Throughout the book, there are constant struggles Esch faces.  She finds out she is pregnant with Manny’s child, she is neglected and rejected from Manny, she and her family live in deep poverty, she deeply misses her deceased mother, and her father seems very distant emotionally from his family..  Esch is the matriarch of the family, and represents strength and courage in the face of adversity.  Despite all her struggles, she carries on as best as she can, and hopes for a better future.  

An important theme of this book is class and poverty.  Esch’s family live in deep poverty, and are a black family living in the south.  Hurricane Katrina was a devastating storm for the south, and significantly affected many people who lived in the south.  Many of those people, like Esch’s family, were poor, and had very little resources to leave their homes.  Sadly, many people, during this time, were left for days without food and shelter due to the devastating storm and a slow response from the U.S. government.  Many believed the response of the U.S. government was slow due to the fact that the areas affected were mainly poor areas.  

Esch comes from a background which includes two parents who are absent in her and her brother’s lives.  Thus, they must form strong bonds between each other in order to better cope with the problems of everyday life.  All they have is each other, due to absentee parents, and the poverty they live in.  They have very little economic possibility or opportunity.  Esch’s pregnancy reinforces the idea that she is bringing a child into this world, with nothing except love to offer.  Manny, the father of Esch’s baby, fails to acknowledge that it is his child, and he blatantly rejects Esch’s love.  Esch is a young, single mom, reinforcing the negative stereotype that people of poorer social classes have children young, and without the proper financial resources to care for them.  

 Class is a big theme in this story because it shows all of the families problems and conflicts, compounded by the fact they are poor.  When Hurricane Katrina strikes, Esch’s house is flooded by the storm, and the family has no choice but to navigate in dangerous conditions in order to reach a neighbor’s house.  They have little to no resources, and must eventually evacuate their only home in order to seek safety.  Esch’s family problems reflect the problems facing poor, black families in the south, with very little economic resources, and helpless in the midst of a horrible storm.  

When I Was Puerto Rican is the story of Esmeralda, and the struggles her family goes through.  Esmeralda Santiago is a Puerto Rican girl, who transitions from child into adolescent in the book.  Her struggles are the struggles of coming of age, as well as the obstacles she encounters with her family.  Esmeralda is the protagonist in the story, and shows great strength as a young girl who experiences many changes that affect her life deeply.  Her parents constantly fight with each other, as her mother suspects Esmeralda’s father is having an affair with another woman.  Esmeralda’s mom is consistently pregnant, and gives birth to multiple children including Hector, Alicia, Raymond, and Edna.  Esmeralda’s father, Pablo, is never consistent in her life or in the life of her siblings.  

Esmeralda’s family is constantly moving, which causes a lot of stress for Esmeralda.  When Esmeralda and her family move to Santurce outside of San Juan, she has a hard time as she is bullied by her peers.  She struggles to find her place, and her classmates call her “jibara,” which translates into peasant.  After Esmeralda’s sister is born, Esmeralda’s father becomes more involved in the family’s life.  The family then moves back to Macun.  When Ramona goes to work full time to support her children, Esmeralda is given the duty of watching over her siblings, which is yet another obstacle in Esmeralda’s life.  She has a hard time getting her siblings to listen, but shows defiance and perseverance despite feeling guilty for Raymond’s foot.  The family once again moves to the city, and this is yet another obstacle in Esmeralda’s life.  There is little stability in Esmeralda’s life, as her family is constantly moving from place to place.  

In chapter 9, Esmeralda is touched inappropriately by Don Luis, who would always give her piano lessons.  She reacts strongly to this by physically attacking Don Luis.  She is a strong, fearless, and independent girl despite her age.  She can advocate for herself, and does so by telling her parents about the incident.  Her attacking Don Luis shows that she is not one to take abuse of any sort, and she shows this by lashing out at Don Luis.  

Esmeralda and her family once again move.  This time, she moves with her family to New York City, where she, her mother, and her siblings all move into an apartment.  Esmeralda initially hates her life in New York City due to the high rate of crime in the city, and the fact that she cannot go out as often as she would like.  She also misses her beloved Puerto Rico, and the nature that was part of her native island.  Despite this, and through her strong character, she seeks mentorship.  She goes to talk to the school counselor in her new school, and tells him that she has future plans to be a model.  The school counselor makes a suggestion that she try acting, and she takes his advice.  She eventually applies to PS 66, a performing arts school.  She is admitted to the school, despite a poor performance during her audition.  Esmeralda eventually finds out that she was admitted to the school because she showed courage in auditioning for PS 66.  Despite Esmeralda’s struggles, It is through her character, ambition, and perseverance that allow her to move forward in life.

Bibliography

1. Santiago, Esmeralda. When I Was Puerto Rican. Marco Book Company, 2009.