Domitila

                                                

Title: Domitila: A Cinderella Tale From the Mexican Tradition

Adapted by: Jewell Reinhart Coburn

Illustrated by: Connie McLennan

Grades: 2-6

Have you read the “Cinderella story” from the Mexican tradition called Domitila? Domitila is a young Mexican girl, who leaves her family to work in the Governor’s mansion, as a cook, in order to earn money to send to her poor family. While she is at the Governor’s mansion, she is given a chance to make the Governor’s son, Timoteo, a traditional dish from her family’s culture. Timoteo found the dish to be the best food he has ever eaten and the next day went looking for Domitila to ask her what her secret is. Timoteo learns that Domitila has gone to her home in a place far away from the mansion called Hidalgo because her mother was very sick. Timoteo journeys to Hidalgo asking everyone he meets about Domitila and her food. He learns more stories about the young women along the way but no one could tell him exactly where she lived. An evil women, Malvina tries to send him on the wrong path by telling him Domitila lived in the opposite direction. Will Timoteo ever be able to find Domitila? Read Domitila and find out!

This story is a great example of traditional literature. Even though the story is written down, the flow of the language reflects that it was once a story part of the oral tradition. The words in the story simply flow off your tongue when reading it aloud. The language is explicit and really paints a vivid picture in your mind as to what is happening in the story like in most traditional literature. There is also a sentence that is often repeated throughout the story, which is, “Do ever task with care, and always add a generous dash of love.” Often times, in oral literature the repeated sentence often reflects one of the themes throughout the story. The theme is what oral storytellers wanted listeners to learn from the story. The main theme that comes through many times in this story is that when you do things you love you will be successful in what you do. Domitila, cooks with love, which is why her cooking is so delicious and so many people travel far and wide to eat it. The other universal theme that comes through in this story is the idea of going from “rags to riches.” Domitila goes from being a very poor woman to marrying the future governor and becoming very wealthy. The themes in this story reflect the views of the Mexican people, like most traditional literature, because they take pride in their work. Therefore, the themes show the values of the people that created the story of oral tradition. In additional to exploring universal themes, this story also follows the characteristic of folktales in that the characters each represent a trait. The governor’s son, Timoteo, represents bravery because he travels so far to find Domitila. Domitila represents love and kindness because she is selfless in the sense that she works so that her family can afford to buy food and that she cooks and works with love. Domitila’s stepmother, Malvina represents evil because she comes up with an evil plot to marry Domitila’s father and tricked the governor’s son to buy her time so that when he eventually does find Domitila’s home she can trick him into thinking that her own daughter is Domitila. Domitila’s daughter, Pereza represents laziness because she sits back and lets others do work for her. The characters also represent different economical standings. Domitila is from a very poor family of farmers and Timoteo is from a rich family in which his father is the current governor.  Like most traditional literature, the plot is straightforward. There is nothing in the story that doesn’t apply to the plot. There is little in this story that is inferred. Everything is very straightforward except for the setting and time the story takes place. The time is only stated as being long ago. The setting is a little more precise than most traditional literature because it doesn’t simply say, “in a faraway land.” The story does tell us that Domitila lives in Hidalgo, which is a state of Mexico, but as far as where the governor’s house is the story doesn’t specify. The conflict of the story is that Timoteo is searching for Domitila but doesn’t know where she is and can’t seem to find anyone who does. This conflict is pointed out very early in the story. In correlation with most traditional literature, the resolution is very precise and clear.

The illustrations in this story are by Connie McLennan. I feel that they do complement the narrative because the pictures make the story really come to life. It also uses authentic cultural details from the Mexican tradition because it the characters are dressed in authentic Mexican clothes and the colors in the paintings are bright reds and oranges, which are true to the Mexican culture. The illustrations seem to be done in oil paintings. Mexican artists commonly do oil paintings. I believe the illustrations do remain true to Mexican culture.

This story contains all five literary elements: characters, setting, problem/solution, resolution, and theme. The characters in the story are Domitila, Domitila’s mama, Domitila’s pappa, Timoteo, Timoteo’s abuela, the governor, Third Cook, First Cook, Malvina, and Malvina’s daughter named Pereza.  The setting of the story takes place in Hidalgo, Mexico and the palace of the governor and happened a very long time ago. The main problem in the story is that Timoteo is lead on the wrong path by Malvina in his search for Domitila. The solution to the problem is that Timoteo stumbles upon the fall festival and smells Domitila’s food. The resolution is that Timoteo finds Domitila; they marry, and live happily ever after.

I really liked this book because the Cinderella fairy tale is one of my favorites so it was interesting to read a version from another culture. I really enjoyed hearing the story from another point of view. I think it is interesting how similar the Mexican version of Cinderella is to the one I have heard as a child. It is fascinating how a similar theme seems to make its way into literature in all cultures!

I would use this in my future classroom as part of a unit on traditional literature. I would read this Mexican version along with versions from other cultures and discuss with children in a fifth grade class the similarities and differences that are between them. The language arts standards that the lesson would cover are:

RL 5. 9 Compare and contrast stories in the same genre on their approached to similar themes and topics.

RL 5.1 Quote accurately from a text when explaining what the text says explicitly and when drawing inferences from the text.  

RL 5.6 Explain how a narrator’s or speaker’s point of view influences how the events are described.