so beautiful there is always someone in the background who is dealing with the pain, struggles and agony of it all. I do agree that his words really evoke the pain he is going through as he describes their tasks with sugar cane. He goes into great detail to highlight the pain he feels comparing it to “chopping off their own limbs.”To me, Juan has lost his way as the story gets deeper and deeper. He got committed for a small crime, his mother is free, his slave mother is gone ad all his siblings are free. With each sad event occurring in his life it translates through his poetry styles.

2. The main feature of the description of la Zafra that stood out to me was the personification of the sugarcane, which acts as a metaphor for the inhumane treatment of the canecutters. Juan starts by juxtaposing the “bitter harvest” with the “towering, sweet-flavored sugarcane,” establishing the two extremes present in la Zafra that will be used to further develop the metaphor. The subsequent personification of the sugarcane is explicit, as Juan details the “delicious syrup encased inside stems/ as tall as a giant/ as thick as an arm.” Later on, however, Juan compares the treatment of the canecutters to the sugarcane in a more subtle way. Juan says the canecutters “chop off their own limbs/ or drop under the wheels/ of the oxcarts/ or fall into vats of boiling syrup/ or are crushed/ between the stones/ that grind the cane” (88). This imagery of the horrors the canecutters endure evokes the image of actual sugarcane being harvested, that is, being chopped down or plowed under ox carts. To la Marquesa and the wealthy, the canecutters are not perceived as humans, but rather equivalent to the sugarcane they are harvesting.

   Juan ties it all back together when he compares the bagasse – “dry, fibrous trash” – to what remains of his heart (89). This ties together the central metaphor of the harvest of sugarcane representing the inhumane working conditions and treatment the canecutters must suffer through. Like the sugarcane before the harvest, the canecutters had “delicious syrup encased inside” them, or a heart. But now, after the bitter harvest, the canecutters and sugarcane are left only with a bagasse instead of a heart, shells of themselves.

   1. I think that the horrors described in the cutting of cane or slave labor in general by Juan is crazy being that there is this big sugarcane harvest taking place. It is ironic how something so sweet can be so cruel and dark. As Gabriel says, the two extremes placed in front of Juan are complete opposites. On the slaves side he has the harsh “bitter sweet” reality of cutting cane where people are not even whole after, Juan compares his heart to a bagasse meaning he feels like trash itself, along with Juan feeling this way there is also the harsh reality of a group of suffering where people are literally losing limbs for this. On the side of those with privilege they are able to indulge this delicacy without issue other than a big belly. The ideas of extremes that Gabriel presents really is important being that Juan and the other slaves understand how sweet this cane is and how good it probably is but they are getting quite literally destroyed to provide it.

      I thought that La Marquesa puts Juan through a quite living hell. He is deprived of his freedom initially, locked in a basement, constantly beaten, watching people die and get battered but in pages 92-94 she is beefing with him over a coin that was meant for a beggar. Juan is given a task of giving a beggar a coin but he chose to put himself first and swapped it with his older coin given to him by Don Nicolas. When he got found out La Marquesa made him feel bad about his actions and Juan repents saying, “I am shameless, shameful. She’s always right. Isn’t she? Or is she?”(94). Juan has a moment of self doubt but in the end I think his natural instincts kick in and he returns to his right mind. Juan is a slave and La Marquesa values a beggar over his own life to where that person deserves a coin but Juan doesn’t. The realities faced with this new life are almost impossible to adapt to.

      1. I agree with your analysis regarding sugarcane and how something so sweet could be represented as cruel and evil. Digging deeper into your response, I feel that maybe Juan viewed the harvest as motivation or a sign of something positive since he is being controlled by someone abusive. Also, going back to what you said about Juan feeling like trash because of this situation, he doesn’t get to enjoy the sugarcane the way others can. I also agree with your viewpoint of La Marquesa making Juan feel shameful. La Marquesa is creating this internal problem within Juan and she’s making him feel bad for everything he does, which is adding to the abuse he’s already going through. It’s heartbreaking to see that he’s trying his best and he still gets bad feedback and mistreatment for anything he does. Adding to your response, I want to say that you can see the development Juan has. Although he is getting abused and he is feeling so negative, he still pushes forward with what he has to do. It’s difficult because Juan is getting attacked and criticized for everything he does but his writing becomes a sort of an escape from reality for him.

