Negi’s childhood home in Macun was in a community which had few ties with the rest of society. She was an intelligent child who grew up poor, with six siblings, a virtually absent father, and little knowledge of how the world worked. Yet she was driven to shape an identity separate from her family, and in her heart still remain the “jibara” she was raised as.

Negi was a stable child with no significant drawbacks in her childhood that would inhibit healthy growth or development. She seemed healthy and happy. It is hard to consider Negi’s childhood as “normal” reading about it from an American viewpoint. Reason being she grew up in a country and a culture dramatically different from most people’s in America. Even though her houses were described as one or two room shacks, her bed shared by 5 or 6 siblings, she walked around barefoot outdoors, never visited the doctor, and ate rice and beans almost everyday; in her culture and in her community that is normal. People that have that experience growing up in America would be labeled “poor” or “underprivileged”. One must be culturally sensitive

and consider the location and context of her childhood to fully appreciate her experience.

Her resentment toward her siblings for taking up her time and space manifested into hatred and jealousy for her cousins Jenny and Angie. These were two spoiled girls who had one or no siblings and had a lot of possessions. Negi knew it was wrong to dislike them but she couldn’t help herself. They were able to be free, play alone; they didn’t have to share clothes, beds, toys or parents. It was a difficult for Negi to cope with the world and also deal with so many brothers and sisters. She needed to have a lot of attention especially during the “casi senorita” years but she only had a mother who was available most of the time and she was being shared. Negi had to adjust to her family size and the cultural norm of each family member being a kind of utility that performs expected tasks. Harrison (1990) points out, “Generally, ethnic minority children are taught to think, feel, and act in ways that involve the development of a cooperative view of life, rather than one of a singularly competitive nature. Individuals are instructed to view themselves as an integral part of the totality of their family and the larger social structure and experience a social/psychological dependence on others” (p.355). Negi is expected to rise to any challenge and fill any position with little or no fuss.

If she had been a male of course she would not have had such a responsibility to be caretaker of the rest of the group or second mother to the children. In her culture, gender roles were such that the mother takes care of the household and the father provides financial support. In discussing Hispanic families, Zastrow & Kirst-Ashman (2004) state, “Traditionally male and female roles were strictly divided and positive value was given to responsible male authority and female devotion to home, children, and husband” (p.160). Even though her mother was not the “traditional” Puerto Rican mother and ventured away from the norm by working, and being unmarried, she still expected Negi or another female to take her place in the home. Mami presented an open modern approach to life which was positive for her family.

Negi’s development is portrayed throughout the novel and according to Freud we see her starting in the latency stage. This stage is between the ages of 6 and 11. Zastrow & Kirst-Ashman (2004) explains this stage as “ the child can now be socialized and become involved in the education process and in learning skills” (p.90) When we start to read about Negi she has become socialized in school and with her family. She engulfs herself in school and learning about the world. She takes in information through societal sources and classroom studies. She is learning to take on more independent roles in the family and mastering skills around the house. We see her in the beginning always wanting to help her dad build or fix something.

Erikson’s theory of psychosocial development introduces the concept of industry versus inferiority for the ages of 6 to 12. Zastrow & Kirst-Ashman (2004) states, “Children in this age group need to be productive and succeed in their activities” (p.254). This stage is similar to Freud’s latency stage in that it emphasizes school as a major focus. Throughout the book one can see Negi’s academic success. She seems to have had a healthy development and gone through the necessary stages without any drawbacks. School was always a major role in her life and important for self identification. She also does a lot of comparing of her life to other relatives; to see whose better off and why she doesn’t have certain things they have. She battles with inferiority, even in NY when she compares herself to her peers in school and feels a sense of inferiority at first but works through it by focusing on her academic skills.

With little time for herself at home she found

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