João Ubaldo Ribeiro’s short story It Was a Different Day When They Killed the Pig is a significant flashback story from Alísio’s perspective. He recalls the moment he no longer remained as a child. The story starts off with an introduction about the day they kill the pig and how it usually starts on a sunny day. The kids are more lively and open while the adults are humbler and secretive. Aloísio sees the insides of the pig for the first time and struggles to not look away while having a poker face. This was the ultimate test to see how mature and manly he is. Fortunately for him he was able to keep his composure in front of his father until he got home. Being a part of the group that kills the pig is the moment a boy becomes a man; Aloísio
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When we are kids we wish to be grown ups so we mimic them. Aloísio’s way of being a grown up was to not be emotional. João Ubaldo Ribeiro writes many times in the short story of how badly Aloísio “wanted very, very much to be a man, he wanted nobody to be ever, ever able to say that he had not been a man even if only for an instant” (189). Aloísio knew in the future he didn’t want to be seen as a cowardly man. Little details like not knowing when the sow was going to get killed or what was going to happen was kept to himself because he didn’t want to miss the opportunity of proving he is a man to others. “If they were lucky they might be able to tell a younger brother or a girl who lived nearby that the pig was going to be killed” (187). Aloísio was the lucky kid who passed on the news to his sister and made her cry. He thought that if he reacted like that it would be foolish but she can because “his sister was a woman and women cried a lot” (189). …show more content…
The roles switch, allowing us to experience things in both perspectives. “So those older people could say with simpleness: Today is the day they are going to kill the pig. A simpleness which contrasted with the eyes of the younger children” (186). Perks of being older is having the experience and know what and what not to pass on to the younger children. Everything changes when you go through an event again as an adult compared to back when we were kids, it’s not as fun. Aloísio recalls a memory of when he was a kid playing with Noca the sow, “He imagined that maybe the reason why the sow Noca had never given an answer to the things he had said to her every once in a while… she knew that one day he would betray her and would be watching her execution in all coldness” (188). Looking back to his childhood right before transitioning to becoming a man he finds the unknown answer to his playful question years later just moments before the killing. The fact that Aloísio was allowed to watch the execution of Noca and not his brother shows that he is more mature. After Aloísio threw up he saw that day change completely from an “innocent” exciting day to a humble day. “Maybe this is the reason why when he now sees the family gathered together on a sunny holiday… his chest feels heavy and he has the impression that if someone speaks to him, he will begin to
When we are kids we wish to be grown ups so we mimic them. Aloísio’s way of being a grown up was to not be emotional. João Ubaldo Ribeiro writes many times in the short story of how badly Aloísio “wanted very, very much to be a man, he wanted nobody to be ever, ever able to say that he had not been a man even if only for an instant” (189). Aloísio knew in the future he didn’t want to be seen as a cowardly man. Little details like not knowing when the sow was going to get killed or what was going to happen was kept to himself because he didn’t want to miss the opportunity of proving he is a man to others. “If they were lucky they might be able to tell a younger brother or a girl who lived nearby that the pig was going to be killed” (187). Aloísio was the lucky kid who passed on the news to his sister and made her cry. He thought that if he reacted like that it would be foolish but she can because “his sister was a woman and women cried a lot” (189). …show more content…
The roles switch, allowing us to experience things in both perspectives. “So those older people could say with simpleness: Today is the day they are going to kill the pig. A simpleness which contrasted with the eyes of the younger children” (186). Perks of being older is having the experience and know what and what not to pass on to the younger children. Everything changes when you go through an event again as an adult compared to back when we were kids, it’s not as fun. Aloísio recalls a memory of when he was a kid playing with Noca the sow, “He imagined that maybe the reason why the sow Noca had never given an answer to the things he had said to her every once in a while… she knew that one day he would betray her and would be watching her execution in all coldness” (188). Looking back to his childhood right before transitioning to becoming a man he finds the unknown answer to his playful question years later just moments before the killing. The fact that Aloísio was allowed to watch the execution of Noca and not his brother shows that he is more mature. After Aloísio threw up he saw that day change completely from an “innocent” exciting day to a humble day. “Maybe this is the reason why when he now sees the family gathered together on a sunny holiday… his chest feels heavy and he has the impression that if someone speaks to him, he will begin to