3. I would describe Manzano’s spirituality as hopeful since all of these spiritual moments are making him realize his optimism. When he is getting whipped, all of a sudden “Secretly, the overseer stops whipping—————–maybe the angel placed a vision in the overseer’s mind a winged picture of what it would feel like if his eyes were closed” (100) this leads Manzano to “trying to please the angel of God who sends visions of mercy” (102). Since the overseer stopped whipping him, Manzano feels a sense of optimism in his life now since he hadn’t died from the whipping. Even though Manzano was stuck in a dark place and imagines “that one more spirit has entered the room” and that he is “trapped [which is] just one more visible example of death” (109), him being alive in itself is said to be a miracle; he could’ve been those dead people, but he is still alive and surviving. Although he believes this pain is possibly worse than death (107), his hopeful spirituality makes him optimistic on his relationship with Don Nicolas as Manzano says ”O merciful Lord, did you actually hear my prayers and the begging of my brothers?”(129). Manzano got paid with coins, is allowed to buy cures for his illnesses, and so on and so forth (129). Manzano’s spirituality gave him hope to be treated in a better way, and so far it is looking out fine. Will this continue? Unfortunately, I believe not since he is still enslaved to some form. But for now, Manzano’s spirit brings hope and optimism.

   1. I can totally agree with you in regards to his spirituality. You mention that his spirituality gives him a sense of hopefulness and optimistic which is the something I would have said. Specifically in this weeks reading because now as readers we are able to see the pain that Juan goes through in terms of the whippings and the mistreat of labor. Juan mostly questions God but not as doubting but as hope. As if God is causing the overseer to feel some type of empathy towards Juan even though at times the overseer is torturing Juan. The overseer mentions “I grab the rope,/ I yank it to save him / proud of my compassion” (119). Although Juan was severely injured by the time the torture stopped at least the overseer did not kill him with the amount of torture that Juan was receiving.

      Don Nicholas is like a gift from God. He is always trying to help out Juan and actually be a friend to him instead of being just being another person that tortures him. You mention that Don Nicholas pays Juan so that he can buy his medicine. Juan mentions “Miracles amaze me / watch how he pays me / with coins” (129). I believe this is the kindest thing Don Nicholas has done so far to try to help out Juan.

   2. Hello Mohammed i completely agree on your comment of optimism, in some ways i think that Juan and his mother Maria start to place more faith on their spirituality during the harsh events that occurred and are occurring. As you said once the overseer stopped whipping him, Juan seemed appreciative and in some way he felt comfort knowing that his spirituality has kept him alive. According to Juan if the punishment’s continued for the nine days he wouldn’t be there to tell his story but thankfully his god has showed him mercy. Maria also seems to be more faithful during the events, Maria goes on to say that her god is good and more powerful than any evil in the world and asks why is the devil even trying as he’s no match to her and Juan’s faith. To me it looks like hope and faith is what has allowed them to get this far in the harsh reality that they’re living. I know you’ve said that you believe that Juan’s spirituality will weaken and that and that it will not continue but I’m optimistic and think that Juan and his mother will get through the hardships as long as they keep their spirituality strong. Juan will be given his freedom if he just holds a little longer and keeps believing.

   3. I agree with you, Juan’s spirituality has never wavered in these moments of abuse and torture. During the nine days of his whippings even while losing strength and life when he received some mercy from the Overseer, and saw the visions of God and his Angels enlightening the Overseer’s mind and make him stop. Throughout these horrific days the Overseer is overcome with feelings of guilt and frustration, bringing up the question whether it was really easier to be in this immoral side, what was another sick characteristic of slavery. The overwhelm of these sensations must have been brought upon him by the Heavens, through Juan’s unwavering faith in his God. Each time Juan was saved from his close meeting with death, his instinct was to look up and thank his faith for being so kind. Juan’s religion was a comfort that never left, not even poetry and art hung around long enough through his punishments. After all, how could they? They were beaten away from him, threatened if he dared reach out their warmth, growing to fear them, even if only a little, when he outright told ‘No’ to La Marquesa de Prado Ameno, he wasn’t going to carve words in the leaves (114), a pretty devastating statement. It takes time for Juan to even begin to warm up to the idea of picking up a quill, yet his beliefs remained next to his side through his adversity.

