Breaking Through FINAL EXAM ESSAY: Please answer 3 out of the 4 questions.

Breaking Through

By Francisco “Panchito” Jiménez

“Papá gave me a pained look, hobbled on the table and shut the door. I rested my head on the table and wept. Mamá sat next to me and put her arm around my shoulders.

“Are you okay, Panchito?”

I nodded. “Why can’t he understand?” I said, wiping my tears and runny nose on my shirtsleeves.” (Pg. 169)

Write a letter to Papá. Pretend you are Panchito and you are trying to convince Papá to let you attend Santa Clara University. How would you persuade him to let you attend in the Fall Semester. Provide at least two reasons and evidence from the text.

“Your papá wants the family to be together. He doesn’t want his children to leave. First, Roberto left when he got married. Now, if you go to college, you’ll leave too. It hurts him. It hurts him too that he can’t support the family. His dream to earn and save enough money and eventually to return to México with all of us is gone.” (Pg. 170)

Discuss the difference between Panchito’s dreams and Papá’s dreams?

“When I finally dozed off, I dreamed I was waxing the floors at the gas company. I kept glancing at the clock on the wall because I did not want to be late for the test. When it was time to leave, I could not move. My feet were glued to the floor. I dropped the mop and tried to reach out to grab a desk, but I could not lift my arms. They felt like lead. I looked out the window and saw Papá and Roberto picking strawberries. I cried out for help to them, but they could not hear me. I woke up in a sweat. My heart was racing. I could not go back to sleep, so I headed for the Western Union.” (Pg. 174)

What does this dream mean for Panchito? Why did the author include it in the story?

“Driving by Main Street Elementary School brought back memories. It was the same school where I failed first grade because I did not know English well enough and where I had received first prize for my drawing of a butterfly. I felt the same sorrow and happiness I felt then, even though many years had gone by. As we approached the Santa Maria Bridge, I remembered the pain I felt in my chest every time we crossed this bridge, at the end of every summer, on our way north to pick grapes and cotton in Fresno. But this time I felt excitement, not pain – the same feeling I had as a child when my family and I took the train north from Guadalajara, crossed la frontera, and entered California.

I speeded up, crossed the bridge, and headed north to Santa Clara. I was going to college. After so many years, I was still moving.” (Pg. 193)

How do you plan to “break through” and achieve your own goals and dreams?