60 pages • 2 hours read
Karen Tei YamashitaThrough the Arc of the Rain Forest
Fiction | Novel | Adult | Published in 1990A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Part 2, Chapters 7-11Chapter Summaries & Analyses
Part 2: "The Developing World"
Chapter 7 Summary: "The Pigeon"
Batista and Tania’s pigeon’s flight back home becomes a local event. Neighbors gather, sell snacks, and play music. Kazumasa and the ball enjoy watching the fervor from their apartment. Lourdes, always timid and kind with Kazumasa, explains that the messages the pigeon delivers are believed to be prophetic; some neighbors won the lottery based on their interpretations of a pigeon message. A boy even tries to steal one of the messages, causing panic, so Batista hires three bodyguards to keep his family and bird protected.
Batista himself writes the messages before releasing the bird to fly home. He finds “the messages came of their own accord when the time came to write them, and it always amazed him that what he had taken a few minutes to conjure and write should have such significance on its arrival” (34). Many speculate over the divinity of the messages. Batista does not see himself as a prophet but nevertheless enjoys his increased notoriety. When the pigeon delivers a new message that reads “‘The Japanese with the ball will find friendship and fortune in Brazil,’” the message sends the community into a frenzy (34). Everyone tries to interpret the message, harassing Japanese men everywhere in the city to buy lotto tickets.
Lourdes, Kazumasa, and the ball go on day trip to explore. Kazumasa places bets left and right: “Everywhere Kazumasa went with Lourdes, he gambled and won. It was an immigrant’s dream” (37). Their day ends at Lourdes’ quaint but tidy home. Kazumasa meets Lourdes’s daughter, Gislaine, and her son, Rubens, whose legs are too frail to walk. Lourdes’ husband died years ago when he left in search for gold in the Serra Pelada. Lourdes makes dinner for Kazumasa and her family. Lourdes and Kazumasa revel in the simple joy of the moment, their fondness for one another growing. Lourdes’ aunt, Tia Carolina, comes in. Carolina realizes Kazumasa must be the Japanese person mentioned in the pigeon’s message. Word spreads throughout the neighborhood quickly, causing a commotion. Kazumasa embraces the moment, happy to be around so many smiling faces, and is carried off with the ball and Lourdes to a neighborhood party.
Chapter 8 Summary: "The Pilgrim"
Chico Paco, after walking 1,500 miles in his bare feet, reaches the Matacão. He collapses with exhaustion, and a group of local boys take him to Mané Pena, who nurtures him back to health. Chico is grateful to meet Mané, his wife Angustia, and their children. Another reporter comes by to interview Mané and speaks to Chico Paco too, learning his story. Word of Chico’s mission to fulfill Dona Maria’s promise to Saint George spreads.
Chico’s task is still incomplete. He must build a shrine to Saint George on the Matacão. While he prepares the shrine, government officials debate whether Chico can legally place the shrine on the Matacão. Elsewhere, the church hesitates to endorse Gilberto’s recovery as a miracle, but they continue to watch Chico carefully. Chico has trouble making a sturdy shrine and resorts to making a cement base out of discarded debris around the Matacão. Chico finishes his shrine, and a bulldozer is sent to tear it down. The bulldozer fails. Somehow “It could not budge the shrine an inch from its site. […] [i]t was as if the solid base of the shrine clung to the Matacão by some powerful magnetic force” (44). People from far and wide journey to the Matacão to pray and worship, believing, like Chico, that it is a holy site.
Chico Paco continues to stay with Mané and is accepted as a member of the family. Mané wonders if Chico might be a real angel but remains undecided. His pilgrimage complete, Chico feels elated to have helped Dona Maria and Gilberto. However, a new recurring dream interrupts his otherwise tranquil thoughts. He dreams of a boy he does not know. Chico tosses and turns, wondering who is this boy.
Chapter 9 Summary: "Three Hands"
GGG hires J.B., and he excels in his position. He is so efficient that he goes on to work for other departments after completing his initial assignment speedily. Disgruntled employees worry J.B.’s multitasking expertise will result in them being ousted. J.B. shrugs off the gossip, focusing on his work. He bounces from department to department and ends up in development resources research and viability. J.B. finds the department in disarray and in desperate need of help. For the first time, he feels overwhelmed by the task given to him.
J.B. hires personnel and delegates responsibilities effectively. In no time at all, “the development resources research and viability department was the booming center of GGG operations, and J.B.’s position became increasingly powerful, in the manner of a crescendo” (49-50). At GGG, J.B. willingly and happily accepts responsibility and leadership, something he has never done before.
With his department operating at maximum efficiency, J.B. makes a startling discovery. Amongst the plethora of files his team has organized, he finds research on a perfect product, one that “matched the psychological and philosophical makeup of a wide range of prospective buyers” (50). J.B. eagerly watches a video that is part of the research: a recorded interview of Mané Pena talking about feathers.
Chapter 10 Summary: "Fortune"
Kazumasa amasses a great fortune from winning all the bets he placed. His profile as a celebrity increases, but he remains humble and modest. He then debates about what to do with his fortune. He begins by giving Hiroshi money to invest in karaoke bars. After, he buys a wheelchair for Lourdes’s son, Rubens. He freely gives his money to citizens, companies, the government, and anyone who asks. Kazumasa gives Batista and Tania money so they can buy more pigeons. The ball observes, “Kazumasa granted gift after gift like a big giveaway department store. People called him the Japanese Santa Claus. And this was fun for a while” (53).
