The Novel the Squatter and the Don

The novel The Squatter and the Don is set in California after the signing of the Guadalupe-Hidalgo Treaty that ended the Mexican-American war. The Squatter and the Don is flooded with historical importance that overflows into the lives of the characters, and is at the core of the issues presented in the book. We are dealing with characters that are deeply affected by the Mexican American war, and have watched as their land has transitioned from Spanish control to Mexican control and lastly to American control. The aftermath of dealing with the laws surrounding property, the caste system these laws have created, and upholding their position as gentleman is what spins together to make, or break, these characters.

After gaining independence from Spain in 1821, the Mexican government began the task of privatizing land for its natives. To do this, the new Mexican government handed our more than 500 land grants to prominent families. This system was informal, and would cause the Americas many issues after their gaining the land in the Mexican American war. The main point to come out of this piece of history for our novel is the uprising of these families as a new elite group. This elite group held themselves apart from the Mexicans who did not own land.

In the beginning of the novel we are presented with a question for the reader through the character William Darrell. In a conversation with his wife, he states that he is indeed a citizens because they take land from the American government by paying for it. "That's exactly it. We aren't squatters. We are 'settlers.' We take up land that belongs to us, American citizens, by paying the government price for it." We learnt that his family had previously worked on a land for twenty years prior, only to have their hard go to waste, and gain no ownership of the land. Here we are presented with out first issue in the book: the argument over what land ownership means. In a time when land ownership give status and stability, it is quite desirable. Mr. Darnell's wife urges him not to settle on land that has been given to its owner trough a Mexican grant. And more specially, I beg of you, do not go on a Mexican grant unless you buy the land from the owner. This I beg of you specially, and must insist upon it." She insists that he does not gain the name of a squatter, a title looked down upon in the time frame set in the novel, as well as today. The conversation agers Mr. Darnell, who plans on going to California to look for land to homestead of his family to settle on. The land he specifically is looking into is the Alamar rancho, land owned by "I don't know whether that can be done in the Alamar rancho, land owned by Mariano Alamar. which I am going to see, and I know it has been rejected."

The issue of the questioning of the property of land is one that is run throughout the novel. Mr. Darrell questions Mr. Alamar, known as the Don in the novel because of his ownership of the land, right to the property. He settles on the Don's land, and pays him nothing, causing him throughout the novel to be known as a squatter. The mere fact that these titles are given to their respective characters shows the reader the position they are to take on the characters. We are presented with the idea that the title of the squatter is undesirable by Mr. Darrell's wife herself, only for him to be called it anyway. The fact that Maria Ruiz de burton chooses to title the novel as The Squatter and the Don, shows the importance in these titles. The difference of the status is presented to us immediately. Which brings us to our second issue in the novel: the issue of status.

The Don has a daughter, named Mercedes. The squatter, Mr. Darrell, has a son named Clarence. Clarence falls for Mercedes, and wishes to marry her. This is where the novel turns into a romance. Their love is forbidden by their parents, because of their feud over the land they are both now living on. While Mr. Darrell is not the only squatter on the land, the novel gives the sense he is the head of the rest, as he is the one the other squatter urge to approach the Don whenever they want their voice to be heard. Mercedes' mother opposes the union of Mercedes and Clarence so much, that she sends Mercedes to New York to be away from Clarence. Other characters in the novel, such as Carlota, express the distaste for such a union. "But a squatter! The idea of an Alamar marrying a squatter! For squatters they are, though we dance with them," This gives the reader the feeling they are supposed to have in reference to the marriage of a son of a squatter and the daughter of a Don. This sentiment is amplified through the fact that Clarence is rich, through well placed stocks. Money does not mean everything in this world, so it is less a disparity between finances, and more a disparity between status. The Alamar's are apart of the elite Mexican class, because they have obtained land. Whereas the Darrell's are squatters, mere parasites on the land of the higher class.

Another large issue presented in the novel is that of the government, its corruption and overall effect on the