The Performance of Becoming Human is the first literary work by Daniel Borzutzky, a Chilean-American author. He uses grotesque language to address social issues like state sanctioned violence and inequity. After reading about him, I expected to see a literary piece that dealt with social justice issues in Chile and America, as well as the ambiguity of biculturalism. Borzutzky has some of these elements but his language is very intense. He discusses, specifically, the topic of refugees coming to the United States and how they were treated. The author describes a vivid image of immigration saying, “I am under the ground” (pg. 15). Borzutzky focuses on the human dehumanization that takes place in different countries around the globe. He uses infernal imagery to show human beings underground moving from one place to the next, as though they are going to hell. This is why I think the author is a realist. He not only articulates “things worse left unsaid”, but also shows the darkness in the lives of people and accents it with his word choices. Borzutzky makes use of the image of bodies to draw attention to the injustices in society. 19). I was struck by the personalization of the word choice at this point. Borzutzky used “bodies” instead of humans to illustrate how society ignores individual lives after suffering and death. We continue with our day-to-day lives and “pickup our laundry,” Borzutzky said. Instead of telling the stories of the deceased, we put them on paper and begin to recognize injustice.
Borzutzky talks about privatization in urban areas like Chicago and Chile. This is where injustice plagues the city. The story itself is quite animalistic. Borzutzky quotes such as, “I dream of giant parasites to eat the infested bodies of rotting people” (pg. 24). The author’s photographs of flesh-eating organisms help to shed light on the dark side of privatization and the economic consequences for ordinary citizens. Borzutzky’s writing style throughout the book is apocalyptic. In the Blazing Cities’ ending, the author declares that “And this should be the end.” Bedtime stories that are meant for the end, however, don’t always end the way they should. They end awkwardly in the middle of a mess that wasn’t worth making” (pg. 24). The author acknowledges that real life isn’t always a fairytale, and this is evident in the book. It is easy to remain interested in The Performance of Becoming Human due to the careful choice of words and the topics of tension addressed. Raul Zurita, Allen Ginsberg and Cesar Vallejo influenced his writing style, which gave him the ability to express emotion through human tragedy and injustice.