Kazumasa and Lourdes take Rubens to the hospital, hoping to find a way for him to walk again to no avail. Kazumasa laments he cannot help Rubens more. While he helps many, others have problems that he cannot solve with money. A miracle, Kazumasa thinks; some people need miracles. Meanwhile, the ball notices that Lourdes is fond of Kazumasa. However, Lourdes doesn’t tell Kazumasa, and Kazumasa doesn’t intuit Lourdes’s feelings. Platonically, Kazumasa offers to let Lourdes and her family move into the apartment, and they accept. Over the next year, Kazumasa continues to give away his fortune. Slowly, he learns that many of the people, governments, and companies, lied to him so they could use his money for selfish reasons. Kazumasa accepts this exploitation without hostility.
Batista and Tania, on the other hand, use Kazumasa’s charity to breed an elite pigeon corps and become renowned pigeon trainers. Enraptured by his new neighbors, Rubens takes up pigeon training himself. He gets in trouble one day for venturing out too far and for too long, and Lourdes refuses to let him leave the apartment again. Stuck at home, Rubens convinces Gislaine to take his favorite bird out and let it fly back home. When the bird lands on the apartment balcony, Rubens moves to examine it. Reaching for the bird, Rubens falls off the balcony, plummeting 14 floors.
Chapter 11 Summary: "Saved"
Lourdes, dreading the worst, rushes to the ground floor to search for her son, but she doesn’t find him. Lourdes, Kazumasa, and their neighbors search for Rubens, but to no avail. Tania’s mother, Dona Gloria, verifies that Rubens fell into the back of a meat truck. There is hope, but Lourdes has no idea where Rubens is. She desperately prays, “Please, by the grace of God, by the footsteps of the angel, Chico Paco. I will give Chico Paco a good pair of boots this time, and he will make a pilgrimage from this very intersection to the great Matacão and make your glory even greater” (59). Lourdes sends a letter detailing her prayer to Chico and includes a picture of Rubens.
Rubens sleeps in the back of the meat truck he landed in, having passed out. As he fell, he managed to grab his pigeon, which remains beside him in the truck bed. The truck driver finds Rubens, refuses to believe the boy’s story, and leaves him on the street. Rubens learns he ended up in a rough town, Freguesia do Ó. He writes his location on a message and releases his pigeon to deliver his whereabouts to his family.
On the Matacão, Chico enjoys his stay with Mané but considers going back home to his seaside town. He receives countless letters asking him to answer prayers. Chico reads the letters but cannot bring himself to choose one. Angustia believes Chico is special, chosen by God. Chico laughs and retorts, “I’m just an ordinary man. Saint George did this, not me” (61). Chico opens Lourdes’s letter, and sees the picture of Rubens. He is stunned. Rubens is the boy he’s dreamt about. Without hesitation, Chico sets out for São Paulo to fulfill Lourdes’ prayer.
Part 2, Chapters 7-11 Analysis
Part 2 is titled "The Developing World." Once again, a telling choice, as the larger story begins to take shape and develop. Additionally, Brazil is sometimes classified as a developing country, making the section heading even more appropriate. Within these chapters, the main characters start to converge and develop relationships. Kazumasa is now neighbors with Batista and Tania. He’s also aware of Mané and Chico by their escapades on television. Not all the characters have met; J.B. is still far off in New York, but their proximity to one another is tightening. Yamashita chooses to bring her characters together through surprises and excitement.
Batista’s prophecy of Kazumasa’s fortune makes Kazumasa a local celebrity and strengthens the friendship between all the characters living in the apartment complex, and furthermore results in Lourdes and her children moving in with Kazumasa. Rubens’s fall from the balcony creates the next startling moment, more tense than the last. The search for Rubens ramps up the drama of the story and serves as the motivation for Lourdes to pray to Chico, thereby connecting more characters and storylines. Because of the ensemble of characters, the novel has many moving parts, but they begin to connect early on, keeping the overall story cohesive and manageable.
In Part 2, the themes begin to emerge. Nature, money, and faith, all become central elements and Yamashita will continue explicate upon them throughout the rest of the novel. Batista and Tania nurturing a pigeon back to health brings them recognition and a new business venture. By being kind to wildlife, Batista and Tania benefit personally, providing the building blocks for Yamashita’s statement on the benefits of caring for animals. When Kazumasa wins a great fortune, he chooses to be charitable and philanthropic rather than spend excessively for himself. His charity lets his neighbors and cousin start businesses and allows Rubens the ability to be more mobile. Kazumasa’s giving spirit proves to be beneficial, although also exploitable. Already, the story demonstrates how philanthropy can do good things but also be manipulated. On the Matacão, Chico’s immovable shrine helps maintain the fantastic and magical style of the story. Chico’s pilgrimage to the Matacão strengthens his faith in God and gives him a sense of purpose. Through Chico, we can intuit that Yamashita will provide commentary on living a life based on faith and a higher calling by the end of the novel.
Yamashita implements and utilizes supporting characters in these chapters as well. Lourdes serves an important supporting role. Part 1 did not introduce Lourdes and give her the same attention as other characters, but the unrequited love between her and Kazumasa becomes a core plot line in the story. Lourdes’s family history also helps contribute to developing themes about class and natural resources. When Kazumasa visits her home, Lourdes explains her belated husband “went north to dig for gold with a friend,” never to return (38). Lourdes’ status as a widow and single-mother stems from her husband’s need for money, and the human value placed on rare minerals results in his death. Lourdes and her family likewise push the plot forward in their actions, such as when Rubens falls from the balcony. Additionally, Hiroshi is another supporting character that contributes to the story. He cherishes money, setting his character up for either great success or failure, and his karaoke bars become settings for several characters. Lourdes and Hiroshi don’t receive the same attention as other characters, but Yamashita nevertheless uses them to help build her themes and message.
