Chapters 8 and 9 discussion

The discussion leaders asked this question and it was something that I made note of in my reading as well, 

        Question 2 - Do you think eyes are important to your identity? 
              "He told me later when he saw me crossing the street he recognized me immediately by my
              eyes" Page 220

When I read this, I immediately thought of Riders of the Purple Sage. This reminded me of how Lassiter knew that Bess was Milly's daughter and his niece just by looking in her eyes. I actually wrote my first response paper about the importance of eyes in Riders, and I think that this passage from Eva Luna represents the same importance in a person's identity as they did in Riders. Eyes are the most real thing about a person. Eyes always tell the truth. In Riders, eyes end up solving the whole mystery behind Bess, Milly, and Lassiter's stories. Those three characters eyes were focused on a lot and there was a purpose for that. I think that the same is the case for Eva and Huberto. I think that the fact that Huberto recognized Eva by her eyes, is supposed to represent the connection that the two have. The fact that he hadn't seen her in so long, but he remembered her eyes, means that in the time he was with her, her eyes told him how she felt about him, even if she didn't verbally tell him. Eyes can tell a person's feelings, what they have seen, and who they really are, and they can't lie.

-Jessica Mitchell