kristinberry

The several chapters that begin Carlos Bulosan's life in the United States in his book America is in the Heart, are heart-wrenching. Bulosan is definitely drawing the readers in with sympathy. I was especially pained reading about his difficulties to find somewhere warm and safe to sleep every night. This is something that a lot of us take for granted, yet Bulosan paints such a descriptive picture of the dangerous life in China towns throughout the Western United States that the readers feel similar fear and discomfort for him. Bulosan constantly foreshadows to his success as a leader and as someone who can overcome the great odds that are stacked against him and his people.
This literary device is also combined with the overriding theme of hope that circulates throughout this section of the book. When Bulosan describes his home in the Philippines, there was always a feeling of desperation, and hope to get to another place and start anew. Now that Bulosan is in the new land and experiencing such horrors, hope is still there to make a difference and create a world where he does not have to see his brothers commit crimes to stay alive.
One of the more positive things is that Bulosan begins to connect and reach out to other Filipinos outside his family. In his chapters describing his life in the Philippines, he rarely mentions friends. Now, he has gained access to a whole group of people from whom he can learn and establish a camaraderie with. Perhaps in the future, the many connections he makes will aid him and inspire him.
These recent chapters in America is in the Heart have shed light on the struggles that Asian Americans faced in the United States, and give historical background to the challenges they continue to face today.