The Goldfish Symbol Analysis

The solitary goldfish swimming in its bowl in the story “El Angel de Oro” symbolizes Francisco’s own loneliness. In the story, the family has moved to Corcoran to find work in the cotton fields. Since it rains incessantly, Francisco and his siblings are often stuck inside their tiny cabin, which is like their own little fishbowl that keeps them separate from the outside world.

Francisco looks out the window at his neighbor’s goldfish on these boring, rainy days. Mamá calls the fish El Angel de Oro, or “Golden Angel”—but despite the fish’s beauty, Francisco pities it, because it is all alone. Like the goldfish, Francisco is lonely, since his family’s constant moving makes it hard for him to make friends. Additionally, he feels different from his classmates at school because of the linguistic, cultural, and economic barriers between them—the other kids view him as a curiosity that’s separate from them, much like Francisco stares at the fish in its bowl. The goldfish thus represents Francisco’s own experience in the U.S.: he, like the fish, is a solitary creature who’s aware of the world around him but unable to feel like he’s a part of it.