   4. I think that your perspective is completely valid when you stated, “I would describe Manzano’s spirituality as hopeful since all of these spiritual moments are making him realize his optimism”. Throughout the first half of the poem we see how Juan continues to have hope to be like the other slaves who became “winged”. Further, I like how you mentioned that the experience that Juan is going through continues to enhance his optimism, I couldn’t help to agree. I feel that Juan’s hardships is what will truly be his testimony towards the end of the poem. You stated towards the end of your discussion, “Will this continue? Unfortunately, I believe not since he is still enslaved to some form”. I strongly believe that towards the end of the poem he will be free and united with his family again.

4. Option 2
   The Marquesa was relentless in her torture of Juan Francisco Manzano, and this constant mistreatment almost sent him to the grave. However, Manzano never stopped being a poet, he never lost his dreams and most importantly he never lost his words. The Marquesa wanted to silence him, and tried to beat the words out of him time and time again, but always to no avail. What the Marquesa did not realize was that to Manzano, art and poetry weren’t just a past-time, they were a lifeline and a shield against the pain. On page 104 Manzano states, “ When I’m not in the fields and I need to forget, I can fold shapes of paper and paint them, I can make frames of wild cane, I can cut out pictures of people from playing cards, paper dolls”. In this instance, Juan expresses how being creative with the little things around him helps him forget his struggles and his pain. It may just be for a few minutes, but in those minutes he finds peace within his mind, and he is able to create beautiful things. As the book progresses we see Manzano realize that there is very little he can do to avoid the physical abuse, but also that no one can take away his talent. He uses his abilities as a form of rebellion and no matter how many times he is punished, he continues to do so because it makes him happy. While his acts have consequences, Manzano is not giving up this essential part of him because he knows that even in the darkest of times his imagination will never leave him.

   1. I agree with Rosary’s analysis of how Juan Francisco Manzano is constantly demonstrating defiance against La Marquesa. La Marquesa mocks him when she asks him “do you still want to take one more leaf…if you keep trying to scribble those meaningless words” (114), from here we can see she intends to try and remove any sort of enthusiasm that Juan has towards creativity. Despite the physical abuse and the constant oppression he faces from La Marquesa, Juan uses his creativity as a coping mechanism to get through the tortuous times and knows that one day this will all be over. I also agree with the quote Rosary uses “When I’m not in the fields and I need to forget, I can fold shapes of papers and paint them, I can make frames of wild cane, I can cut out pictures of people from playing cards, paper dolls” (104). This quote exemplifies Juan’s defiance to continue to use his creativity which is something he will never stop using as that seems to be seen as his metaphorical crutch to help him with his time with la Marquesa. Juan also has these thoughts that point to the idea that he wants to continue learning despite how much La Marquesa disapproves of this and punishes him every time she sees him trying to do so. Juan says that if he “were brave enough to steal I would take myself and some books” (117) which eludes to the fact that he would rather have books than anything else as he knows that from those books he will be able to do so much more with that than perhaps a coin or some other delicacy.

   2. I agree with your notion that,The Marquesa was a cruel person torturing Manzano with every opportunity that she gets in order to silence him from doing what he loves and that’s poetry. I found your post very interesting as I was reading it and thought that the quote you used on page 104 was a really excellent quote as it correlated well with the question and it illustrates how Manzano never gave up his love for reading and writing poetry despite Marquesa’s cruelty towards him. I also agree with your notion that he uses his abilities to read and write poems as a way of rebelling against his oppressor because as I was reading through the text I noticed that Manzano wouldn’t give up on reading poems as his freedom relies on poetry.To me Manzano’s actions of disobedience on Marquesa’s orders to stop reading and writing illustrates that he refuses to submissively give up his one sense of freedom and he is willing to fight for what he loves and essentially what brings him happiness. You did a great job in highlighting on how, poetry is apart of him, apart of his personality in which he is willing to go through consequences for even though it almost cost him his life.This points out the dynamic between a slave owner and a slave as The Marquesa does not understand that he is willing to sacrifice for what he believes in.

