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1. Antojos
Themes
and Colors
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in How the García Girls Lost Their Accents, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Language, Storytelling, and Identity
Immigration and Assimilation
Sexuality and Relationships
Revolution, Patriarchy, and Feminism
Racism and Social Class
Summary
Analysis
Sofia and her three sisters have a tradition of always coming home for their father’s birthday. Their father insists that they don’t bring their husbands to this gathering. This year, though, Sofia wants to break tradition by hosting her father’s 70th birthday at her house. Sofia has a newborn son, her second child, and giving birth to the first boy in two generations has allowed Sofia and her father to be on speaking terms for the first time in six years, because her father is happy that Sofia’s son will carry on the family name. Sofia is the youngest of the four sisters, and she has never gotten along well with her father. She is rebellious, the least educated, and the least conventionally beautiful sister.
Sofia and her sisters’ father’s traditional values regarding gender are evident. He breaks a six-year silence with Sofia after she gives birth to a male baby even though Sofia already has a daughter—clear evidence that Sofia’s father prefers males. The fact that Sofia and her father don’t get along because Sofia is rebellious suggests that he believes that women should conform to traditional gender norms. His insistence on his daughters’ husbands being absent is also noteworthy—it seems likely that he doesn’t approve of the husbands.
Active
Themes
When Sofia was still living with her parents, she went on vacation and met Otto, her now husband, on the streets. Later, Sofia’s father found Otto’s love letters and exploded in anger, screaming at Sofia and demanding to know whether she had had sex with Otto. After a vicious argument, Sofia left home and married Otto. When Sofia later gave birth to a girl, her parents came to visit but her father hardly spoke. Now, Sofia wants to plan a big party for her father’s 70th birthday to reconcile with him.
Sofia’s father’s reaction makes it abundantly clear that he believes strongly in traditional values about women’s sexuality—namely, that women shouldn’t have sex outside of marriage. In fact, Sofia’s father’s anger about Sofia’s premarital relationship exceeds his desire to have a relationship with his daughter. Sofia stays with Otto despite this falling out with her father, showing that she rejects her father’s conservative views on the matter.
Active
Themes
The birthday party coincides with Sofia’s son’s christening. Everyone calls Sofia’s father “big Carlos” and the baby “little Carlos.” The family eats dinner, makes toasts, and gives big Carlos gifts, but the sisters think their father seems unsatisfied. As the evening goes on, the father becomes quiet and seems to feel unappreciated. The sisters imagine that he is reminiscing on everything he’s done for them—he paid for their clothes, schools to correct their accents, and trips to Europe.
Active
Themes
One of the sisters starts a game, hoping to reengage her father in the party. The father sits in the middle of the room blindfolded, and the women in the room take turns kissing his cheek as he guesses who is kissing him. Sofia enters in the middle of the game. She notices that her father only guesses her three sisters’ names, and never Sofia’s own name. Angry and offended, Sofia dramatically kisses and licks her father’s ear. This embarrasses and enrages him. The father removes his blindfold and sees a familiar “brilliant, impassive” look on Sofia’s face. He ends the game and the party.
Active
Themes
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