| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao |
type |
TVTItem |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao |
label |
The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao |
page |
TheBriefWondrousLifeOfOscarWao |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao |
comment |
The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao (2007) is a Pulitzer Prize-winning novel by Junot Díaz. The story revolves around the character Oscar de León, a consummate scifi and fantasy geek with horrendous luck with women who wants to be the Dominican J. R. R. Tolkien. The story is told through his former roommate at Rutgers, Yunior, who comes off as a bit dickish when he is first introduced into the story, but grows into a better person by the time he is writing the novel. Yunior tells the story of Oscar's life by tracing Oscar's story through his sister Lola, his mother Hypatá Belicia Cabral (or Beli for short), and his grandfather Abelard Cabral's own tragic tales.Between all of the geek references, untranslated Spanish, slang, and footnotes, you might get lost in the text and believe that Díaz assumes too much from the reader, or that he is aiming to disorient the reader. However, understanding all of his references isn't truly necessary for understanding the text.Lin-Manuel Miranda narrates the audiobook. |
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2023-06-13T03:58:46Z |
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| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao |
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DBTropes |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_15ff68cf |
type |
Cultural Rebel |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_15ff68cf |
comment |
Cultural Rebel: Oscar fit the profile to a T. Lola too, to a lesser degree. |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_15ff68cf |
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The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_15ff68cf |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_16178c64 |
type |
Gratuitous Spanish |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_16178c64 |
comment |
Gratuitous Spanish: See Bilingual Bonus. |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_16178c64 |
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The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_16178c64 |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_1b5c9c48 |
type |
The Blank |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_1b5c9c48 |
comment |
The Blank: The Man Without a Face appears during times of tragedy in the de León family. |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_1b5c9c48 |
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The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_1b5c9c48 |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_1cf11f13 |
type |
No Sympathy |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_1cf11f13 |
comment |
Beli has No Sympathy towards Oscar trying to kill himself twice. This means that even with Lola and Yunior watching out for Oscar, he still decides that it's better to die after finding love with Ybon then to live and attempt to get treatment for his depression. |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_1cf11f13 |
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The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_1cf11f13 |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_1f83dc62 |
type |
Named Like My Name |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_1f83dc62 |
comment |
Named Like My Name: Óscar de León, the main character, has the name of a famous salsa singer. This is, though, never mentioned in the book. |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_1f83dc62 |
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The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_1f83dc62 |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_2286675a |
type |
Quest for Sex |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_2286675a |
comment |
Quest for Sex |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_2286675a |
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The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_2286675a |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_25524784 |
type |
No-Holds-Barred Beatdown |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_25524784 |
comment |
No-Holds-Barred Beatdown: Both Oscar and his mother, Beli, receive one in the very same place. |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_25524784 |
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The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_25524784 |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_294ed981 |
type |
Bilingual Bonus |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_294ed981 |
comment |
Bilingual Bonus: Several of the untranslated Spanish phrases give better insight to the character's emotions as well as providing additional context. |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_294ed981 |
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The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_294ed981 |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_2cf282ea |
type |
She Is All Grown Up |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_2cf282ea |
comment |
She Is All Grown Up: Jacquelyn and Beli blossom almost overnight from skinny girls into stunningly beautiful and well-endowed teenagers, although it doesn't do them much good in the long run. Especially for Jacquelyn and her poor doomed family in the Age of Trujillo. |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_2cf282ea |
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The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_2cf282ea |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_323cd680 |
type |
Geek Physiques |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_323cd680 |
comment |
Geek Physiques: Oscar weighs over 300 pounds for most of his life. |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_323cd680 |
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| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_323cd680 |
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The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_323cd680 |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_38958f33 |
type |
Black and Nerdy |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_38958f33 |
comment |
Black and Nerdy: Oscar falls into this category. |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_38958f33 |
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The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_38958f33 |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_3b9b21c9 |
type |
So Beautiful, It's a Curse |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_3b9b21c9 |
comment |
So Beautiful, It's a Curse: Jacquelyn and Beli are both stunning, and their beauty wins them all the wrong kinds of attention. |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_3b9b21c9 |
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The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_3b9b21c9 |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_3bfd638c |
type |
Warts and All |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_3bfd638c |
comment |
