Tortilla Curtain - Chapter by Chapter Summary

Tortilla Curtain

The chapter starts with Delaney hitting an unidentified man on the highway while going through Topanga Canyon. Delaney hits Candido, one of the other main characters in the play. After Delaney hits him with his car, he then immediately asks himself if his car is all right. He gets over that, and realizes that he just hit a human being. The next paragraph is Delaney searching for the body and yelling "hello." He finally can hear some grimacing that comes from some nearby bushes. He finds Candido there, with blood coming from the Mexican's mouth and his face covered by raw flesh. His upper arm had dirt and pieces of leaves sticking to the blood. He was carrying a bag of tortillas, a grocery bag that was torn with small slivers of plastic through the glass. Delaney tried to speak to him in French and Candido couldn't understand. Finally the conversation ends and Delaney gives him $20 and leaves. He drives to the Acura dealership and tells the dealer that he ran over a dog or a coyote. Delaney then calls his wife from the dealership and his wife tells him to call Jack, a friend, lawyer, and adviser, to ask him what could happen to him if the Mexican filed suit. The chapter ends with Delaney saying he gave Candido $20 and then Kyra his wife asks why only $20. Delaney replies he was only Mexican.

Chapter 2:

The chapter begins with the introduction of Candido a new immigrant to the U.S. waking up at his "bed" near the river of a canyon. He is hurt from a "gabacho" or a white man that hit him the day before. He threw up instantly and tried to walk down to the creek to where he fell twice. Then America is introduce, she is Candido's wife. She is on the way back from a job interview that never materialized. Then she sees a man lying on the middle of the path to which leads to her camp. The man turns out to be Candido he is sleeping in the middle of the path. She walks him back to camp and she realizes all the scrapes, bumps, bruises, and cuts on his body. The narration skips to Candido where he is in bed back at camp. His pain is progressively getting worse. America offers him a drink he declines then America says he needs a doctor. He is more worried about immigration though, so he declines. He falls asleep and awakes the next morning still in pain. America tries to talk to him but he cannot. America later tells him that he has been out of his senses for three days. Then one afternoon, a couple of days after the accident, he suddenly asks America if there were any beans left. She is relieved that he can talk sensibly and served him the food. He talks himself about his injuries and his face and how he didn't care how ugly he looked just as long as he could work. In the morning America says she is going to the work line. He refuses saying that he won't let her go because he will be frightened when she is gone. However she convinces him be saying that there is no more food and she will get a job mopping a floor or something.

Chapter 3:

The chapter begins at the Mossbacher household where Delaney is up and cooking breakfast for his son Jordan and his wife Kyra. They live in a private community outside of L.A. Kyra is the worker of the family while Delaney stays home and takes care of the house. Delaney finishes preparing their breakfasts and lets the two dogs, and the Siamese cat out. The others finally awake and come down for breakfast. Jordan complains about his food and the dogs kept barking. Jordan then goes to his playroom to watch TV and Kyra comes down. She complains to him about her job at the realtors. Then all of a sudden the dogs let of a sudden shriek and Delaney springs into action. He bolts from his chair into the back yard where he sees a coyote taking one of his dogs over the fence. Delaney then hopped over the fence and couldn't see the dog nor the coyote. The next paragraphs are about Delaney going to the town meeting. He had found a leg of one of the dogs and Kyra was delirious to the issue, although she did not know about the leg. At the meeting the topic is a gate to conceal the community. Delaney tries to sit through it but he finally gives up and tries to address the assembly, only to be turned down due to the fact that is not the topic. He is then outraged enough to take the leg out of his pocket and hold it up in front of everyone. After that he leaves and sits on the steps outside. There he is confronted by Jack Jr. He says his condolences then asks him about Candido. Jack Jr. knew because he had been in the room when Delaney went to go see Jack about the situation. Jack said there was nothing the Mexican could do. Jack Jr. asked Delaney if he knew where the accident happened and Delaney told him. Delaney then heads home to close the chapter.

This is a typical Spanish style home like the one the Mossbachers own.

Chapter 4:

America and Candido narrate this chapter. It starts off with America leaving for the labor exchange against Candido's request. She comes home that afternoon with some food although she does not get work. She goes again the next day and Candido is left at the camp. He pretty much sleeps and thinks of how much "gringo land" or the U.S. is different from Mexico. Then he thinks about his past and how he had been married to America's sister. He would come home after spending months in the U.S. with gifts and money. He awakes from one of his doses in a sweat and drinks the dirty river water. From the river he contracts diarrhea and has to go to the bathroom. Halfway through his experience, he hears a couple of "gringos" on their way down to the river and he thinks that they are immigration. The scene ends and switches to America, who is at the labor exchange. She finally musters up the courage to go talk to the man in charge of the labor exchange. His name is Candelario Perez from Oaxaca, Mexico. He tells her to wait near him in case somebody needs a woman to work. After a while, another woman shows up and introduces herself to America as Mary. She is a White drunk who is looking for the same work as America. It is 12:00 P.M. when the labor exchange ends and America has no job. The author ends America's paragraph with the story of how she steals all the food she brought Candido the day before. It skips back to Candido, where the "gringos" have just found his stuff and are tearing and wrecking it. They toss his belongings in the river and rip America's dress. They leave, but not before writing, "BEANERS DIE," on the rocks with spray paint.

Chapter 5:

The chapter starts with Delaney walking to his house relaxed, when