The Happiest Girl In The Whole Usa By Manuel Munoz Analysis

Point of View
I, you, he, she, we, and they may seem like nothing more than a couple pronouns but when it comes to the book you are reading the author actually had to put in a lot of time deciding which pronoun he or she wanted to use. Depending on the pronouns used translates to the reader who the narrator is in the book, which affects the story tremendously. When the reader begins to read “The Happiest Girl in the Whole USA” by Manuel Munoz he or she sees that Manuel chose Griselda for the narrator. With Griselda as the narrator the reader gets this story told by how Griselda sees everything, her personal opinions, and inner thoughts. What importance does the narrator have? Why did he choose Griselda and what effects on the story did it …show more content…
You are getting told the story from one person’s point of view, have you ever heard the saying, “there are two sides to every story”? Well, even in a short story or book that saying applies also. Just think about it, you are getting all your information from one person, in a way can be considered almost like “bias” information. For example if you were telling a story and it was about two people, one person is your best friend that you love dearly, person A, the other person is the one person in your life you actually cannot stand, person B. When you tell the story and begin to describe them to your audience you are more likely to talk up person A and less likely to talk about how great the person B is, in result can effect how the reader in the story sees the other characters. Just like in “The Happiest Girl in the Whole USA” when Griselda says, “I know just from looking at her that this is her first trip. She carries a cheap white purse in one hand and a bulky shopping bag in the other. She reminds me of all the women in town who everybody knows have just recently arrived from Mexico, because they go to grocery store in high heels and tight dresses, doing their best to be like the American women they see on television” (Furman et al. 65-66). The reader begins to form conclusions about this character based on Griselda’s take of the girl. We can assume based on that excerpt that the girl is can …show more content…
If Munoz chose Natalia as the narrator instead the reader would have lost the clear mindedness and expertise Griselda had. One can assume that Natalia would have been very frantic and confused on what was going on. You can see this on page seventy-one when Natalia kept asking “What do we do now?” and “He said he would be here” (Furman et al. 71). In that moment the author may have focused more on Natalia’s feelings and how she was feeling in that moment. If Natalia was the narrator the reader also would’ve also had a chance to see more how she felt throughout this whole journey and the reader would know more on why she was doing this and more background on her and the guy she was going to meet. Not to mention with Griselda being the narrator we never truly learned if the guy Natalia was meeting actually showed up. The reader is just left to assume that with the knowledge, money, and shoes that Griselda left with Natalia that she figured everything out on her own. Pronouns are a little bit more than just pronouns in a story. The narrator plays a huge role in a story and in “The Happiest Girl in the Whole USA” by Manuel Munoz is no different. Griselda’s inner thoughts and opinions on everything let the reader get that standpoint throughout the story. With o=point of view you begin to realize the importance the narrator has, why the author