Literature circle

On the first page I drew the scene at the beginning of the book, on pages 8 through 10, when Espirito (an Indian) follows a deer in desperate need to find water for his village, because all the waters have dried. He then watches the deer and waits for it to leave so he could go to the stream. When he drinks the out of the stream he says it’s the sweetest water he has ever drunk. But before he had drank the water he took a “stone” from a cliff next to the spring where the water was trickling down creating the spring. He then went down the mountain and went to a store which was owned by Don Carlos. Espirito wanted to trade the water he discovered telling him “he had the sweetest water in all the world” to trade for food and clothing. But Don Carlos said no because he couldn’t trade for water. Because he lived by a river already, but then Espirito showed him his “stones” and Don Carlos and screamed at him that he would trade him all the clothes and food he needed for it. This is because the stone wasn’t actually a stone but a gold nugget.

I selected this scene because I felt it was important. I felt it was important because if Espirito had not found the gold in the cliff the Americans would have never intervened and taken over their box canyon, and his village wouldn’t have had the deal with Don Carlos, which was that 2 fully loaded burros would be brought to Espirito’s village because he gave the cliff with gold for food and supplies for his people. But when Don Carlos sold the mine to Bernardo Garcia, and then soon after the Mexican revolution started. In result Espirito’s way of life in the box canyon went downhill. I saw that Espirito loved his land and the way he had lived before the “gold fever” had taken over box canyon. I learned a little more about the revolution in Mexico, by how the revolution was brutal especially to the civilians which were never safe. Also that people would be taken and killed for no reason. Another thing is that the people with power were so corrupt, one day you would be as poor as dirt next thing you know you find gold and would become rich, and be cruel to the people that you once had been. Money changes many, makes them greedy and selfish.

On my second page I drew the scene between pages 85-88. Which was when Victoriano gets caught looking through the mine’s trash. Señor Jones and El Liebre claimed he was stealing from him when that was not true. This is because people, before Victoriano, had been looking through the rocks even before Victoriano could remember. Next thing you know Señor Jones orders El Liebre and his men to get Victoriano so they could teach him a lesson, then hang him to make an example of what happens to a thief for the rest of the village. They planned to hang him in the town square so everyone would see. Then Lupe sees whats going on and starts yelling, then Doña Manza tells her to get her mother. When Lupe gets to the lean-to she tells Doña Guadalupe what is happening. Doña Guadalupe tells her to tell Don Manuel to stall so she could give her final blessing to her son. Quickly Doña Guadalupe grabs her bible stuff a knife in the middle and grabs her father’s old gun. She then quickly walks down the hill to the square to see her son standing there all bloody and beated down. When El Liebre permits her to give her blessings Doña Guadalupe starts secretly cutting the rope. Then when she saw that Victoriano was not responding to her instructions she bit him in the ear telling him to take the gun she then tells him to run when she cuts the rope and yells to the sky. But The Jack Rabbit already knew what was going on and drew his gun knowing it was an escape so he knocked Doña Guadalupe out of the way. Then Victoriano started shooting at the men when he knew he couldn’t get away from the fast man. Then he ran into the forest where they didn’t even bother to catch him. El Liebre was dead so then the soldiers wanted to hang Doña Guadalupe and Don Manuel for it. Then all towns people realized that they can beat the soldiers if they united. When they gathered together singing the redhead leader knew what was going on and got away before the people would take their wepons.

I selected this scene because I felt it was important that the community realized they could take back their town if they all came together and that everything was possible with some faith. Also the strength Victoriano’s mother had to do what she did knowing there was a chance that she would die. I connected this with real life crisis and how the government takes advantage of the people. But when we come together to help each other we can solve most of our problems and obsticles.