Tim Peralta

Honors ELA
Mr.Cook
January 28th, 2015
Honors Zoot Suit Essay

There have been struggles and conflicts in our society since the first
days of humankind. The biggest was and still is in America. There has been
and still is racism and discrimination towards people because of their race,
and of because of their looks/clothes. Today, in America, there is a huge
problem with the Mexican/Chicano race. One unique author, Luis Valdez,
decided to write a play called Zoot Suit to inform people about the struggle
of Chicanos, especially of the Pachucos during World War II. The central
conflicts and the social issues in the play, Zoot Suit, have to do with race,
internal conflict, and the way people perceive Mexicans because of their
clothes.
Race is the biggest conflict throughout the entire play. The whole play
is about race. Especially the Mexican race. I know this because in the book,
the author, Luis Valdez, writes about how the Pachucos are being put into
certain social norms. They are social victims because of their race. This is a
problem for them, because they are actually good people. They just want to
look good while out in public. Luis Valdez writes,

(They knife fight. HENRY moves in fast. Recoiling, RAFAS falls

to the floor. HENRYs blade is at his throat. EL PACHUCO snaps
his fingers. Everyone freezes.)
PACHUCO. Que mamado, hank. Thats exactly what the play
needs right now. Two more Mexicans killing each other.
Watch...everybodys looking at you..Thats exactly what they
paid too see. Think about it (46).
As Pachuco states, the Chicano community has a certain stereotype that
society has given them.
The internal conflict that the Chicanos also face is a big part of the
play. Luis Valdez intentionally adds this to the play to create a certain
emotion of uncertainness and of wonder. Many people can relate to having
the feeling of loneliness, hopelessness, and feeling they have no part in
living in society. When Henry is in solitary, he escapes what is reality with
the help of Pachuco.
PACHUCO. Better get used to it, carnal. Thats what this stretch
is going to be about, see? Youre in here for life, bato.
HENRY. I cant accept it, ese.
PACHUCO. Youve got to, Hank...only this reality is real now,
only this place is real, siting in the lonely cell of your will...Then
tell your eyes to forget the light, ese. Only the hard floor is
there, carnal. Only the cold hard edge of this reality,(77).

Every single day, Chicanos/Pachucos go through this harsh reality. They feel
like they are always in solitary just like Hank was.
The Pachuco style is not just the way you dress, it is the way to talk,
act, and think. The white race thinks that they are just some criminals who
always cause harm. Because of their looks, they get blamed for many
things. One example of that was when Lieutenant Edwards thought that
Henry was stealing a car. The car was actually Henrys dads car. Lieutenant
Edwards says, All right. That was a mistake. I didnt know it was your
fathers car. I tried to make it up to you. Didnt I help you set up the youth
club?(31). If there was a white person instead of Henry during that time,
Lieutenant Edwards would not have suspected anything going on.
This is the main conflict pushing and pushing the Chicanos/Pachucos.
They are pushing them to their limit. This is shown at the end when Henry
wants to storm out of the house. He does this because he is informed by
Tommy that there are police outside trying to arrest Joey. The police think
that he stole Georges car. Again, the police are accusing the Pachucos for
so many things. The Pachuco style is a way for them to forget about all of
their hardships.
Because of these conflicts, the author, Luis Valdez, is trying to inform
the reader of a larger theme. The problems with racism, inequality, and
inner conflict lead to the larger theme of, finding your identity and how, in
reality, a lot of people will not like it. The true measure of a person is

portrayed when he/she stands up for their identity and when they are not
afraid to be proud of it.
Luis Valdez is an author like no other. He has so many writing
techniques, all effectively adding something to the reader they did not have
before. What I mean by this is that he makes the reader really push the full
potential of the human brain and makes the reader really think about the
person they truly are. Luis Valdez is trying to help the reader understand
what is false and what is reality. The central conflicts and the social issues
in the play, Zoot Suit, have to do with race, internal conflict, and the way
people perceive Mexicans/Chicanos because of their clothes.