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Chente Ramírez
Although Alfonso is Luis’s father, he’s a surprisingly minimal presence in Luis’s early life, and in Luis’s memoir. A talented, educated figure in Mexico, Alfonso makes the difficult decision to immigrate to Los Angeles, and relocates his entire family along with him. In Los Angeles, he’s on the verge of breaking up with his wife and Luis’s mother, María Rodriguez. However, the two choose to stay together, and Alfonso supports his entire family with a job as a lab technician. Alfonso is described as being a man of few words. He doesn’t discipline Luis for his bad behavior, and in general he does not have many lines of dialogue in the book. One notable exception comes when Alfonso begins taking Luis to the university lab where he works as a technician. There, Luis learns the truth: whereas he always thought his father held a highly-respected position at the lab, the reality is that Alfonso is little more than a janitor. Professors and scientists look down on him, and this infuriates Luis—who knows that his father is smart enough for a much more respectable job. In all, Alfonso’s adult life confirms some of the harsh realities about immigration: in America, he’s never given a fair chance to put his talents to full use.
Alfonso Rodriguez Quotes in Always Running
The Always Running quotes below are all either spoken by Alfonso Rodriguez or refer to Alfonso Rodriguez . For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
).
Chapter 6
Quotes
There's nothing wrong with being a janitor—and one as prestigious as my dad! But for years, I had this running fantasy of my scientist father in a laboratory carrying out vital experiments—the imagination of a paltry kid who wanted so much to break away from the constraints of a society which expected my father to be a janitor or a laborer—when I wanted a father who transformed the world. I had watched too much TV.
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Chapter 8
Quotes
I could see my mom and dad with a couple of Bienvenidos staff members in the front desk area. I looked over where Night Owl was still holed up.
"Hey dude, here's for Sangra," and I stuck out my hand.
Night Owl looked at me for a second, then smirked, and shook my hand through the bars.
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Alfonso Rodriguez Quotes in Always Running
The Always Running quotes below are all either spoken by Alfonso Rodriguez or refer to Alfonso Rodriguez . For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
).
Chapter 6
Quotes
There's nothing wrong with being a janitor—and one as prestigious as my dad! But for years, I had this running fantasy of my scientist father in a laboratory carrying out vital experiments—the imagination of a paltry kid who wanted so much to break away from the constraints of a society which expected my father to be a janitor or a laborer—when I wanted a father who transformed the world. I had watched too much TV.
Related Characters:
Related Themes:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 8
Quotes
I could see my mom and dad with a couple of Bienvenidos staff members in the front desk area. I looked over where Night Owl was still holed up.
"Hey dude, here's for Sangra," and I stuck out my hand.
Night Owl looked at me for a second, then smirked, and shook my hand through the bars.
Related Characters:
Related Themes:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
