CW 110 (Fiction I) - Sanchez

CASTRO, Ruth Anna Julia Bernice S.

(2012) 32677 BA Creative Writing, CAL
An Analysis of Language, and Entrapment
The Language
As discussed in class, the language in The Trap is very telling of the character who narrates the story.
The quality of its narration - the smoother command, the imagery, the buildup - leads to the
conclusion that the story is told in retrospect; it tells that this girl, Elisa, is looking back on an event
in her life, and the feelings that come with the recollection are that of a woman who has had a longer
time to ponder on her actions and emotions. These very feelings permeate the story. As commented
during the discussion, this is not the voice of a fourteen-year-old girl. This is the voice of a person
more well-versed in the ways the world works.
I say this, in relation especially to her descriptions of Mr. Gabriel. In the story, he is described
as small and thin and stooped, with a way about him that made him seem even smaller. His eyes
laughed even when his mouth did not, and when that happened, the tenderness slipped down the
cheeks to his quiet lips. The construction of this description puts a premium on Mr. Gabriels
gentleness, his almost tender fragility - and this could be read as a way to present his character as
one that does not pose a threat. He is not a hulking predator; he is an almost delicate man, small
and thin and unpretentious in his bent angles.
In a sense, the narration begs for absolution. The way the language works in The Trap has
Elisa telling the story in a way that would permit the reader to rationalize her actions, and then grant
her the justification that she needs. Shes not just narrating the story out of a sordid attempt to spice
up her present. In parallel to the beginning of the story, where theres an established struggle to fit
in and belong, the context from which she narrates this part of her life is punctuated by the struggle
to fit in - to be found within society without fault.
In essence, she says, Mr. Gabriel was a poor, gentle soul. He was a non-threatening person
in a space that overwhelmed me; he was nice, I was young, and homesick for a place that isnt
home anymore. Its placating, its imploring. And this is the very language that would force you to
look at Elisa and think, Okay, okay, youre forgiven.
The Trap
The trap, I think, can be discussed on two terms: Elisas, on the bigger level, and Mr. Gabriel, in
the end. Elisas whole situation is a trap: the loneliness caused by the change in her environment
pushed her to look for comfort (when she didnt find it in the unsympathetic Salud, she looked for
a closer source) and compelled her to seek an ally of sorts - someone who didnt pose a threat, who
didnt overwhelm her. When she found that in Mr. Gabriel, the consequences were something that
she couldnt escape, much like an animal caught in some trap.
However, the trap for Mr. Gabriel was the very culmination of Elisas entrapment, as Elisas
confession created a different kind of trap for him. Being in a position of power, the blame would
have been pinned on him, regardless of what his actions and motivations really are, and the threat
of consequence looms over his head. The difference, then, is in how he narrowly (and
questionably) escapes this trap: it is not through his own agency, but Elisas. When hed said,
Run home, Elisa, she could have easily stayed. She didnt, and thus was he saved.