The Tortilla Curtain | Topics for Discussion & Projects

The Tortilla Curtain Topics for Discussion

Compare and contrast Candidó and Delaney. How are their attitudes toward work, family and politics different or similar?

In this novel, Boyle presents characters and situations that are touched by immigration, yet the author refrains from choosing sides in the immigration debate. Does reading The Tortilla Curtain either challenge or affirm your beliefs about illegal immigration?

The Tortilla Curtain does not have just one protagonist, but instead is told from the viewpoints of Candidó, América, Delaney, and Kyra. If you had to label one character as the hero of this novel, whom would you choose?

Analyze the language and structure of Delaney's magazine essays and reflect on how Boyle uses those pieces of writing to inform the reader about Delaney's character traits.

The novel ends without a clear resolution. The loss of Socorro and Candidó's outstretched hand provide conflicting images of death and redemption. Does the ending leave you feeling...
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