The short story “The Moths” written by Elena Viramontes is a story that uses many elements of literature to address points such as religion, death, family and birth. age of a chicana of fourteen years. The girl gains spiritual knowledge and an understanding of who she is through the help of her curandera grandmother. Some of these elements include flashbacks, imagery, and symbolism. The author uses these elements to tell the story of how unfortunate circumstances can sometimes promote spiritual healing and coming of age. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get an original essay The narrator of the story is a young girl whose name is never revealed to the audience. The author portrays the girl as rebellious, mischievous, and resistant to following her family's rules and expectations. The author uses flashbacks to accurately describe the narrator's character and values ​​to readers. The first example of these flashbacks is when the narrator describes how her sisters called her by the nickname "Bull Hands" and explains how she carried a piece of brick in her sock to hit her sisters when they called her that. She remembers that her mother beat her so often for fighting with her sisters that she became "used to it." The narrator also uses flashbacks to describe how reluctant she was to follow religion as her traditional Mexican American family expected her to do. She includes a memory of her father and how he allegedly "screamed that if I didn't go to mass every Sunday to save my fucking sinful soul, then I had no reason to leave the house ". Her father is a Chicano and upholds cultural norms through manipulation. Her father "strategically directed his anger at Amá for her poor parenting, lack of respect, and disbelief" in order to manipulate the girl into following the religious expectations of her culture. She explains that she didn't like going to church and didn't pay attention or take anything seriously when she was made to go. These flashbacks are used by the author to describe the girl's views on family and religion in the past and how she was rebellious at home and with the religious obligations of her Mexican-American culture. However, the girl also shares flashbacks with her grandmother. These flashbacks are the rare ones that reveal another side of the young girl, a peaceful and calm side. She tells the audience that going to her grandmother's house was an escape from family discipline and a place where she felt at peace and free from the problems she faced with her family and religion. The author also uses imagery to address the transition to adulthood. of the girl. The flashbacks depict the girl as a difficult and problematic child. However, there is a change once the girl begins to care for her dying grandmother. The most striking images in the story concern nature and her grandmother's garden. The girl mentions that she planted many herbs and vegetables while caring for her grandmother. She says, “I would happily help Abuelita plant her wild lilies, jasmine, heliotrope, coriander or hierbabuena in red Hills Brothers coffee cans. She also mentions spending the majority of time with her grandmother on her porch. They spent most of their time outside, in nature, and the young girl watched the chayotes grow and their vines spread all around the »..