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Themes in “The Tortilla Curtain”1
- Borders: The novel's title, The
Tortilla Curtain, refers
to the border between California
and Mexico. The novel is filled
with borders, barriers, walls,
enclosures- things to keep some
people and animals locked in, and
others locked out. Issues include
private and public space, and who
has the right, privilege, freedom
to be in what location at what
time.
- Control, Security, Safety vs.
Vulnerability, Invasion, Helplessness:
Both American and Mexican characters
seek sanctuary, privacy and peace
— a protected space in which to pursue
their dreams, safe from danger, immune
to others who may invade their territory.
- Legal Rights: The novel encourages
us to examine issues of legality
and illegality, of who has the right
to what. We are also asked to consider
the fallible, slippery nature of
the law, and the extreme ease with
which it can be manipulated.
- Human Rights: As a country, what
responsibility do we have to the
less fortunate? As human beings,
what do we owe our fellow man and
woman?
- Theory vs. Reality: Delaney and
his neighbors claim to stand on the
side of liberal democracy, but their
actions speak louder than their words.
The novel examines how what we believe
in theory may not be supported in
actuality, and how hypocrisy is inevitable
when theory and reality clash.
- Foreign Species: In his columns,
Delaney frequently notes the effects
of what happens when a displaced
species is introduced to an established
ecosystem. The novel frequently compares
invading animals and invading people
— is there validity, or dignity,
in this comparison?
1 Good Books Lately. ReadSmartGuide:
The Tortilla Curtain. Denver: Good
Books Lately, Inc. 2000.
