Daughter of invention

The short story, “ Daughter of Invention” is about a Dominican family that moved to the United States from La Republica Dominicana due to issues with the dictator in their country. The family begins to have issues within themselves while living in the United States due to their past lives in a country overran by dictatorship. There were several conflicts in the story “ Daughter of Invention”. First of all, Julia’s moms inventions. Not the inventions themselves, but the fact that Julia’s family didn’t support Julia’s mom. In my opinion, Julia’s mom had a great imagination and some very good inventions.

She went out of her way to create great things and I think it’s unfair how she didn’t have her own family’s support. Though her family didn’t really like her inventions, they could have at least encouraged her to keep inventing new things. Second of all, the fact that Julia’s father was tormented from the dictatorship back in La Republica Dominicana was quite irrelevant when they were already living and going to school in the United States. I understand that he had felt the issues coming and what not but that’s no excuse for trying to control the way his family was living. His family and himself already had freedom of speech, something they lacked in La Republica Dominicana, and freedom of the press, something they also lacked in their past lives. Julia’s dad could have acknowledged that and he could have let his family live freely.

Third, the fact that Julia and her sister weren’t receiving much attention from their parents. Julia and her sister weren’t attention seekers but they still need affection and care. The reason why they didn’t get much attention was because their mother was too busy inventing things and their father was still living in the past being tormented by dictatorship. I understand that her mother might have wanted to become famous for her inventions and her father was still traumatized but they had time to give some attention to their daughters. Julia and her sister need to feel loved, otherwise they might feel like there’s not much point in living with their parents if they’re not being treated as their children and they could end up building up dislikes toward their parents and thats no good. They didn’t have to get so lost in their wants and issues to not give any attention to their own daughters.

Fourth, the fact that Julia’s father ripped Julia’s speech paper apart when she worked so hard and tried her best to finish it. She was already living in the United States and she had freedom of speech. Julia’s father was so lost in the issues of dictatorship; however, he shouldn’t have ripped the paper Julia put so much effort in. Instead, he could have had a talk with Julia and they could have solved the issue instead of him ripping up the paper because Julia could end up building dislike towards her father and thats not good if they’re family and they’re supposed to love one another. He should have thought before his actions because he made Julia very mad. What happened after he ripped her paper was not in his favor.

Finally, the fact that Julia called her father “ Chapita”. “ Chapita” was the nickname they gave the dictator in La Republica Dominicana. This was a name of insult and hate. I understand that Julia was very mad at the fact that her father ripped her paper but she could have thought before her actions. Julia’s father was already angry and when Julia called him “ Chapita” it was like applying gasoline on a fire.

When Julia told her father that he was “ Just another Chapita!”, her father turned into a beast and chased after her. I dont think it was right for Julias father to chase after her; he could have been a patient father and talked with her instead of going into a rage. Julia didn’t think of the consequences because she was already mad at her father for what he had done to her paper. The several issues that were in “ Daughter of Invention” could have been prevented if some of the characters didn’t let their issues and wants get to them and if they were more patient.