And The Earth Did Not Devour Him Analysis

“And the Earth Did Not Devour Him” by Tomas Rivera is the story of a young boy who lives his life as a Chicano migrant field worker along with his family. The book is not a straight narrative but is divided into several short scenes in the span of a year. From the many scenes in the book, one of them stood out to me and the relation to the theme of this course. The first scene, Rivera called it “The Children Couldn’t Wait,” he argued that the farm owners were often very cruel. Even when days were soaring with high temperatures, the family was not allowed to stop for water breaks. The land owner threatened the children that if he ever caught them drinking water, he would fire them and not pay them. One day, the land owner notices that one of …show more content…
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