Essay - Hollywood! Introduction the Purpose of This Paper Is to Introduce...

HOLLYWOOD!

INTRODUCTION

The purpose of this paper is to introduce and d*****cuss the short story "Hollywood!," by Dagoberto Gilb.

HOLLYWOOD!

Dagoberto Gilb is a Hisp*****nic writer who grew up in Los Angeles, and now lives in Aust*****, Texas. He spent sixteen years working in construction carpentry before he began to write for a living. He wrote "Hollywood!" ***** a ***** story anthology, "Pieces of t***** Heart: New Chicano Fiction," which was published in 1993. He is a v*****iting faculty member at the University ***** Texas at Austin, and has written many o*****r short stories and books.

The central idea of ***** story is the family's trip to California, where it is "warm" even in the w*****ter. It is the "promised land" to many, but this family does not experience all that the state has to **********. As ***** narrator says, the father is too "cheap," but says ***** is ***** the money. They sit on a beach eating sandwiches, when the wife re*****y wants to go to Disneyland. "What would a place like ***** teach him besides car*****ns?"

The underlying theme here is that the family does not fit in, and they are out of their comfortable surround*****gs. They see a commercial being filmed, and Luis says cynically, "They're all blondes." His ***** is quick to point out that t***** are some ac*****rs wi*****h dark hair, too, but the idea ***** that ***** do ***** belong here. The author implies that they speak little English, ***** the son, Ramon **********, and surprises them. This is another underlying theme -- that the second generation Hispanics are the ones who fit into the American lifestyle more easily. *****y give up the old ways, and assimilate more quickly.

Just like ***** are the only ones on the beach, they do not fit in, ***** they know it. The meaning is clear, the ***** are the "outcasts" of society, whether there are many of them living there or not. ***** has a large Hispanic population, the largest in ***** United States, but they are still the people alone on ***** beach, trying to fit in. They dream of the lifestyle ***** warm and sunny Calif*****nia, but when they get there, they realize it really is not what they expected. The family even leaves two days early, and goes home, because ***** ***** not enjoying California.

***** characteristics of the ***** are a very simple writing style, and ***** language for the characters. They are *****ly simple people, who have come to Cali*****nia for ***** kind of "dream" vacation, only to sit on a beach on a cold winter's day, when no one else is there but a film company.

***** ***** is simple ***** get across the simplicity ***** the *****, and *****ir needs ***** wants. It also shows they are a close-knit f*****mily, but suffering from the issues ***** every family faces, no matter what nationality ***** are. The wife does *****t agree with her husband, and thinks he is "cheap," and the