5. One of the ways Juan Francisco Manzano use his creativity to escape the horror imposed by La Marquesa Del Prado Ameno is through folding, painting and cutting papers. He will share these puppets he made with paper with other slave children and see how these lifeless puppets dance “lively”. Another way he escape reality is through imagination. He will imagine having poetry competitions with famous poets and winning them, he says,
   “a man is my friend
       when he only uses the first part
       calling me Poet
       not Slave.”
   Using this imagination that he is not a slave and is equal to poets is a way he figured to throw away his identity as a slave.
   Dreaming is another mechanism he does when he is trapped and punished. He will be dreaming about things that meant freedom, his mother and brothers, people on the streets, and the wind,
   “they are free
       so am I
       more or less.”

6. Jiaqui, I definitely agree with you in the sense that Juan Francisco Manzano uses his creativity to escape his realities. I also agree with you, in the sense that he uses his imagination as an escape. Overall his mind is the only place where he can roam free, especially during his punishments. I think another part worth mentioning is when Juan is being interrogated, and he says, “I choose the hat, and seven officials now want to see it bu there is no hat only the one I imagined”(p.121). This shows us how Juan also tries to utilize his imagination, his creativity, in this case known as “lies” to attempt to save himself from the officials. He later goes on to say that he isn’t saved from this dangerous situation yet he begins to, “dream of the various saints’ opinions… I dream of my mother and brothers” (p.122). Juan is doing all it takes to keep going, even if it means becoming delusional to survive the horrors of his abuse. His ability to have self control, over his thoughts at least is linked to his intelligence. By thinking of spirituality, and people he loves likes his family, it keeps him from actually experiencing his reality. If Juan allowed to dictate his thoughts, he most likely wouldn’t have survived all the abuse he did. The mind controls how you feel, and he made sure to stay hopeful (as hopeful as one can be under those circumstances).

7. The page number may not be the same for some people since I have the pdf downloaded, but a description on page 106 stands out to me. Juan says
   “Now I’m shackled, chained, trapped
   twenty-five lashes of the whip
   in the morning
   my breakfast of screams
   twenty-five more lashes at noon
   instead of lunch
   I taste my tears
   I eat shame”
   I feel like this description of life on the plantation is supposed to get a reaction from the reader. I can only imagine what that can feel like and it makes my entire body cringe. It also makes me feel sad and angry that this was a reality for many. I just wonder who was the mastermind who thought, “the white race is superior and we should oppress those who don’t have the same skin color as us. Oh and not only that, but we should treat them like they are not human at all.” Juan continues by saying.
   “He sighs with compassion, the overseer
   saying there’s no choice, he works hard
   he has to please La Marquesa
   even though nine days of whipping and moaning
   it’s too much
   too much for both of us
   my pain, my fears
   and his guilt, the screams and moans reaching
   his ears.”
   I have always thought of the “overseers” as people who don’t feel any empathy and are as cruel as the “master,” this is the first time where I think, were there any “overseers” who actually did feel guilty? What did they think while committing such atrocious acts?

8. OPTION 2

   There are many instances where we see Manzano use his creativity and intellectual skills to survive the horror imposed by La Marquesa del Prado Ameno. Manzano is well aware of the consequences he will face for his actions yet that doesn’t stop him from using his creativity and intellectual skills to help not only himself but those around him escape and forget about their situations. One of the scenes that stood out to me the most is on pages 104-105, “I fight duels with poets, famous ones who visit.. one who challenges me to finish his verses…You’ve won, they tell me, Poeta-Esclavo, you’ve won and it feels good” In this scene we see Manzano winning duels against other poets and being called “Poeta-Esclavo”—Poet Slave. When he is locked into darkness Manzano passes his time imagining winning duels to help him forget about the inhumanity imposed by la Marquesa. His creativity and intellectual skills continue to help him escape his reality. It’s become a source of freedom even if it’s only temporary. He imagines being called ‘Poet Slave’ so that when people address him they call him Poet and not Slave because that is what he is a Poet.

