The Daughter of Invention

An allusion is a textual reference to an object or subject that exists outside of the text. In “Daughter of Invention,” there are several allusions to the historical events surrounding the Trujillo dictatorship that caused the García family’s exile. There are also textual allusions to Walt Whitman’s volume of poetry Leaves of Grass and Abraham Lincoln’s “Gettysburg Address.” Neither of the titles is named explicitly, nor are they explained by the author, so the reader is left to use their own understanding of each text to make meaning. The allusion to Leaves of Grass helps readers understand that Yoyo is moved and inspired by poetry, and this particular text carries ideas of independent thinking and freedom of expression, values that would have been dangerous under Trujillo. Whitman is also considered a quintessential American poet, reinforcing how Yoyo is cultivating an explicitly American identity. Laura’s reference to the Gettysburg Address hints at the ways Laura understands American values as powerful and valuable.

Juxtaposition is the side-by-side comparison of two things, such as settings, characters, or ideas. Juxtaposition can be explicit or implied. In “Daughter of Invention,” the structure of the story juxtaposes Laura’s inventions and Yoyo’s writing. The first half of the story focuses on Laura’s inventions and the second on Yoyo’s writing. Juxtaposition allows the reader to consider how the two are different, how they might be similar, and how one affects the other.

In Laura and Yoyo’s case, we see Laura using her inventions to seek acknowledgment and public success. When someone else profits off an invention she has thought of, she stops inventing. Yoyo’s writing is a form of invention, but she doesn’t seem interested in it as a means to recognition. She does, however, see writing as a way to root herself in America, and ultimately gains recognition from her teachers. When Laura stops inventing, the story of Yoyo’s speech begins, indicating that Laura can now support Yoyo’s future as an “inventor” of writing and language.