Business Style

Business Style

Parable

"Business" is a humorous anecdote in the form of a parable. Anecdotes are short stories, often conversational, told about a particular event. The reported speech in "Business" — the poet's report of Don Arturo and Arturo's of the musician and judge—also underscores that conversational quality, as does the poem's use of nonliterary language.

Parables are short narratives told to make a point or to draw an analogy. The Bible is full of parables that Christ used to illustrate his teachings. In "Business" Cruz employs Don Arturo, a person of unknown origins, but someone Cruz implies holds high status in his community.

Symbolism

"Business" also employs symbolic imagery to point to a moral. Puppets are symbolic of the way the man himself is treated under the state, and highlight the idea that people who do not resist being manipulated and treated like puppets become puppets. "Monkey man" and "monkey business"...
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