“Mexican” is not a noun

1. “Mexican” is not a noun By Francisco X. Alarcon

2. “Mexican” is not a noun • “Mexican” • is a life • long • low-paying • job • a check • mark on •  a welfare • police • form • more than • a word • a nail in • the soul • but • it hurts • it points • it dreams • it offends • it cries • it moves • it strikes • it burns • just like • a verb

3. An introduction to the poem • This poem is better than others that I have read because it represents a cause and it has an important meaning behind it. • I can justify my judgment because if you look up the poem it will tell you that Alarcon wrote this poem for the 46 students who were arrested for showing solidarity. • I’m Mexican so my background can definitely affect my judgment. • Not only do I think that this is a good poem but I also like it as well. The difference between liking something and considering it good is that when something is good, it is in my opinion considered good from more than just one person. • This poem is similar to the type of music that listen to because it is deep and has a lot of meaning behind it. Its different because my music usually doesn’t really talk about pain and suffering.

4. A bit about the author • Francisco X. Alarcon was on born February 21, 1954. He was born in Wilmington, CA. • He was raised in both California and in Guadalajara, Mexico. • Alarcon is a Mexican-American Poet, and educator. • He Graduated from California University and Stanford University. • He currently has ten volumes of poetry out.

5. History • When the poem was being created there was a lot going on. Government was getting more strict with the immigration laws. There was a lot of discrimination and abuse to Mexicans that immigrated to the United States. Factories and other corporations would hire undocumented workers and pay them very little for all their hard work. In fact when you go onto poetry foundation it tells you right above the poem that Alarcon wrote the poem for a specific reason. • “to forty-six UC Santa Cruz students and    seven faculty arrested in Watsonville for   showing solidarity with two thousand   striking cannery workers who were mostly   Mexican women, October 27, 1985”

6. Culture • Alarcon had a lot of rich culture all around him while he wrote this poem. Since he was raised in both California and in Mexico he knew a lot about both the cultures. He was definitely very influenced by both his American and Mexican culture.

7. Society • Society in the 80’s (which was around the same time that this poem got published) was on a developing state. More and more immigrants from neighboring countries stared to show up in the U.S. Like I said earlier, some corporations were taking advantage of that and hiring all the undocumented workers. They figured that they didn’t have to pay them as much as a citizen from the U.S. since they weren’t documented. The undocumented immigrants would just let it happen because they feared deportation. This injustice raged and saddened Alarcon.

8. How did history influence the author? • History influenced the author in many ways. This poem was created for students who stood up against all the injustice that was occurring during the time. He saw their act of courage and created a poem that was inspired by them. He knew he had to do what he could to help his people.

9. How did culture influence the author? • Alarcon’s culture influenced him in many ways. He was Mexican-American which meant he was rich in culture. He was raised for a few years in Mexico so he can relate to the immigrants coming into the U.S.

10. How did society influence the author? • Society influenced the author in many ways. During the time period that Alarcon wrote this poem many Mexican immigrants were coming into the U.S. Mexicans were growing in numbers. That inspired him to help with the fight so that they too could have justice.

11. Conclusion • Francisco X. Alarcon is an inspirational man that stands up for what he believes in and for what’s right. His work is absolutely phenomenal. I believe that this is because he’s inspired by so much. His history, his culture, and society. His poem “Mexican” is not a noun is a great poem. Its more than just some work. Its words of wisdom, life long reflections, and confessions of the Mexican race.

12. Citation • http://www.poetryfoundation.org/poem/240068 • http://www.poetryfoundation.org/bio/francisco-x-alarcon • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Francisco_X._Alarc%C3%B3n