Character Analysis: The Quiet American

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The Quiet American On page 87 in The Quiet American, Pyle states that “They’ll be forced to believe what they are told, they won’t be allowed to think for themselves” to which Fowler replies “Thought’s a luxury. Do you think a peasant sits and thinks of God and Democracy when he gets inside his mud hut at night” Fowler is preventing Pyle from spreading of Democracy which includes life, liberty, and equality. Pyle believes that everyone should be able to achieve the American Dream no matter their ethnicity. he has been trained to spread these ideals since he is working for the United States government. Pyle looks up to Fowler for guidance since he has been in Vietnam longer than Pyle has. When Pyle states that “they will be forced to believe what they are told”, he is referring to communism which suppress the ideas of life, liberty, and equality. Furthermore, Fowler believes that the Vietnamese should not…show more content…
They think we’re dangerous. They think we will attack them with shiny knives. They are stupid people who are lost and got here by mistake” (Cisneros 28). The circumstances and quality of living in Esperanza’s neighborhood worry those unfamiliar with the area. Had her neighborhood been an all white suburb, then the families passing by would not have considered being assaulted while passing through. However, Esperanza later explains “[a]ll brown all around, we are safe. But watch us drive into a neighborhood of another color and our knees go shakity-shake and our car windows get rolled up tight and our eyes look straight.” (Cisneros 28). Racial bias runs in both directions. Yet, Esperanza cannot have her equality because of this racial bias. Her dreams of leaving mango street and living in an immaculate white house in the suburbs was a basic depiction of the common suburban
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