Warts and All: Lola has this attitude about her mother at the end of the book. Beli was an awful person, a terrible mother that didn't understand mental illness, and a Hypocrite slut-shamer considering her past. Lola will never forgive or forget what her mother did to her to make her feel ugly and unloved, using Oscar as a pawn and their go-between. She also understands that Beli didn't know how to be a parent and felt burdened with the responsibility of rearing two kids alone after her husband died. Oscar's death also pushed Beli's cancer to a fatal condition, showing she did care about her son. |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_3bfd638c |
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The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_3bfd638c |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_40cc0c7e |
type |
Bittersweet Ending |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_40cc0c7e |
comment |
Bittersweet Ending: Oscar is no longer a virgin and found someone who he could get intimate with, but in doing so he got himself killed. Beli also died from breast cancer. Lola and Yunior marry other people, and Oscar's manuscript on his family's history is lost, possibly forever. But Oscar found love! Lola has also married and had a daughter, and it's implied she has broken the cycle of abuse that Beli started. Yunior, to atone for letting Oscar die on his watch, is writing a book to counter the fukú and give the future generations a fighting chance. |
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The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_40cc0c7e |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_414b064b |
type |
Lonely Funeral |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_414b064b |
comment |
Lonely Funeral: Oscar's funeral at the end of the novel is attended only by Yunior, Lola, Beli and La Inca. |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_414b064b |
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The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_414b064b |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_43dc74d0 |
type |
Sensitive Guy and Manly Man |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_43dc74d0 |
comment |
Sensitive Guy and Manly Man: Oscar and Yunior definitely fall into these categories. |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_43dc74d0 |
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The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_43dc74d0 |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_49f6a9e4 |
type |
Most Writers Are Writers |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_49f6a9e4 |
comment |
Most Writers Are Writers: Both Yunior and Oscar are aspiring writers; the later of pulpy SF, and the former of hyper-violent Film Noir. |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_49f6a9e4 |
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The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_49f6a9e4 |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_4b8932a4 |
type |
Stalking Is Love |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_4b8932a4 |
comment |
Stalking Is Love: Oscar is very... persistent to say the least, with Ybon. |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_4b8932a4 |
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The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_4b8932a4 |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_4da6ac |
type |
Rated M for Manly |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_4da6ac |
comment |
Rated M for Manly: Both Oscar and Yunior struggle with living up to the Dominican standards of masculinity. |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_4da6ac |
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| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_4da6ac |
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The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_4da6ac |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_6d332aea |
type |
Driven to Suicide |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_6d332aea |
comment |
Driven to Suicide : Oscar attempts this before moving in with Yunior, and again after he caught Jenni having sex with a punk guy. He fails both times. |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_6d332aea |
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The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_6d332aea |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_7286e96d |
type |
Idiot Ball |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_7286e96d |
comment |
Idiot Ball: Oscar is portrayed as fairly intelligent in most of the book, but his decisions in the last section (namely returning to the Dominican Republic and continuing to pursue a woman with a cop boyfriend who had him beaten almost to death when he hung out with her before) are almost unfathomably stupid. |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_7286e96d |
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The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_7286e96d |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_7815ba15 |
type |
N-Word Privileges |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_7815ba15 |
comment |
N-Word Privileges: The N-word is used very liberally in the book. |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_7815ba15 |
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| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_7815ba15 |
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The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_7815ba15 |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_8409a385 |
type |
Exactly What It Says on the Tin |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_8409a385 |
comment |
Exactly What It Says on the Tin: The word "Brief" being in the title isn't for show. |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_8409a385 |
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| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_8409a385 |
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The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_8409a385 |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_8cb01d0e |
type |
Category Traitor |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_8cb01d0e |
comment |
Category Traitor: Oscar is considered one for being 1) bad with girls, and 2) literate. |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_8cb01d0e |
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The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_8cb01d0e |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_970c790a |
type |
Big Bad |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_970c790a |
comment |
Big Bad: You could argue that Trujillo or the fukú curse fulfill this role. |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_970c790a |
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| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_970c790a |
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The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_970c790a |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_97d97c28 |
type |
Revenge Before Reason |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_97d97c28 |
comment |
Revenge Before Reason: Subverted. Much as Yunior would like to get even with Ybon's husband for killing Oscar and hurting Lola never does so when they encounter each other. For one, the man has enough firepower and money to defend himself. And for another, he doesn't even know who Yunior is. No one would win by Yunio getting himself killed or arrested for murder. |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_97d97c28 |
