I, Rigoberta Menchu (Tres)

1.) Describe how the book is evolving. What are you learning? How is it shaping your interpretation of who Guatemala is, what it looks like, how it smells, etc.

The more I read, the more I feel like I have a better grasp in what the indians in Guatemala face at a daily basis. Before reading this book, I expected to read about the hardships of the indeginous people and the ongoing jobs that must be done for their survival. The way Rigoberta tells her story is something that I couldn't possibly express in words. Reading her book has given me a better perspective than what a newspaper or magazine article could give me.  Now that I have learned how it is like through an actual Guatemalans point of view, I can understand the exact hardships that they go through. I thought I had the right idea of what Guatemala would be like but the book has showed me that there is more to it than what it seems. There is more to Guatemala than just coffee picking and mud-floored shacks. This book has shaped my interpretation to where I'm able to answer what to expect when I'm in Guatemala.  

2.) Menchu uses the following quotation to start Chapter 7, "....those who sow maize for profit leave the earth empty of bones of the forefathers that give the maize, and then the earth demands bones, and the softest ones, those of children, pile up on top of her and beneath her plack crust, to feed her." After reading this chapter, what is your reaction to this question?

Rigoberta Menchu's words are  very meaningful and powerful. The maize was, and still is, a big part for the Guatemalan people. I like the way she used her words to describe how important maize is and what will happen if people choose to make a profit from it. When she said, "..the earth demands bones, and the softest opnes, those of children, pile up on top of her beneath her plack crest..." I thought of how accurate  her words were when she's forshadowing what will happen if they choose to use the maize to make a profit. Children will die because corn is one of the biggest factors of how the indeginous people make a living and it is what shaped their culture.
3.) Based on your reading of Chapter 8, what are your thoughts of culture? How does Rigoberta's culture align to your own? How is it different?

 I can't exactly allign my culture to the Guatemalan culture but the Guatemalan culture has managed to preserve itself much more than other cultures like the Hawaiian culture.The Hawaiian cuture has evolved over time to where the natives  nearly lost it. Guatemalans have a routine in their daily lives and each person in a family plays a vital role. In many cultures today, every person plays a role in the family.  Guatemalans are able to strictly follow their ancient beliefs, which is unlikely when a community is imperialized from a foreign country and forced to change their ways in living. In chapter eight, Rigoberta Menchu talks about the roles of each family member. Our culture in the United States may not relate as much as the Guatemalans but we still play a role in our family.