9. Option 1
   What stood out to me was how during Holy Week the slaves feel as if they had a sliver of freedom, due to the importance of those days to the slave owners. On page 89 it reads “After the harvest, one more carnival, one more dance one more day of freedom to pretend that we are free.” These celebrations give the slaves a break from the torture that they often go through with their masters. They are finally allowed to rest, and in a sense they are treated with a tiny bit of human respect that throughout the year they would not receive. Page 89 also reads: “the field hands are finally permitted to sleep.” The rest of the year living at the plantation could be described as a literal hell, since the slave owners, like La Marquesa are under the impression that they are very kindhearted and help the slaves (Page 99). When in reality they will do the most cruel things anyone could imagine to slaves, to punish them and ensure that they obey them. This is seen whenever she punishes Juan, she completely disregards his humanity and does anything in her power to remind him that he is her property and should act the way that she wants him to, if not, whenever he makes a slight mistake, or if there is a misunderstanding there will be hell for Juan to pay. They all have to do whatever it takes to please their Master, La Marquesa regardless of what they have to do. This is seen on page 101 when the overseer feels pity for Juan, but says “I have no choice” this referring to him having to whip Juan repeatedly because he was ordered to punish Juan by La Marquesa, if not he would be punished. On page 102, we see him disobey her, and stop whipping him, showing us that the life on the planation is also about them taking care of each other.

   1. I agree when you mention that when La Marquesa punishes/tortures Juan that she completely disregards his humanity. It is interesting that you point out how the Overseer feels when he’s whipping Juan just because when reading this book, it has so many perspectives and reading from the punisher’s point of view is difficult. The audience knows that what the character is doing is wrong, but sometimes the character doesn’t, in this biography, the Overseer knows he is doing wrong. As I read his and Juan’s parts, I saw that the Overseer felt bad for Juan, but did not think Juan was worth being punished over (understandably so, being whipped is an unimaginable pain). When the Overseer goes to put Juan in the bed, he doesn’t want him to be dead, not because he cares about him, but that he doesn’t want Juan’s death on his conscience (even Maria sees this). In a way, I don’t necessarily perceive the Overseer as the same type of enslaved person as Maria and Juan. We mentioned this in class before. I see it this way because yes, they are all enslaved, but the Overseer punishes other enslaved people and carries a different type of burden on their shoulders. It contrasts to the weight Juan, Maria, and the children have. And the way that Manzano depicts that heaviness and sadness in this biography is intense (to say the least).

10. In this section, Juan Francisco Manzano experiences some of the harshest treatment we’ve seen him endure in the novel yet. La Marquesa de Prado Ameno subjects him to a series of severe punishments in an attempt to strip him of his will to be curious, intellectual, and pursuing of literature. For example, on one occasion, she catches him scratching words into a geranium leaf with his fingernail, and she immediately sends him off with the overseer to be punished; la Marquesa seems to be deathly afraid of any signs of literacy coming from Manzano and will do anything in her power to put a stop to this. However, as much as she may torture his body, it is becoming increasingly apparent that she cannot break his soul or his mind. Juan’s thirst for knowledge, his appreciation for poetry help him to have an undying hope for life, despite the horrid circumstances he lives in. On page 122, Juan says, “I’m already free in this land of dreams and legends, island of fantasies where I almost exist.” It is very interesting to consider the way in which he describes himself as being “free,” while we see that he is clearly still physically enslaved and possesses no free will over his own actions at this point in the novel. The “freedom” of which Juan speaks refers not to his physical circumstance, but to the state of his mind, his spirit. Through literature, poetry, and verse, Juan experiences freedom; he possesses a much greater degree of freedom than the vast majority of slaves who are not literate. Literacy opened up his world to new possibilities, to ideas, and it gave him curiousity and hope about what his life could someday be. Therein, while his body may be enslaved, his mind soars free as a bird.

11. Manzano’s spirituality gave him strength during this period of torture. It’s possible that Manzano having something/someone to believe in that’s a greater force could give him some sort of optimism. When the overseer stops beating him for a moment he states, “… or something that came from an angel of God, maybe the angel placed a vision in the overseer’s mind a winged picture of what it would feel like if his eyes were closed nine days in a row” (94 e book). This small moment of relief that the beatings have stopped he believes that it’s a possibility an angel is watching over him and that brings hope that there is a higher power that’s on his side. His spirituality is reaffirmed when Manzano gets a new owner, Don Nicolas. He states, “Can it be, is this true, O merciful Lord, did you actually hear my prayers and the begging of my brothers?… Miracles amaze me” (ebook 118). He felt as though the God he had been praying to and believing in has finally heard him and granted him some relief from the torture he was enduring. He’s giving God the credit for belonging to Don Nicolas now which solidifies his faith.

