Written by Junot Diaz, "How to Date a Brown Girl (Black Girl, White Girl, or Halfie)" at first glance seems like a controversial story about how to date girls of different races. The narrator explicitly and vividly explains the dos and don’ts of how to become intimate with a girl depending on if the girl is Black, Brown, White, or Mixed. Nonetheless, the story conveys so much more and touches on many topics and situations involving what society deems as ideal and the stereotypes of different cultures. The story beautifully conveys what it feels like being a mixed child and a minority. With symbolism, satirical tone, and different sentence types, Diaz conveys the difficulties and struggles of fitting in to the societal and cultural norms emplaced
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The narrator, who is believed to be of Dominican and African decent, talks of his hair in a negative way, stating that the reader, should “hide the pictures of yourself with an Afro” (Diaz 143). Although it can be interpreted as embarrassment or lack there off, it is unquestionable that he is trying to cover up his African roots and the parts of him that make him “less white”. A common concept implied among society is that straight hair is the best hair and that afros and kinky hairstyles and textures are subpar. The author brings that into play here by demonstrating the narrator’s need to hide that side of him that doesn’t allow him to fit in. He isn’t necessarily embarrassed with his hair, culture, or lifestyle, but wishes to fit into what society deems as ideal and normal which is having straight hair and living in a middle class …show more content…
The narrator is trying to give insight on how to pretend to be an ideal guy for the girls, no matter what race the girl is. Being that the tone is very conversational and satirical, it makes sense for Diaz to incorporate many declarative and imperative sentences in the story. Interrogative sentences were rarely used in the text, nonetheless, because of the lack of those types of sentences, when they were used in the text, they were very significant. One of the more noteworthy sentences made in the story is when the narrator is discussing the first interactions between the girl and him. He discusses running his hand through his afro hair like the white boys do and states “The white ones are the ones you want the most, aren’t they” (Diaz 145). The author starts with the declarative sentence about how in society as a male, he is supposed to want a White girl since they are supposed to be the ideal women. He then brings up the interrogative aspect of the sentence where he hesitates and questions why we are supposed to want to attain a White girl. The narrator poses the question in a way that makes it seem as if he himself does not really understand why he is supposed to strive for a White girl. In society, European beauty, which is also known as white beauty standards, are deemed as better when compared to other minority races. Because of that, other races often strive to attain those standards of
The narrator, who is believed to be of Dominican and African decent, talks of his hair in a negative way, stating that the reader, should “hide the pictures of yourself with an Afro” (Diaz 143). Although it can be interpreted as embarrassment or lack there off, it is unquestionable that he is trying to cover up his African roots and the parts of him that make him “less white”. A common concept implied among society is that straight hair is the best hair and that afros and kinky hairstyles and textures are subpar. The author brings that into play here by demonstrating the narrator’s need to hide that side of him that doesn’t allow him to fit in. He isn’t necessarily embarrassed with his hair, culture, or lifestyle, but wishes to fit into what society deems as ideal and normal which is having straight hair and living in a middle class …show more content…
The narrator is trying to give insight on how to pretend to be an ideal guy for the girls, no matter what race the girl is. Being that the tone is very conversational and satirical, it makes sense for Diaz to incorporate many declarative and imperative sentences in the story. Interrogative sentences were rarely used in the text, nonetheless, because of the lack of those types of sentences, when they were used in the text, they were very significant. One of the more noteworthy sentences made in the story is when the narrator is discussing the first interactions between the girl and him. He discusses running his hand through his afro hair like the white boys do and states “The white ones are the ones you want the most, aren’t they” (Diaz 145). The author starts with the declarative sentence about how in society as a male, he is supposed to want a White girl since they are supposed to be the ideal women. He then brings up the interrogative aspect of the sentence where he hesitates and questions why we are supposed to want to attain a White girl. The narrator poses the question in a way that makes it seem as if he himself does not really understand why he is supposed to strive for a White girl. In society, European beauty, which is also known as white beauty standards, are deemed as better when compared to other minority races. Because of that, other races often strive to attain those standards of