A Theme of Societal Expectations in Gary Soto’s Looking for Work

Societal expectations, whether we notice them or not, are everywhere and have been set for years now; with no clear as to who should follow these norms and why. As a Mexican-American myself I had the same mindset that Gary Soto experienced as a child. Social influences give people a motive to conform and follow along with the crowd simply to meet others expectations. For some time, I had doubts about what a perfect life really looked like and found myself wondering why other families differed from mine. In Soto, Gary “Looking for Work” found in the book “Rereading America”, published in 1989, the author elicits an argument of how assimilation is influenced by race and socioeconomic status. Throughout the story we see his point get across through mentions of a perfect family structure, success in the form of social status, and the differences in financial statuses. All of these influenced certain areas, specifically how we think, act, look or feel. His purpose for writing this article is to inform of class and financial differences. Soto in the article is trying to appeal to those belonging on opposite ends of socioeconomic classes meaning the lowest and the highest, implying that they have the ability to change the way they view people above them or below them; especially teachers and students in academics.

Soto uses the media to demonstrate the impact that entertainment has on its viewers and how they change their beliefs to fit in. We see the effect of it when he “watched morning reruns of Father Knows Best, whose family was so uncomplicated in its routine”. Soto believed that the show itself demonstrated the structure of an ideal family which he desired to replicate. His family in comparison to the family in the TV series was messy and disoriented; while white families on screen seemed to be in a better place that could be considered utopian like. He persisted on changing his closest relatives when he noticed habits that they would exhibit on a daily basis. “The first step was to get my brother and sister to wear shoes at dinner” small changes in their routine led him to believe that his family could eventually become more like the Andersons. The feeling of belonging didn't come easy and in certain times made him feel like an outsider. In this case it made Soto want to take part of a new culture by slowly transforming into them. Soto was attracted to the family on the television, so he tried to incorporate himself into a different lifestyle by slowly starting to do what they would. This would later influence his family and made them realize that by doing so they will change for the better. This idea came from the societal pressure, he felt that he needed to leave behind his culture and traditions in order to have success in America and be like everyone else. Through the use of pathos Soto’s values are modified to think as an American and are goal directed to becoming a white boy in a Caucasian household. Everyone has a different idea of what an American truly is, but this narrative expresses that the audience should not be pressured into becoming something they’re not.

Soto was not born into wealth, his family came from a lower income, but he soon created a mentality in which being affluent leads to success and a better life. Knowing the position that his family was in, he was in search of success and money which seemed to come easy to other families. Once he “had a nine-year-old’s vision” that told him “wealth would save us from ourselves”, because he believes that the key to success is money. Working would help move his family up to a higher socioeconomic status therefore bringing more benefits to his family as well. His argument becomes stronger throughout the story because simply taking part of a higher class will make his family act differently; and will make others around him view them differently. This creates assimilation because he and his family belong in a different social position, but by gaining the income that a white family would typically hold, he alongside his family are becoming more like them. Moreover, this makes his argument effective because he constructs this idea of wanting to be in an upper class, but he has a different reality that makes it impossible for him to accomplish the acceptance that he desires. If the past has taught us anything is that money can buy you everything but happiness

The way families interact within themselves privately and publicly varies in a few ways. Depending on their culture, some might have familiar patterns and others might have completely different traditions that are based on their own necessities. In this case, the family on TV is depicted as the perfect family that many people envision to be. The family had traits, such as “the father looks on his suit. The mother, decked out in earnings and a pearl necklace” while their “conservation is politely clipped”. Soto has a different family dynamic because they were raised differently and come from a different place. Soto advised his family that if they “improved the way we looked we might get along better in life. White people would like us more”. There is a set of family dynamics that is only shown on TV, and this is portrayed as the perfect family, but that is all fake and in reality each person acts different based on the setting they are in and the people around them. He makes his argument effective because a white family is known to be the perfect family, which influences him to want to be more like them. Children are influenced by their families, however Soto instead of wanting to be like his family he wanted to assimilate into the dynamic of a family different from his. This family came from a different background, and had a completely different lifestyle than him.

Soto has been impacted by society and their expectations in a variety of ways ever since he was a kid. He seeked acceptance his whole life in society, by assimilating himself and his family into the American culture. Factors such as the perfect family structure, success in the form of social status; and the differences in financial status led him to believe that in order to be more likeable and have a better life he had to be different. In order to be more like the white families that he saw on his everyday life and on TV he had to leave his family traditions and beliefs to assimilate into what he believed was the perfect family that projected the perfect American life. Although there is no such thing as a perfect American family, people are influenced to believe that riches and social status makes them American to the roots.