12. Juan Manzano’s spirit went from dark to light, no hope to hope and near death to brought back to life. His literature started with dark intense verses describing the torture he put up with along with the sugarcane slaves. La Marquesa overused her power by using any excuse to punish Juan. Punishing him to the point he was getting numb to the pain. She kept bringing him down, again and again to satisfy herself. She was portraying her sorrow life onto him by lashing on him and torturing him near death. It got to a point where Juan couldn’t feel the pain anymore, he kept moving forward even with wounded legs. Slowly draining his soul and spirit but never made himself look weak in front of La Marquesa. At some point, his spirit was crushed, strongly believing he was going to die, and he was okay with that. Until one day, he was working in the sugarcane fields and the roof fell and for a split second he thought he was done for. Showing us his spirit is still intact. At the end of the tunnel, Juan was saved by Don Nicolas creating the light imagery. I suppose all the negative events eventually had to create a positive. That little positive saved his spirit and brought some peace creating a new chapter.

    1. Hello Alejandra, I would like to begin and say your repsonse was beautifully written and the use of words and imagery was great. I would definitely agree with the statement that all the events that occured ultimately lead to the light in the tunnel. Additionally, the light shining showed a sense of hope and that life could move on and enter a new chapter. One thought I had was actually a question to myself, which is, why in the sugarcane fields did he feel like he was done for. ?

13. Manzono spirituality is strong within this section of the book. His spirituality I believe gives him the strength to survive his ideal and believe that god put goodness in his overseer. It the book it says “weather the compassion, and kindness of the overseer was his own idea… maybe the angel placed a vision in the overseers mind”( Poet Of A Slave). Spirituality creates space to keep Manzanos heart pure and see the good in his captives hearts. Although he struggles he doesn’t let that overtake his mind.

14. Over time Juan Francisco Manzano has gained a lot of literary knowledge, however, by obtaining these skills he is now in a difficult position with La Marquesa del Prado Ameno. His owner is cruel and punishes him to the point where he fights between life and death. When he is whipped or trapped within a cell of darkness, he escapes into his mind filled with words, rhymes, and songs. When his mother and he are being whipped by the overseer they bring each other comfort with their presence in this “novena of pain”. In this part of the reading when he is whipped again, he does the same thinking back to the angels that will look after him and grant him mercy, When he is not on the fields his creativity easily comes to him creating new ways to show how letters and stories protect against the cruel realities of being a slave. They even call him “poet-slave” as he fights and “duels with poets, famous ones who visit… and one who challenges me to finish his verses”. Through the paper letters, frames, and dolls he makes for the children, he is able to be there not only for himself but for others as well. He continues to broaden his mind as a way to forget the torments he is put through. It is like his protection spell, recognizing this as his way out to freedom, expressing “ I’m already free in this land of dreams and legends island”.

15. Option 1

    I feel there is beautiful imagery created when describing the plantation that Juan was on. He describes the sugarcane as this honey this beautiful thing, with all the blood that is grown out of. It creates this disconnect as there is this nectar being created by the evil of slavery. To create something good does it take it being created with evil? It was an idea that Juan toys with. There is more imagery about this light which directly correlates with Manzano’s association with god/ relationship with religion. Manzano is struggling with surviving and we see the text constantly associate himself with the days becoming darker as well as his life becoming darker every day on and on. But he is eventually saved as well and finds the light when someone saves him from the massive grasp of slavery had to him. When ownership changes to Don Nicholas he speaks about god as Don being the answer to his prayers all along. The person to give him the ability to open his eyes to look towards the light.

    1. This is a great observation relating to the imagery for the plantation. There is a progression in the descriptions between the plantation, recognizing the juxtaposition of the beauty and the evil that exists in his environment, directly correlating to the realities of the institution of slavery, which lead to his struggle in accepting god or challenging his belief in god.

Comments are closed.