The Moths (Magill’s Survey of American Literature, Revised Edition)
At a glance:
- Author: Helena María Viramontes
- First Published: 1985
- Type of Work: Short story
- Genres: Short fiction, Magical Realism
- Subjects: Girls, Family or family life, North America or North Americans, United States or Americans, Adolescence, Teenagers, 1980’s, California, West, U.S., Cancer, Death or dying, Grandparents or grandchildren, Latinos, Insects, Moths
- Locales: Los Angeles, CA
“The Moths,” the story that would become the title work in Viramontes's first collection of short fiction, is even more representative of her central concerns and develops more deeply her feminist themes. Again two women play central roles: an older woman and her fourteen-year-old granddaughter. The technique of the story is less complex than “The Cariboo Café,” for the girl is the narrator throughout the short piece, and the structure of her story is fairly straightforward. However, the story is full of rich sensory detail (of sight, sound, smell, and touch), as well as the...
[The entire page is 782 words long]
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