Latin-American Studies

Ana Castillos So Far From God had been regarded as a new masterpiece upon its publication in 1993. The book itself can be defined as brilliantly humorous and true to the Chicana experience. Coming from one of the women of the Chicana movement, the novel revolves around the lives of a family consisting of women  Sofi, a wife and a mother and her four daughters, Esperanza, Caridad, Fe and La Loca. Based from the story, these characters had discovered and portrayed what it means to be a woman in the face of the unknown. Castillo, through her social activism, had come up with a concrete example of a Mexican-American woman who faced struggles only to end up tougher than before.

So Far From God combines religion, family, supernatural and unexplained occurrences, humour, sex and despair in a novel that is not quite similar to anything that has ever been featured or encountered in the American Literature. It can be defined as a funny and entertaining novel which does not lead to a happy ending but rather reveals real scenarios behind the contemporary life of Mexican-Americans. It also depicts multiple tragedies followed by victories and survival. Castillo had been successful in provoking the readers thoughts about womens expectations, beliefs, religion and the extent of their courage. Furthermore, the novel opposes an omnipresent stereotype of Chicanas as dormant or static individuals exploited by coercion and subordinated by patriarchal church through presentation of female figures who attempt to reject dominion. This book presents to its readers characteristics of women that go beyond the ordinary.

The main character, Sofi, and her daughters are living at an intersection point between Mexican, Chicano, Spanish and First Nations cultures. Sofi also comes up against technological modernization and enduring traditions for comfort while she juggles her time in order to attend to her business and motherly duties at the same time. She portrayed in the novel the role of a typical mother living in a typical world inflicted with supernatural occurrences. Divine intervention, in varying extent, had been manifested in her four daughters starting with the youngest, La Loca who died due to a scary epileptic fit but then resurrected during her funeral and then levitated claiming later on that she had been to hell, purgatory and heaven the modern and young professional Esperanza who happened to be the only one to achieve high professional degree Caridad whose life led to mysticism and Fe who happens to be the most ordinary one until she suffered from a screaming convulsion when her fianc decided to call off their marriage. Their lives depict magic and supernatural forces in a small town (Tome, New Mexico) whose community directly encounters current social issues including the unstable political situation in the Middle East, AIDS and the newfound interest in alternate spirituality and natural cures for certain illnesses.

Sofis sentiment that they are poor and forgotten individuals reflects the sentiments of the Chicano movement. However, Sofi and her comadre (female friend) came to a specific realization that they can become closer to God by way of their own actions. And so they exerted their own efforts in initiating the improvement of the economic independence of their community for the benefit of their fellow inhabitants and they had been successful in doing so. They were able to restore mutual social relations, pride and dignity.

Castillo also allows her readers to see the multiple interests in Chicana subjectivity which at times can either be competing or converging. This is reflected in her female characters that fought hard to avow and lead their complex and intricate selves as opposed to the societies that persistently attempt to classify them with one-dimensional or superficial labels like slut, unloved, devil, Catholic, single mother etc.

One good thing about this novel is that each chapter can stand on its own. However, the reader still cannot satisfy himself without reading the entire book. From a readers point of view, Castillos novel can be defined as similar to a telenovela. It is a skilfully constructed book that provokes a lot of thoughts to the point of being confused or alarmed with the occurrences. It is like reading something that is based on reality but infused with magic and supernatural forces. It can give its readers the impression that there is indeed a cruel world out there and how you live your life is not always based on the choices that you make but also by the forces that occur to peoples lives. The novel also depicts the cruelty of men and the struggles of women in dealing with that culture. This certainly happens in real life and thus remains to be relevant  there are actual occurrences that can prove how men have a natural tendency and power to overrule women and ruin their disposition in life in this process. In the novel, the cruelty of men had been manifested in the transformation of ordinary women, who had been touched by divine intervention, into the supernatural.

So Far From God can take its readers to a journey towards the supernatural. However, it is still separated from the truth regardless of how current the situations in the story may be. In the story, readers are given the impression that death is not absolute. This is a far cry from the reality. While there are instances wherein a person who has been declared dead can come back to the world no such case will ever come close to La Locas resurrection and levitation. Furthermore, prayers are powerful indeed and faith can truly work wonders in ones life. However, this clearly separates the reality from the supernatural. Prayers are answered and miracles can therefore happen however, miracles are not comparable to magic or supernatural occurrences. The novel, regardless of how thought provoking it is, will not be enough to change ones concept of reality, generally speaking. It is simply a relevant, humorous and fine fiction that skilfully combines realistic events with magical, paranormal and bizarre happenings.

Castillos novel, regardless of the supernatural aspects, also imparts to its readers a multitude of thoughts and ideas. Among these are the cruelty of men and their power and effect over women, the weakness of womens choices and their strength of character. She had given concrete examples of what a mother is capable of doing and enduring in order to protect, support and save her children. Moreover, Castillo had also established the relationship between siblings  how they help each other in overcoming their struggles and rejection, how they strive to make their lives better despite other peoples judgements and criticisms and how they protect each other from the consequences of their actions and decisions. Although there are parts of the book that reveal the immorality issues affecting women, it also emphasized the female emotion, lust, strength and weakness altogether.

The strength of a woman had been clearly defined in this novel through Sofi. She was able to raise four daughters on her own while dealing with their individual personal issues, her own concerns as a mother and the external environment affecting their lives. Her daughters downfalls had been her downfalls as well. This condition of single motherhood had been a familiar in Sofis culture as stated on this particular line from the book. After undergoing many changes of outlook, Sofi meditates on the fact that she had been a single mother And all her life, there had always been at least one woman around like her, left alone, abandoned, divorced, or widowed, to raise her children (Castillo, 1993, p. 161).

This culture, involving single motherhood, is one reality that is clearly discussed in the book despite of its multiple manifestations of divine intervention. It uplifts the reputation of single mothers in many ways and serves as an eye-opener to the public which tends to view single motherhood shallowly and as a subject for indifference or prejudice. This subject about women that Castillo reflected in her novel is something that is worth agreeing for. A womans strength can never be underestimated by anybody regardless of how vulnerable she can be at some point. There are times when all her struggles can get the best of her but a woman, in every essence, has the ability to rise to occasions and surpass her trials. Castillo also expressed in the story the factors affecting women even in real life and the ones that can weaken her disposition  love, deceit, rejection, abandonment and lies. Sofi had reflected nobleness and integrity as a single mother and as an individual even in the face of trial and loss. Sofi had devoted her life to being a good daughter, a good wife, and a good mother, or at least had given it all a hell of a good try . . . Now there was no mother to honor, no father to respect, no jitas to sacrifice for, no rancho to maintain, and no land left to work (Castillo, 1993, p. 218). This line speaks of Sofis thoughts about her tribulations. Yet the story, although there is no apparent victory in the end, had justified the strength and power of a woman.

Lastly, on a macro overview of this novel, it attempts to present itself as a parody of popular and highly regarded Spanish soap operas  telenovelas and a social satire at the same time. In line with this observation as a reader, Castillo is not entirely successful in establishing a balance between the two perspectives. For this reason, the readers will find moments of confusion while reading the novel. Despite of its social relevance and religious and political aspects, the supernatural occurrences that were incorporated in the story added an element of confusion and uncertainty. It is sometimes hard to make a connection to the real world that the novel attempts to establish from the supernatural and magical world it also presents. It is up to the readers to decide which connection proves stronger for them.