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Summary Of Arrival 1960 By Pablo Medina

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Throughout history, we have seen a plethora of people leaving their original lives behind for the new opportunities in America, but are let down by the harshness of our culture. In the story, Arrival: 1960 by Pablo Medina, we learn about a young Cuban family who make a great move to the United States, more specifically New York City. The main character begins the story high spirited and excited for their new home for it would contain new experiences. In contrast he begins to see the reality within the city and at his school further into the story. He discovers that his new environment is not at all what he expected and on top of that he is faced with a culture that is abstract to his previous beliefs of identification. His high …show more content…

Nothing does in New York” (Medina 72). His expectations for New York is slightly smothered as reality begins to set in that not everything is as it seems. Toward the end of the story the main character witnesses shocking events within his new school and culture. His first day is similar to many others, dreading every minute upon arriving. His school, “was a typical New York school, a microcosm of the city where all races mingled and fought” (Medina 72). He describes the school as “Inauspicious, blank, [...] could have been a factory or a prison” (Medina 72). His disappointment continues as he witnesses a teacher slap a girl “across the face several times” (Medina 73) and his response was pure horror toward violence in discipline. Once he arrives to his English class, he is confronted by an obscure culture when his teacher says “You have a nice complexion. Where are you from?” (Medina 73). After that he is thoroughly shocked by her statement and his disbelief lead him to think “I had never thought of my skin, let alone considered it a mark of foreignness” (Medina 73). His disbelief with all that he observed from his first day of school, sent him into a confusion of the concept of a better life in America and the way people are identified. The unkind culture of New York was irrelevant while he was in awe of the snow and towering buildings. The pure white snow gave off a new and exciting feeling for their new home and opportunities waiting for them. As he and his

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