A presentation about the book my house is on fire

1. Presentation by Addison Andros, Pierce College,WA
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2. MY HOUSE IS ON FIRE

3. Historical Context
• Covers period around 1972-1974 in Chile
• 1972 was the peak of an economic depression that started in 1967.All sorts of mining for
valuable resources occurred, gold, copper silver, etc. Mainly to be exported out of the country.
• SalvadorAllende Gossens elected for presidency
• On September 11th, 1973, the Chilean coup occurred

4. Political Context
• Armed military forces led a coup d'état on Palacio de La Moneda , the Chilean equivalent of
TheWhite House.
• Quickly disposing ofAllende's Popular Unity government, and eventually established
a political group to suspend political, left-wing movements.
• General Augusto Pinochet Ugarte led the military forces in the coup d'état, and the country
after. Continuing his régime for many years to come.

5. Cultural Context
• Artists such asVíctor Jara and Patricio Manns were huge during the Nueva
CanciónChilena movement. A fresh style created and developed during
the coup d'état to express the repression of the citizens.
• Popular poet Pablo Neruda won a Nobel Peace Prize in 1971, and
• Once the coup d'état the murder and torture of hundreds of thousands
of people began. Anyone who opposed Pinochet or his militaristic
government, was practically dead already

6. Point of view
• The story "My House is on Fire", within the book My House is on Fire used a
lot of First person. However, the story is constantly confusing the reader of
whose perspective they are reading.

7. Mood
• The mood shifts from playful, to suspenseful, to frightening, and to serious.
The mood changes with each character we think we are.While the young
female it seems playful. But the actions of the small girl cause the mood to
shift of a terrified and serious tone.

8. Protagonist(s)
• Leandro- mysterious uncle
• Juan/Juancho- close family friend
• Pabilito- slightly older brother
• MariaVictoria-little girl
• Papa- father

9. Plot
• The plot begins with a conversation from Pabilito to I believe himself or his
father worried about what to do about the little girl.There is a constant fear
that they will be found, that they have been followed and she won' t be
quiet.This is followed by pretending to play with the girl for a few days in
order to act as if it's just a game and not their actual life. Eventually there is
a discussion between Pabilito and the little girl which gets a bit loud,
attracting the attention of their parents and eventually two guards.This is
where it can get confusing as they talk as if they are in danger for the rest of
the story, but In reality, their fear of who is at the door is uncle Leandro.

10. Theme
• Throughout the short story, the theme of mistrust and fear of your
surroundings is prominent.This is because of the lack of knowledge that we
the reader are given, the confusing plot development and messing with
perspective. We are constantly in fear of what will come of the family even
in the few pages that the story tells.

11. Works Consulted
Ensalaco, Mark. Chile Under Pinochet : Recovering theTruth . University of Pennsylvania Press, 2000.
Gemici, Kurtulus. "Chile." Encyclopedia of Business inToday'sWorld, edited by CharlesWankel, vol. 1,
SAGE Publications, 2009, pp. 266-267. GaleVirtual Reference Library,
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8. Accessed 27 may 2019.
Hopkinson,Amanda. "Silencers." Contemporary LiteraryCriticism, edited byTom Burns and JefferyW.
Hunter, vol. 189, Gale, 2004. LIterary ResourceCenter,
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Accessed 27 May 2019.Originally published in New Statesman andSociety, vol. 5, no. 210, 10 July 1992, p.
40-41.
McClennen, Sophia A. "BEYOND DEATH ANDTHE MAIDEN:Ariel Dorfman's Media Criticism and
Journalism." Latin American Research Review, vol. 45, no. 1, 2010, pp. 173-188,273. ProQuest,
http://ezproxy.pierce.ctc.edu:2048/login?url=https://ezproxy.pierce.ctc.edu:2057/docview/275747888?
accountid=2280, doi:http://ezproxy.pierce.ctc.edu:2101/10.1353/lar.0.0088.
SILVA, PATRICIO. "Chile." Countries andTheirCultures, edited by Carol R. Ember and Melvin Ember, vol.
1, Macmillan Reference USA, 2001, pp. 452-465. GaleVirtual Reference Library,
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08. Accessed 27 May 2019.