Cultural Identity In Francisco Jimenez's The Circuit

Introduction
The need to establish a cultural identity as an influential principle of literacy practices is what (immigrant youth) require in their English learning environments. The level of intimidation and anxiety from being an immigrant youth in America can be psychologically traumatic. (De la Piedra, 2010). We see this within the book The Circuit by Francisco Jimenez (1943). I chose this book because I wanted to explore the intersections that a (Mexican immigrant student) goes through in order to establish his literacy skills and become academically successful in school despite all the odds that are stacked up against him. The Circuit explores the ‘intersections’ of identity, which include: race, class, gender, and discrimination for the protagonist “Panchito.” The purpose of this literary analysis is to establish the experience and intersections that Panchito goes through on his journey of achieving academic success while dealing with the pressures of being a Mexican immigrant student and a part time worker. While reading The Circuit, I could not help but to feel that this author was trying to establish a theme of ‘survival’ and ‘perseverance.’ This …show more content…
Through the use of academic journals and educational research databases, I have selected literary sources that allow me to understand and differentiate a systematic approach to understanding the experience for the protagonist of the story: Panchito. This literature and research provides fundamental details that support independent theories about ‘intersectionality’ and ‘immigrant youth’ in America. The authors of the literature that I have chosen have done extensive research that has helped them to come up with diverse and unique perspectives on the subject matter and experiences of immigrant youth in American