Chapter 4 is one of Rodriguez's most
carefully crafted chapters and features some pivotal events in
the book. As you read it consider these questions:
What is the framing device Rodriguez
uses at the beginning and end of his chapter? What themes (social,
psychological, cultural, political, or philosophical concerns
of a text) does this framing device allow him to explore? What
is he saying about those themes?
In Chapter 4, Luis meets Viviana, a
woman about whom we will hear more later in the text. What
are some of the descriptive techniques that Rodriguez uses in
this section? By the end of his narrative of his time with Viviana,
Luis has played on several thematic binaries: gang violence
and love, men and women, isolation and companionship. What do
you think he is saying about these paired ideas--how do these
concepts interact with each other in this chapter?
Some readers
find Rodriguez's representations of women in Always
Running troubling. To these readers, the women in Always
Running seem
one or two dimensional--usually sexual objects, romantic fantasy
figures, or both. Do you think these critics are right to question
Rodriguez's representations of women? How are Payasa and Viviana
depicted in the chapter? Are the women developed with the same
care as the male characters? If not, why do you think that is?
The "Tradition" is one of the most often
discussed sections of the text because it offers such
a direct commentary on the relationships between race, class,
and violence in our schools? What do you see Rodriguez saying
about our educational system in these passages? What is he
saying about police authority and the use of force in response
to social problems like gang or racial violence?
Payasa is an important character in the text. Does Rodriguez
give you clues about why she behaves the way she does?
What kind of commentary is he making about the role of family
and community in a child's development? How do "La Vida Loca" and
the social conditions where Payasa grows up influence her life?
Chapter 4 invests much of its creative energy into detailed
descriptions of "sniffing" and the way it makes
Luis feel. What do you think Luis is saying about his own
psychological state at this time in his life through these
scenes? What broader comment is he making about society
and the political and cultural themes of the text? What
connections do you see between his suspension from school,
his drug use, and his near suicide attempt?
As he does throughout Always Running, Luis talks about the
development of his relationship with his family in Chapter 4.
What is going on with Luis and his family--particularly his mother
and his brother here--and what connections do you see between
these developments and the other concerns of this chapter: school,
romantic love, and drugs.