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  • Essay / The characters Henry and El Pachuco in Zoot Suits by Luis Valdez

    In the play “Zoot Suits,” by Luis Valdez, chronicles the struggles of Mexican Americans through the mysterious case of the “Sleeping Lagoon.” In the story there is a modern tragic hero, Henry, and a mythical, modified ego of him, El Pachuco, as well as many other characters. Henry's decisions are deeply affected by El Pachuco throughout the play. This is mainly because El Pachuco only interacts with Henry and the audience from time to time. Nonetheless, these interactions have a huge impact on Henry. Each character is unique in their own right but builds on each other to make the story tell and make more sense. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get an original essay Henry, who is our main protagonist, is a complex and dynamic character. He is protective, strong and suspicious. Henry is a dynamic character as he evolves in various ways throughout the play, whether negative or positive. In other words, he is also a round character who has many different traits. He is also very defensive about any negative mention of the people he cares for. He will always give priority to his family and friends since “No one wants to screw [his] family without responding to them, therefore”. This phrase translates to "no one fucks with [their] family without talking back to them", perfectly illustrating how protective and careful he is when it comes to his family. In fact, to take care of his loved ones, he must be strong, which he is. He ends up going through a lot but he always remains strong and confident even if at times it doesn't seem like it. When El Pachuco tells him, if he thinks he has a chance, he responds "yeah, I think I had a chance" and tries to keep his strong side by following up with "Hank Reyna is not a loser, I'm coming ". at the top. However, as mentioned before, he doesn't say it directly, but it is mostly seen through his actions. He always tries to stay strong and hopeful, not only for himself but for everyone else's as well. His unreliability is also what prevents him from believing in his release. He is always suspicious of people who try to give him help. He always denies the help he receives or calls them out for what he sees as their true intentions. Like with Alice when he confronts her and says, “You think I haven’t seen through your bullshit? Still so worried. Come on, boys. Speak up, boys. Defend your people. Well, you leave my people out of this! You don't understand that? He maintains his strong leadership attitude but his distrust causes him to reject help from anyone other than a Chicano. Despite everything, Henry grows and improves throughout the story, making him the strong, protective, suspicious and dynamic character that he is. Henry's actions are not always influenced by themselves. Henry's interactions with other characters can determine the outcomes of future events involving him. Like El Pachuco, a character who shares most of the play with Henry, being present in almost every scene. He is always there to make brief comments, sometimes addressed only to the audience or also to Henry. This is called an aside. Even if El Pachuco makes small comments, those comments can greatly change the meaning of things for Henry. El Pachuco is negative, selfish and critical. El Pachuco is always the one to say something negative like "You're hoping for something that won't happen, huh... do you really think you have a chance?" » Such negative comments make Henry.