The Barrio By Robert Ramirez Summary

As we grow up, we are told that we have the power to create our future. We are told that the possibilities are endless and that we can all become successful people if we put our minds to it. Even though that sounds like a great motivational statement, is this an actual reality that occurs in everyone’s lives? In the short story “The Barrio” by Robert Ramirez, he talks about the people in his neighborhood and how they are defined by their environment. Ramirez uses the words, “unable” and “unwilling” to describe the people of his neighborhood. He uses these two words together to paint a picture of the people who live in The Barrio because he recognizes that people reside there for different reasons. “It would be absurd to leave the familiar and nervously step into the strange and cold Anglo community when the needs of the Chicano can be met in the barrio… unable to pay city taxes or incapable of influencing the city to live up to its duty to serve all the citizens, the poorer barrio families remain trapped in the nineteenth century and survive as best they can.” (Ramirez 142) This …show more content…
“ There is no want to escape, for the feeling of the barrio is known only to its inhabitants, and the material needs of life can also be found here.” (Ramirez 141) There are people who chose to live in areas like The Barrio, and there are those who chose to live in areas that are more luxurious, but this does not define a person. There are people who do not want to pay a high price and want to live in an environment in which neighbors feel like family. There are also people who only want to live lavished and be around those that are also lavished. There are a plethora of scenarios that illustrate why a neighborhood does not define the residents who reside there and should be taken into consideration when attempting to define or judge