Analysis of the story: “The letter”

Author: José Luis González

By: Prof. M. AND. Rodriguez Romero

Spanish teacher
YO. Title: The letter
TO. Classification: literal
I.Justification: It is literal because the text
It is written in the form of a letter.
II. Author: José Luis González {a
• See sketch
• Born in Santo Domingo, March 8, 1926. His father was Puerto Rican and his mother
was Dominican. Culturally, it was formed in Puerto Rico. He studies high school at
the University of Puerto Rico. He receives a Master's and Doctorate in Philosophy
and Letters from the National Autonomous University of Mexico.
• He has been a novelist and short story writer. His prose is deep in content, but his
speech is simple, in the language that everyone understands. He does not abuse the
adjective and through reticence continues to communicate after the written word. An
example of this is The Letter, (in The Man in the Street, 1948) where in a few
paragraphs it gives us a story within another story. He was a supporter of the
independence of Puerto Rico. The themes in the work of José Luis González are: the
pain of the worker in his fight for social justice, the agonizing sadness of humble
homes and the fight for the right of the proletarian in economic disgrace in the face of
a capitalist society.
He lived in Mexico since 1953 and was granted citizenship of that country in
1955. He died in Mexico in 1997.
III. Characters
A.Main
1. John
a. Classification: Protagonist (static)
b. Description: poor, wandering young man, he was poorly dressed, he emigrated from
the countryside to the city, he had little or no schooling, he loved his mother and did not
want her to suffer, humble.
B.Secondary
1. John's mother
a. Classification: Silhouette
b. Description: She lives in the countryside, she was a mother worried about
her son and also poor.
2. Pepe – (silhouette) Headquarters Administrator
3. Petra and her son (silhouette) Neighbors of Juan's mother
4. Felo – (silhouette) Son of “Comay” María
5. Comay Maria
IV. Issue or Argument
TO. Briefly describe what the text is about in a
paragraph of five to seven sentences.
**Don't forget to apply the narrative structure
diagram.
IV. Issue or Argument
TO. This story presents a letter written
by Juan to his mother. In it he describes
his lifestyle in the city, highlighting that
he has found a job and that everything is
going well. After writing the letter, he
went to the post office and it is
discovered that he is a wanderer, so he
pretends to be helpless to obtain the
money for the stamp and envelope of the
letter.
v. Issue
TO.
Central
1. The author presents the living conditions of the
Puerto Rican peasant when he emigrated from the
countryside to the city.
 to. The extreme poverty in which Puerto Ricans live stands
out. – This is evident when Juan must ask for alms to
buy the seal and the envelope.
2. Conflict: Man against himself – When Juan lies to
his mother about his living conditions in the city.
Continuation of the topic…

b. Secondary
1. There are no secondary themes.
c. Values
1. Humility – Juan is humble in the face of his poverty.
2. Love – Juan loves his mother unconditionally and does
not want her to suffer.
3. Strength – Despite his situations, Juan is optimistic.
4. Lie (Antivalue) – Juan lies so that his mother does not
suffer.
SAW. Style
TO. Style Description*
*You can use as a reference the style guide
questions found in the photocopy of the
TAPATEA outline.
SAW. Style
A. His vocabulary is regional and simple.
1. He writes with spelling errors to demonstrate the protagonist's little or no schooling.
B. It is written in prose. – Follow the format of a letter.
1. The sentences are short and simple.
C. Use traditional narrative structure.
D. The tone is satirical because it presents the desire to hide failure.
1. This story is considered a social criticism of the situation of the time.
E. The action is external, since after the letter, the author presents what has
happened to the peasant.
F. The structure of the story is external and logical because the author provides
data so that readers can reach conclusions.
G. Use narration and description to present the action.
VII. Environment and Atmosphere
{to
A.Environm
ent1. Name of the place: San Juan, P.
to.R.Period:
b. historical
Date: March 8, 1947
c. Description: urban area

*In this section, you must describe where the action occurs in the
narrative. Mostly it is one place, but if you had more than one,
remember that you would use this same format, starting with the
number 2.
Environment Continuation
8. Atmosphere
1. maternal love – The love that Juan feels
towards his mother.
2. sadness – Juan expressed his sadness at
being away from his mother.
3. Frustration – It occurs when you do not have
the money to pay for the stamp and the envelope.