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Chapter 6
Themes
and Colors
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in American Dirt, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Trauma
Survival, Grief, and Resilience
Self-Determination, Uncertainty, and Chance
Motherhood
Forced Migration
Summary
Analysis
Lydia knows Los Jardineros control a vast area of the state of Guerrero and cannot relax on the way to Mexico City. Lydia and Sebastián had studied and met in Mexico City and, toward the beginning of their marriage, often took road trips there. On the way, they would stop in Chilpancingo to visit one of Sebastián’s friends. While Luca sleeps, Lydia studies the map of the region, wishing she could predict where the roadblocks will be and who will be controlling them. While some roadblocks are simple disruptions, others are potentially deadly. In the early days of Lydia and Sebastián’s marriage, it was much safer to travel out of Acapulco. In recent years, there has been an uptick in cartel violence, which has had a suffocating effect on the city’s residents, especially women.
Though their bus has pulled away from the station in Acapulco, Lydia and Luca are not yet out of harm’s way. Unfortunately for them, getting out of Acapulco is only the first step, as the cartels’ influence expands well beyond the city’s limits. Because of the roadblocks many cartels have set up, interstate travel has become increasingly dangerous, and which cartel controls which road is anyone’s guess. Lydia struggles with this unpredictability, especially now that every decision she makes has the potential to put her and Luca in harm’s way.
Active
Themes
Believing that getting off the bus is safer than risking the roadblocks, Lydia and Luca disembark at Chilpancingo during a scheduled, five-minute stop and seek out an Internet café. There, Lydia looks up Sebastián’s friend, Carlos, on Facebook; as it’s Sunday morning, she locates his place of worship. She and Luca head to the church and sit in the last row. When Carlos and his family finally enter, Lydia waves him over. They go upstairs to an office so she can explain what happened. Carlos then drives them to his house, and his wife, Meredith, meets them there. When she arrives, she is overflowing with grief over Sebastián’s death. Luca is turned off by this outpouring of emotion.
Though Carlos is distraught over the news of Sebastián’s murder, his ability to quickly shift into problem-solving mode suggests that these kinds of crises are common in Mexico, especially when it comes to journalists. In this way, this passage contributes to the novel’s image of Mexico as a country plagued by danger and corruption. It also illustrates the larger forces that compel people to migrate.
Active
Themes
Meredith is American, from Indiana. She came to Chilpancingo in college on a missionary trip, during which time she fell in love with both Carlos and Mexico. Meredith is still very involved in her Indiana church community and organizes an annual missionary trip to Chilpancingo. In fact, 14 missionaries are there now and will take a shuttle to Mexico City on Wednesday before flying back home. Over tea, Carlos and Lydia try to convince Meredith to let her and Luca ride on the airport shuttle with them. They believe this is the safest way for them to get through the roadblocks. Meredith is reluctant because she is worried for the safety of the group. Luca is largely zoned out throughout the conversation.
Active
Themes
