Rigoberta Manchu Essay

I, Rigoberta Manchu

In the book I, Rigoberta Manchu the main theme is the difference in the Ladinos in Guatemala and the native Indian people. The Ladinos are the governing body, race, of people in Guatemala at this time and exploited the Indian population heavily which is the biggest theme especially the majority of the book. Rigoberta's family deals with the hardships of the Ladinos first hand and was in the majority of people at this time. The Indian tribes all throughout the mountains would be over taxed, under paid, and forced into debt which made the Ladinos very powerful with very little resistance. Throughout the book we follow Rigoberta as she becomes a young women from her very first trips to the Finca's, the work camps, until she go along with rebellions against the Ladino power and works for Indian Rights. These stories show why the Indian people had so much distrust and hate for the Ladino way of life and what they wanted to impose on their Indian Culture.

Through her Indian culture Rigoberta had many cultural experienced that shaped the way she felt about the Ladinos. As she was a young girl one of her most defined cultural experience was the wedding ceremonies. During this ceremony they renounce the Ladino way of life in all of their ceremonies. This is extremely apparent in the Indian's wedding ceremony. The groom makes a speech to the party telling them that they shall never wants cars or the fancy toilets of the Ladinos. This was to show that they wanted to live the life of the village which was in their eyes the only correct way to live. They also renounce buying Ladino Machinery because as soon as they buy the machines to help them work from the Ladinos they will soon be there to take all of their land. The culture was so strong in Rigoberta's village that they talked of the disgust they would get from seeing a Ladino in Indian clothing. They did not see them morally suitable to be able to wear their items. Ladinos also imposed their Catholic religion on the Indians and culturally the Indian's did not mind this at all but the distrust she was taught by the priest telling her not to trust the most respected people of her community caused another cultural rift. Indian people such as Rigoberta were taught from birth that the Ladino way of life was completely wrong and should be denounced in every way of the Indian life.

Although Rigoberta was culturally distrusting of the Ladinos her experiences throughout life were much more important in my opinion of her hatred of the Ladinos. As a little girl as far back as she can remember Rigoberta could remember the hardships of the Finca. The Finca's were owned by Ladino land owners were they shipped the Indians from the Altiplano down to the coast to pick cotton, coffee, and cut sugar. The fincas are a place of much pain and despair for Rigoberta. As young as three she had to ride and lorry all