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The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_97d97c28 |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_9d12bbc1 |
type |
Foreshadowing |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_9d12bbc1 |
comment |
Foreshadowing: Oscar has attempted suicide twice. This shows he has little regard for his life when he finally finds love with Ybon worth his subsequent fatal beating. |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_9d12bbc1 |
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The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_9d12bbc1 |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_a5a24920 |
type |
Big Breast Pride |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_a5a24920 |
comment |
Big-Breast Pride: Beli becomes extremely well-endowed when she hits puberty. She's initially ashamed about her breasts, but soon begins flaunting them when she realizes that they make men fall all over her. Her daughter Lola, on the other hand, is as flat as a board but became just as well-endowed in a different area. |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_a5a24920 |
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The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_a5a24920 |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_a70223 |
type |
Karma Houdini |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_a70223 |
comment |
Karma Houdini: The most Beli's boyfriend does for her after other thugs beat her up and cause her to miscarriage is apologize, deny that he knew it would happen, and give her a chance to leave the country. She does so reluctantly and tries to start a new life. Yunior mentions that he sees Ybon's husband living in New York, having suffered no consequences for murdering Oscar. |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_a70223 |
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The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_a70223 |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_ad9fbc1e |
type |
Pyrrhic Victory |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_ad9fbc1e |
comment |
Pyrrhic Victory: Oscar finds love...and then is killed brutally. |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_ad9fbc1e |
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The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_ad9fbc1e |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_afc6df04 |
type |
What You Are in the Dark |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_afc6df04 |
comment |
What You Are in the Dark: When Beli lies semiconscious in the sugarcane field, she has a vision of a creature telling her she has to live so that she will have her two children. Beli decides to listen and reluctantly leave her home. Oscar later encounters this same creature after being in a similar situation. He still decides that it's better to try and win Ybon over. |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_afc6df04 |
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The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_afc6df04 |
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type |
Loners Are Freaks |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_b04fdcc4 |
comment |
Loners Are Freaks: Oscar. |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_b04fdcc4 |
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The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_b04fdcc4 |
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type |
Sensei for Scoundrels |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_b05f64f |
comment |
Sensei for Scoundrels: Yunior tries this with Oscar and fails utterly. |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_b05f64f |
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| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao |
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The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_b05f64f |
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type |
Abusive Parents |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_b11ac9f5 |
comment |
Abusive Parents: Beli is physically and emotionally abusive to Lola at times, even telling her to keep her mouth shut about a neighbor molesting her. Lola makes peace with Beli's memory after her mother dies. |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_b11ac9f5 |
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The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_b11ac9f5 |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_b4c406a6 |
type |
Death by Despair |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_b4c406a6 |
comment |
Death by Despair: Beli has No Sympathy towards Oscar trying to kill himself twice. This means that even with Lola and Yunior watching out for Oscar, he still decides that it's better to die after finding love with Ybon then to live and attempt to get treatment for his depression. Shortly after this, Beli dies when Oscar is murdered and her cancer resurges. She lost the will to live after losing her only son. |
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The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_b4c406a6 |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_b58b4e3c |
type |
Too Dumb to Live |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_b58b4e3c |
comment |
Too Dumb to Live: Beli after her boyfriend impregnates her thinks that she can go on as she does when a few Mirabal Sisters show up and tell her she has to abort the baby and has to stay away from him. She doesn't get the memo and refuses to get an abortion. This means that several police thugs beat her to death after luring her out of her house, and cause her to miscarry. She's lucky to be alive. Oscar's attempts to persuade Ybon to ditch her husband for him, despite him nearly being killed by his goons before escaping to America and the persuasions of those closest to him not to go through with the act. |
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The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_b58b4e3c |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_b8dde2 |
type |
Evil Overlord |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_b8dde2 |
comment |
Evil Overlord: Trujillo certainly fits the bill. He is directly compared to Darkseid and Sauron. |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_b8dde2 |
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The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_b8dde2 |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_c1667f1e |
type |
Geek Reference Pool |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_c1667f1e |
comment |
Geek Reference Pool: Listing all of the references that Yunior includes to various aspects of Geek Culture would take a page unto itself. But that doesn't mean we are not going to try: AKIRA Batman: The Dark Knight Returns Dungeons & Dragons Fantastic Four New Gods Watchmen The Lord of the Rings and The Silmarillion Dune H. P. Lovecraft Love and Rockets Daniel Clowes The Sandman John Kricfalusi (misspelled "Krikfalusi") Star Trek Doctor Who Planet of the Apes Street Fighter Zardoz Virus |
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The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_c1667f1e |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_c2e295cd |
type |
