Reinaldo Arenas’s (1943-1990) The Doorman (El portero) was written in New York City between 1984-1986; the novel itself is also set in New York City. It is Arenas’s only novel set in New York City, all his other novels are set in Cuba. The Doorman can be read as a fable about fitting in, and more particularly a fable about of what it feels like to be an immigrant trying to adjust to a new life, in a new country. In Chapter 19, the last chapter of part one of the novel, we find Juan walking through the streets of the city on New Year’s Eve. He has many thoughts as he tries to make sense of Mary Aviles’s suicide. (Please remember that Arenas himself committed suicide in 1990 after his long battle with HIV.) In these pages from chapter 19 Juan reflects on his immigrant status, his insights are poignant. This is also the chapter in which the animals in the building begin to speak to Juan and the chapter ends with the collective “we” of the Cuban diasporic community also chiming in.
In a short essay (500 words minimum) please comment on Juan’s observations concerning his immigrant experience. Please cite from the chapter.
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