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Efraín Suárez Arce

Prof. Juan C. Canals

English 3232(OU1)

21 September 2008

First research assignment: Sample Research Paper

Outline

I. Subject: Puerto Rican Literature in English

A. Pedro Pietri’s poem, “Puerto Rican Obituary”

II. Topic: Autobiographical Issues in Pedro Pietri’s poem, “Puerto Rican Obituary”

III. Hypothesis: “Puerto Rican Obituary” presents a closer look at the social,

economic and cultural issues of the Nuyorican community according to Pietri. This gives

the reader a clearer glimpse into the personal issues which motivated the creation of the

poem itself.

A. economic and cultural issues of the Nuyorican community during the late

1940's and 1950’s

1. Definition of the term the term "Nuyorican"

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B. Pietri as one of the Nuyorican poets of the 1960’s

1. Reclaiming of the term, “Nuyorican”

a. introduction of the use of “spanglish” (sp ng gl sh) or Spanish that

is characterized by numerous borrowings from English as spoken

among bilingual people of Puerto Rican ancestry. Nuyorican poets,

among them Pietri, used spanglish as a literary device to link their

own history and cultural affiliation to the island while being culturally

and physically separated from it.

2. Stylistic compositional choices and observable themes in Pietri’s writing

IV. Conclusion

A. Description of Pietri as a poet of denunciation who chronicled the joys,

sorrows and struggles of Nuyoricans during his lifetime

Hypothesis

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During the late 1940's and 1950’s, New York and other Northeast cities

became the destination for thousands of Puerto Ricans seeking better economic

conditions and who were hired in farms and factories. They experienced racial

discrimination, linguistic barriers and other problems. These episodes and difficulties

became the main themes documented in their writings;

"Juan, Miguel, Milagros, Olga, Manuel

All died yesterday today / and will die again tomorrow

Passing their bill collectors on to the next of kin

All died waiting for the Garden of Eden

To open up again under a new management

All died dreaming about America waking them up in the

middle of the night screaming:

Mira Mira your name is on the winning lottery ticket

for one hundred thousand dollars

All died hating the grocery stores

that sold them make-believe steak"

(Opening stanza from Pedro Pietri's "Puerto Rican Obituary)

The term "Nuyorican" was originally used by native Puerto Ricans (called “Boricuas”) to

refer to the members of what is called the Puerto Rican Diaspora located in or around

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the New York City area, Northern New Jersey, or of their descendants (especially those

raised or still living in the New York area). Some people used the term to refer to many

Puerto Ricans settled in different neighborhoods of Manhattan such as El Barrio (East

Harlem) or what was called Loisaida (Lower East Side). According to Lenina Nadal , the

inspiration for the name came from an incident where poets Miguel Algarín and Miguel

Pinero were walking in Puerto Rico when someone called them, “Nuyoricans”, as a

derogatory term, meaning that they were not “authentic” Puerto Ricans and therefore

less legitimate. It is this student’s opinion that to this day Nuyoricans are not considered

Puerto Ricans by the “Boricuas” (native Puerto Ricans) due to the lack of culture

similarity.

During the 1960´s Puerto Rican authors, like Pedro Pietri began to reclaim the term in

order to link their own history and cultural affiliation to a common ancestry while being

culturally and physically separated from the island. Significantly, the majority of Pietri’s

poems were composed in “Spanglish”, a form of Spanish that is characterized by

numerous borrowings from English as spoken among bilingual people of Puerto Rican

ancestry. By using Spanglish he was reconfirming his identity as a Nuyorican (and in

this student’s opinion, giving birth to a stereotype which would plague bilingual people of

Puerto Rican ancestry for years to come). Pietri once stated that he wrote in Spanish,

but because his typewriter spoke English, his words came out differently. He would later

call himself a "Spanglish Metaphor Consultant".

“If only they had turned off the television and tuned into their own

imaginations.”

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The stylistic choice of Pietri, as one of the Nuyorican poets of the 1960’s, of a strong

language that lacks lyrical qualities seems to imply a resistance to Americanization, and

an expression of dignity and pride in a puertorrican heritage. This in spite of the racial

discrimination, linguistic, cultural, social and economic barriers faced by the Nuyorican

community. Pietri himself described the impact of the Nuyorican poets during this time:

“At the time, it was the decline of the Beat Generation, and poetry went

back to the universities and became an academic thing, but here come these

street poets, man, and we pushed academia out of the way and took over the

scene.”

The poetry he created was critical of the reality of living in abandoned neighborhoods

throughout the city, and of the Vietnam War, which he considered unjust. Their poetry

distinguished itself as journalistic observations of people and life on the streets, and

captured the defiance in the face of apparently uncaring social and political institutions.

