Many questions could conceivably be asked from the carefully constructed but fragmented narration of the author. Some of the questions left are in concern with Geraldo’s identity, the exact nature of the relationship that was between Geraldo and Marin and why exactly she was out so late all this while keeping in mind that Geraldo’s identity had to be concealed. Some of the answers that are applicable lie centrally on the narrations theme mainly of vignette that focuses on migrant workers plight and how they are forced to live out of necessity as shown by the obscuring and deliberately concealing their identity to prevent expulsion and discovery from the country.
From the fragmented sketch provided by Sandra Cisneros, the person being referred to is obviously the unfeeling world that consists of the hospital, police and American society who are completely oblivious to the grim life realities of economic immigrants like Geraldo who are there illegally who due to fear cannot afford to form any meaningful form of connection with others, as seen by the reference to the, They never saw the kitchenettes. They never knew about the two-room flats and sleeping rooms he rented, the weekly money orders sent home, the currency exchange. How could they?, As an economic migrant living underground means your life is not considered important, and that is why they stay hidden and their suffering is never revealed as seen by the Marin and police attitude of neither responsibility nor grief.
Geraldo’s life to them is insignificant as he was just another “brazer who didn’t speak English.” And that is how the human tragic of economic emigrants gets explained
It is evident that there is some feeling of attachment between the young man and Marin even though they just met; she states that she clearly found him attractive. The way she responded and reacted and the fact that his death has affected her seems to bemuse her as quoted only Marin can’t explain why it mattered, the hours and hours, for somebody she didn’t even know.it is obvious that the Geraldo’s fate has moved her by the manner in which, the authorities and hospital staff have treated the death. She can’t help but think that Geraldo could have been saved if the surgeon had arrived on time.
Geraldo’s plight of an economic migrant mainly of people who cannot build human relationships out of fear of being deported making them unable to reach out and as described always look ashamed moved her. Likewise the thought of his family, who due to the enforced secrecy he was forced to preserve will never get to learn about their son’s untimely demise also moved her.
There is limited information on Geraldo, what we know is that he is a good looking young man that likes to dance. He was seen wearing a Saturday shirt and green pants while dancing with Marin. He is illegally in the United States where he works in a restaurant and it is obvious that he is an illegal economic immigrant; he sends his family, back at home some money, apart from this there is virtually no other information. This description relates well with the author point of outlining the difficulties migrants like Geraldo face. They live in terrible conditions, such as the “sleeping rooms” that they probably rent; they work in low paying jobs, they live in fear of deportation constantly. He always looked ashamed as he was just another brazer, and having no status and being illegal he couldn’t afford to tell Marin any more information about himself mainly due to the way that fear forces him to live a life of secrecy he could not even say his last name. This explanation reinforces that the limited information on the character helps bring out the central theme on this fragment.
The story of Geraldo No Last Name could arguably be a story about love; however the only contrast lies on the very definition of the word love which has to be clarified. The fact that Geraldo and Marin just met at the dance disqualifies it as a story on romantic love. She is distressed by his death but the despair does not centralize on any romantic feelings for Geraldo. The fact that Geraldo’s life has ended so abruptly and nobody seems to know him heightens her feelings of sadness. From the aspect of theme, the narrative enlightens the reader on the importance of reviewing their relationship with the community while challenging them to embrace a common love for the marginalized people within the community. By having a much broader perspective of the love definition it can be said that the story is indeed partly a love story.
Illegal immigrants may be lost within the society by having fraudulent documents such as forged drivers licenses, counterfeit Social Security cards, phony birth certificates and fake green cards. They can also avoid being detected due aid from governments that provide laws that encourage breaking of immigration laws and abetting and through corruption. Tolerance to the illegal immigrants brings with it an influx of corruption, crime and lawlessness which affects the whole society due to the tax evasions and the people whose identities are stolen get wrongly accused.
