He is stereotyped as a thief by one of his classmates, and the young boy defeats himself with violence. School only become more difficult to attend. Living the life of a migrant farm worker, the family often moved in search for job opportunities. The young boy missed school because of the overlapping work season, and was required to live in unsanitary conditions. For a second he felt as if the earth would soon open up to devour him. He felt stuck and hopeless, with all the constant moving but encountering all the same problems. Low paying demanding jobs with cruel bosses, bullies in school, racism, and the never-ending poverty cycle. The boy looked down at the earth and kicked it hard. He says, “not yet, you can’t swallow me up yet.” He was dedicated to make something of himself and end the vicious cycle. The boy in the book was never named. Rivera spoke for the millions of migrant farm workers who face the same …show more content…
The boy represents the millions of migrant farm workers living in the U.S. He argues that they face social and economic injustice because of their ethnicity. Rivera shows the significance of religion in the Mexican culture and how it was a form of strength for his family. He also argues that religion can have a negative influence because people only turn to God in times of need. The boy’s family often blamed all their hardships on God and argued that they must endure all the pain God send him. In the short story “And the Earth Did Not Devour Him,” the boy’s father and younger brother become ill due to overworking in the fields. He cursed God. Upon doing this he felt that God would sent his family a curse. He cursed God again and was certain that God did not care about the struggles his family