Pietris’s work is known for its sociopolitical exposition of the circumstances of the Puerto

Rican Diaspora, especially in New York. According to Dr. Alfredo Matilla:

"(Pietris’s) work summarizes the literary expression of that Diaspora, collecting

and documenting the language, idiosyncrasies, aspirations, mores and obstacles

that it confronts within the North American Society to validate its existence.”

Juan Flores, a professor at Hunter College, said that

"He [Pedro Pietri] captured that social death and the hope that there is recourse

to humanity in the Puerto Rican culture that people had cut themselves off

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from…It was not just about the poverty, but about the crass materialist culture

that leads us all into illusions about ourselves."

According to Juan Moreno Velazquez author of "Desmitificación de una Diva" and

former entertainment editor of El Diario-La Prensa, Pietri's significance in the world of

writing is unequivocal.

"Pedro and most important his legacy are very important to our people. I am not

talking past here; I am talking as everlasting expression of the reality of what

being a Puerto Rican in New York is. The guy has a gift, but in many ways; he is

a gift."

Frances Aparacio, who has edited Pietri's poetry and used it in classrooms said that

"Pietri's poetry falls within the surrealistic mode, fragmented images, search for

the absurd in everyday life, irrational, surprising metaphors and imagery, humor,

and sarcasm,"

Latin culture historian Aurora Flores, a friend since 1975 said

"He embraced and identified what it was to be a Nuyorican, a Puerto Rican

growing up in New York,"

Other observable themes are the demystification of authority figures and social

institutions (government, schools, church, "the system") and alienation in contemporary

urban life. Also, the political status and the poverty levels for Puerto Ricans in New York

can be seen in Pietri's denunciation of "the system."

Conclusion

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Pedro Pietri, was a Nuyorican writer, poet, playwright and dramatist… a

"Spanglish Metaphor Consultant," a member of the Latin Insomniacs Motorcycle Club

Without Motorcycles, a man who called himself the Reverend of the “Iglesia de la Madre

de los Tomates”… But foremost he was a Nuyorican poet and his poetry can be

described as a poetry of denunciation, which sought to create cultural awareness

among the members of the Nuyorican community and shock them into action as we see

in his poem "Puerto Rican Obituary," where he seeks to show that what we call “The

American Dream” does not and cannot exist for the Nuyorican community until they

themselves develop awareness of their unique identity and potential. At times playfully

absurd and at others angry, heartbreaking and/or hopeful, "Puerto Rican Obituary" was

embraced by young Nuyoricans upon it’s publication, who were imbued with a sense of

pride and nationalism. "Puerto Rican Obituary" should be understood in these terms

without losing sight of its original objective of addressing the masses as oral poetry.

This is important in order to understand his use of popular language, anger, and style.

"I see the foundation of a community that ensures our survival, which perseveres.

This history we made, these poets we created… We're here to stay…They can't

replace us."

Works Cited

Aparicio, Frances R. “Pedro Pietri: Classroom Issues and Strategies”

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Georgetown University, 3 Sept 2008

<http://www9.georgetown.edu/faculty/bassr/heath/syllabuild/iguide/pietri.html>

Gomez, Maria Cardalliaguet , “Voces Latinas: Cultural Identity through Poetry and

Lyrics

2008 - the Yale-New Haven Teachers Institute, 3 Sept 2008

<http://www.yale.edu/ynhti/curriculum/units/2007/1/07.01.11.x.html >

Gonzalez, David “CITYWIDE; When Life Is Art, Bowing to Death Is Not an Option”,

2004 – the New York Times 3 Sept 2008

<http://www.nytimes.com/2004/01/27/nyregion/27wide.html?

ex=1222056000&en=1a68b31520a6d9f8&ei=5070>

Nadal, Lenina “Performing Profound: A History and Interactive Playground of

Puerto Rican Performance Poetry”

Performing Profound.org 3 Sept 2008

<http://www.performingprofound.com/thesisproposal.pdf>

Pietri, Pedro (1944-2004) “Puerto Rican Obituary; Poems”

Monthly Review Press, 1973

Ramirez, Ana Maria “News & Analysis: The reverend Pedro Pietri”

2006 - Party for Socialism and Liberation 3 Sept 2008

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<http://www.pslweb.org/site/News2?JServSessionIdr008=

fhx33zlie1.app1b&page=New sArticle&id=5309&news_iv_ctrl=1201>

Yvonne - “Art News & Reviews: Pedro Pietri 1944-2004”,

WBAI RADIO 99.5FM, New York City, 2004 - PACIFICA FOUNDATION,

<http://wbai.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=1426&Itemid=2>