Franco Benyamin

3/29/12
15-53
Journal 1
In the first section of the reading, I came to realize fairly quickly
that this book wasnt like any other book. Looking for the smallest
connections from story to story, none were to be found (regardless of
the fact that some shared the same title). Then I realized that the ones
that shared the same title had the same basic meanings that reflected
the title. They were constructed so differently, yet so alike in the
smallest aspects. Most stories had the common similarity of using
people as the main characters. This was sort of misleading due to the
fact that the cover had objects and animals on it. Then the repeated
character of Helena was introduced later on in the reading. The name
came up earlier, but it was sort of difficult to make the connection to
the same Helena presented later. Also many famous people that are
prominent to the Spanish culture, like Pablo Neruda, were introduced
and had stories that incorporated them. It was cool to see how the
characters were used as prominent figures. It really shows how some
people are such great images that can hold together a culture, even
though the culture spans over many countries around the world. They
were made relatable. One of the stories that really made me think was
The Function of the Reader| 2 on page 23. This was a story of a

prominent general Castan who fought in the Spanish Civil War under
the Franco regime, but was later jailed and exiled for reading the work
of Csar Vallejo. It really made me thing because it showed what a
book or literature in general can really do for a person. As the general
continued to read the banned book by the government, he couldnt
let go. It shows that the book was banned because it was everything
the new regime didnt want the citizens to know because they knew
people would be outraged and want something different. After such a
strong and powerful general read just a simple work by Vallejo, his total
outlook on the war and the stand of the regime changed to the point
where next morning he resigned from the army and refused to take a
single peseta more from the Franco government (23). This was really
powerful because it showed that even somebody who supports
something 110% can still be influenced with literature.