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Aredpalmm

Gary Soto owed much of his successful writing to his childhood years as a Mexican- American, his works were primarily based on his life experiences which helped readers understand and connect his poetry, to their own lives. For instance, in one of Gary Soto’s famous poems “A Red Palm” he portrays an everyday man struggling to succeed in life. The person slacked off and was “a fool in school” (30) and now has to pay by working for hours a day, everyday only with “ A rest in the back yard under a tree.” (18) Gary Soto creates astounding imagery in his poetry by speaking in Second person, which is not very common, but it makes it easier to connect and relate to. For instance, “You’re in this dream of cotton plants, you raise a hoe, swing, and the first weeds fall with a sigh.” ( 1-3) This immediately sets up the scenery and the tone for the poem. It is about a man who works in cotton fields for a living. For the man, the days go by slow, but when he rests “the minutes jerk like flies.” (Simile 21-22) In lines 27-31, it says “ You say to your hands, Now shaped into binoculars. You could raise them to your eyes: You were a fool in school, now look at you. You’re a giant among cotton plants.” This shows that the person is looking at his life unhappy with how it turned out. However, the person finds a sense of happiness and relief when “you see your oldest boy, also running. Papa, he says it’s time to come in. You pull him into your lap And ask, What’s forty times nine? He knows as well as well as you, and you smile.” (32- 36) What this means is that he knows his son won’t grow up to be like him, his only happiness was knowing his children had hope and opportunities to succeed, opportunities that he didn’t take.