Curse |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_c2e295cd |
comment |
Curse : Fukú may or may not be real, but Oscar and his family certainly get into some deep deep shit. Yunior hopes that his book will help Oscar's family break the curse. |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_c2e295cd |
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The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_c2e295cd |
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type |
In Love with the Gangster's Girl |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_c5a2d75f |
comment |
In Love with the Gangster's Girl: Oscar with Ybon. |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_c5a2d75f |
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The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_c5a2d75f |
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type |
Shout-Out |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_c75df49a |
comment |
Shout-Out: The title is an allusion to the Ernest Hemingway story, The Short, Happy Life of Francis Macomber. |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_c75df49a |
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The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_c75df49a |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_c7d86fbe |
type |
Plausible Deniability |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_c7d86fbe |
comment |
Plausible Deniability: When Oscar is caught driving an unconscious Ybon in the Dominican, he tells her boyfriend that he thought the not-so former had broken up. Ybon's boyfriend still orders his men to take Oscar to the sugarcane field and deliver a No-Holds-Barred Beatdown. |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_c7d86fbe |
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The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_c7d86fbe |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_c972d624 |
type |
Slut-Shaming |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_c972d624 |
comment |
Slut-Shaming: Beli makes it a point to call Ybon a puta (a prostitute) at every opportunity. Ybon nearly getting Oscar killed doesn't endear Beli to her. |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_c972d624 |
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The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_c972d624 |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_cb70651c |
type |
Maybe Magic, Maybe Mundane |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_cb70651c |
comment |
Maybe Magic, Maybe Mundane: The curse on the family, which Yunior calls fukú. On the one hand, the previous generation suffered really bad luck under Trujillo, which is what led to Beli being scarred as a child. One could argue, however, that the cause is more rooted in genetic mental illness and generational trauma; Oscar's bad mental health could have been inherited from his mother, and neither of them had the resources in their respective time periods to get the support they needed. |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_cb70651c |
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The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_cb70651c |
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type |
Footnote Fever |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_d05cf3f |
comment |
Footnote Fever: Quite unusual for a work of fiction. |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_d05cf3f |
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The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_d05cf3f |
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type |
You Can't Go Home Again |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_da12bcfb |
comment |
You Can't Go Home Again: Averted, Beli and her family go back to Santo Domingo every year for vacation. |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_da12bcfb |
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The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_da12bcfb |
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type |
All Girls Want Bad Boys |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_db2f3581 |
comment |
All Girls Want Bad Boys: Played straight, subverted and deconstructed all in the same book. |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_db2f3581 |
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| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_e563bf09 |
type |
Insistent Terminology |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_e563bf09 |
comment |
Insistent Terminology: Oscar's geeky interests are lumped together as "the Genres." |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_e563bf09 |
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The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_e563bf09 |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_e83f211c |
type |
O.O.C. Is Serious Business |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_e83f211c |
comment |
O.O.C. Is Serious Business: Yunior kicks himself when he realizes that Oscar asked him for a loan, and Oscar has never asked anyone for money. Oscar wanted to fly back to the Dominican Republic and reunite with Ybon. |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_e83f211c |
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The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_e83f211c |
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type |
Dirty Cop |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_eb251937 |
comment |
Dirty Cop: Ybon's boyfriend is a thug with a badge. |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_eb251937 |
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type |
Big Damn Heroes |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_eb81c601 |
comment |
Big Damn Heroes: José Then and the rest of Belicia's old coworkers, who put themselves in danger of great harm by saving her life from some secret police thugs. José even pulls a pistol and jams it against one of their heads. |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_eb81c601 |
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The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_eb81c601 |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_f96f8980 |
type |
Love Makes You Crazy |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_f96f8980 |
comment |
Love Makes You Crazy: Oscar, so very much. We see in a flashback that he inherited this trait from his mother Beli, who nearly got killed because of it, with Oscar being even less lucky because he thinks dying for love is better than living alone. |
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The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_f96f8980 |
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type |
Love Cannot Overcome |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_f9cf12b2 |
comment |
Love Cannot Overcome: Even though Yunior loves Lola and even dates her at one point, she can't return his feelings. It's because Oscar attempted suicide while rooming with him, and then borrowed money from him to return to Ybon, which leads to Oscar's brutal death. |
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type |
Beauty Is Never Tarnished |
| | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao / int_fe614133 |
comment |
Beauty Is Never Tarnished: Averted with Beli who has oil scars all over back and later has to have one of her breasts removed. |
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