In the poems written
by Martin Espada called, “Revolutionary Spanish Lesson”, “Two Mexicanos Lynched
in Santa Cruz,” and “The New Bathroom Policy at English High School,” all
express a theme dealing with power. In all the poems a theme that appears a lot
is when people have an abundance of power they sometimes oppress someone else.
An example of this
theme is in the poem “The Bathroom Policy at English High School.” In the poem
it says, “The boys chatter Spanish/in the bathroom/while the principal/listens
from his stall/the only word he recognizes/ is his own names/…./So he decides/
to ban Spanish/. This illustrates how the principal uses his power to oppress someone
else. Because the principal doesn’t know Spanish and doesn’t understand that
culture and just because he doesn’t understands he uses his power to ban Spanish.
This demonstrates the theme in these poems that when person has an abundance of
power they abuse it.
Another example of
this theme is in the poem, “Revolutionary Spanish Lesson.” In the poem it said,
“Whenever my name/is mispronounced/I want to buy a toy pistol/…/hijack a
busload/of republican tourist/. This expresses how many people that the author
comes across don’t respect his culture enough to pronounce his name right. So
they oppress the speaker in the poem by disrespecting his culture. This illustrates
how other people with power oppress the speaker of the poem.
The last example of
the theme in all three poems is present in the poem, “Two Mexicanos Lynched in
Santa Cruz.” For example in the poem it reads, “When forty gringo vigilantes/cheered
the rope/ that snapped two Mexicanos/ into a grimacing sleep of broken necks/…/a
high-collar boy smirking some peering/../crowding in the photograph/. This
portrays the theme well because the gringos used their power and oppressed the
Mexicanos by killing them. This shows how people with an abundance of power oppress
other people.
In conclusion, people
who have an abundance of power oppress other people. As shown in these poems by
Martin Espada oppression can come in many forms. An example of this in our
lives today is how Governor Chris Christie used his power as a Governor, and
shut down a lane on one of the most busiest bridges in Brooklyn just to spite a
mayor who didn’t support him in new jersey. Which shows how he abused his power to oppress
someone. Overall when someone has an abundance of power, that’s person usually oppresses
someone else.
