If you eat anything, I’m going to beat you

In Drown, Junto Diaz depicts a poor family from the Dominican Republic through the use of short stories that characterize this family and the Dominican culture as a whole. Diaz includes many instances throughout the book of violence and its effect on the mentality of this Dominican family that leads to a lifestyle of compliance.

In today’s society, physical abuse is deemed as an unethical crime against humanity. Usually in the form of a punishment, Diaz’s accounts of physical violence are frequently received by child and given by parent.  These punishments were so commonplace that Yunior and Rafa came to expect them and Rafa developed a strategy to “move out of the way every time Papi was going to smack [Yunior]” (Diaz 26). The kids are so accustomed to physical violence in their household that they have incorporated it into their temperament when they venture away from home. This is evident in the chapter entitled “Ysrael” when Rafa smashed Ysrael over the head with a bottle just to see his unmasked face. These two boys were brought up to accept the fact that the usage of physical violence is acceptable to get what they want.

            The physical violence portrayed in Drown can also allude to many other aspects of the Dominican culture, such as compliance. This compliance comes in the form of a wife accepting her cheating husband back and kids withstanding harsh treatment. Mami’s compliance is highlighted when she accepted Papi back into her home after he left his family in such a poor state. Her actions show that she will always be complicit to Papi because he holds such a power over her. This power is inferred from his masculinity displayed through physical abuse. His punishments to his children, especially Yunior, are unnecessary and over the top. At one point, Papi actually tells Yunior “If you eat anything, I’m going to beat you” (Diaz 37). This physical abuse is has become part of the family’s culture and the kids do not know a life without it. This lifestyle characterizes Dominican Republic families in the 80’s and how parents treated their children at that time.

            Besides the fact that they are Dominican, this violence could also be related to their economic status. With money so tight, Papi is frequently stressed out and this leads to him acting on a short temper. During a stressful time for Papi, he “took hold of [Mami’s] arms and pushed her against the slumping walls of the house, thinking his touch would snap her from a brooding silence” (Diaz 166). In his mind, he thinks that violence is the solution to any problem within his impoverished family. The family’s state of poverty definitely contributes to the presence of physical violence throughout the story.

            The physical abuse displayed in Drown characterizes this Dominican family as one with old school beliefs and practices. The abuse can be explained and rationalized by social norms of Dominican families in the 80’s, economic status, and complying to a familiar routine.