Shifting Loyalties

Shifting Loyalties

Question One

In the book, Daniel Cano shows loyalty to be a virtue that citizens should have, especially with regard to their country and government. The attitude of different characters towards the draft shows this. For instance, Victor Medrano’s father is deeply ashamed of the fact that he fled to Mexico to avoid being drafted into the Second World War. He feels that his actions amounted to cowardice and even hides the truth from his son for years. Compounding this issue is the fact that he believes two of his sons died in Vietnam as punishment for his cowardice (Cano, 1995). This perception implies that citizens should be loyal to their governments and serve them to a certain extent.

The story that Victor Medrano learns from his father also implies that loyalty has its limits. Even though he feels it was a cowardly act, the decision that Medrano’s father made to flee the draft shows that he felt that his country was asking too much of him. This is confirmed by the death of two of his sons in Vietnam. Even though citizens are expected to be loyal to their countries, there are certain situations when people can decide to reject their country’s calls.

Question Two

In Planting the seeds, the author draws comparisons between being in a baseball team and serving in the army. The story follows David Almas’ as he plays in the Little League and learns different lessons from his father. The emphasis on Almas’ role in the Little League baseball team serves as a way of showing that everybody has a role that they should play within their community. In some ways, David’s membership in the team is supposed to prepare him for a future where he will play a critical role in society. His father emphasizes this by constantly reminding David that “the important thing is that you learn to be a man”, sometimes in contradiction of what his wife says to David (Cano, 1995, p. 29).

Through the lessons that David is taught in the book, the author implies that manhood is about serving a specific, predetermined role within society. The book shows this through the repeated emphasis that David’s father places on his son’s preparation for his future roles using metaphors such as the one involving the dandelions and paratroopers (Cano, 1995). One of the roles that Almas’ father seems to emphasize is service in the army. His tales about paratroopers and the time that Almas’ uncle spent in the army shows a certain expectation that he has of Almas to serve his country as a soldier once he becomes a man. To this end, Almas’ father seems to be teaching him to be a man by having him play baseball, within a rigid training program.

 

References

Cano, D. (1995). Shifting Loyalties. Texas: Are Publico Press.

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