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Essay / Class Differences in The Stolen Party by Liliana Heker
The world is made up of a population of superficial people. What matters and is valued in society is not how we behave, but rather how we position ourselves financially or in our social class. The difference in treatment between these different classes is what inspired Liliana Heker to write The Stolen Party, a short story published in 1982. The story follows a servant's young daughter, Rosaura, and how, through experience, she learns the reality regarding his social position. After many arguments, Rosaura's mother allows her to attend her rich friend Luciana's birthday party, even though she knows the consequences of leaving. At the party, Rosaura thinks she is being treated special, with Señora Ines giving her tasks that she would not trust other children to do. However, she later realizes that she was not invited to the party as a guest, but as a worker. It doesn't matter to others how well behaved she is, because because she is the servant's daughter, she will never receive the same level of respect or treatment from higher class people. Through the use of symbolism and conflict, Heker's short story The Stolen Party reveals the influence of social class on the treatment received and proves how outward appearance affects the types of relationships they will encounter.Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get an original essay First, Heker uses symbolism to demonstrate the effect of a person's social class on the treatment they receive. For example, throughout the story, the importance of the monkey to Rosaura is made clear to the reader through the constant mention of the animal. The symbolism of the monkey and the magician represent the idea of servant and master respectively. This idea is used as a metaphor to describe the relationship between Rosaura and Luciana's mother, Señora Ines. To explain, when the magician performs his tricks, the monkey is called his “partner”. The monkey is obliged to obey all the orders of the magician, acting as his servant. For comparison, at the end of the party, before Rosaura leaves, Señora Ines does not give Rosaura a gift. Instead, she hands her two bills, stating that "[she] really and truly deserved this, [...] [thanking her] for all [her] help, [referring to her as] [her] pet company. » (Heker 5). At the party, Señora Ines orders Rosaura to perform certain tasks, such as cutting the cake for the guests. Although this seems like a privilege at first, it is later revealed that this was because Rosaura did not attend the party as a guest but as a worker. Additionally, the significance of Señora Ines rewarding Rosaura with money depicts the miscommunication due to social class. It is presumed that Señora Ines was not actively rude to Rosaura when she "rummaged through her purse." [and] in her hand appeared two bills” (Heker 5), but due to class differences, she assumes that those of the lower classes want nothing more than money. For the upper social classes, money is the solution to all problems. It is fault and social class inequality that leads Rosaura to be treated the way she is in the story. Furthermore, the conflicts that Rosaura faces and the relationships that result from them are the root of the differences between social classes. For example, during the party, a blonde girl with a bow who is attending the party as a guest approaches Rosaura and asks her who she is. The naive Rosaura responds, declaring..