Dominicana

Use these questions or activities to help gauge students’ familiarity with and spark their interest in the context of the work, giving them an entry point into the text itself.

Short Answer

1. Where is the Dominican Republic? List any facts you know about the history or culture of this country.

Teaching Suggestion: Although most of the action in Dominicana takes place in New York City, Ana’s background as a Dominican woman is central to both her identity and the plot of the novel. This question is intended to help students identify what they currently know about the Dominican Republic and allows you to assess gaps in their knowledge. The resources listed below may be helpful in providing additional information so that students are better prepared to understand the novel’s characters and action.

• This 9-minute video offers a modern overview of the geography and history of the Dominican Republic from Geography Now!
• This essay describes the author’s personal experience with gender norms in her native Dominican Republic.
• This report from OXFAM International describes research into attitudes about violence against women in several Latin American countries, including the Dominican Republic.

2. What is “child marriage”? Where do you think this happens? What reasons might families have for permitting their children to marry before 18? What are likely consequences for people married as children?

Teaching Suggestion: After learning about gender norms in the Dominican Republic, students will likely guess that some child marriages such as the one Ana is pressured into take place in the Dominican Republic. This is true, but it is also important for students to understand that child marriages take place around the world—including in the United States—and understand the long-term consequences of such marriages. The resources listed below are intended to clarify these ideas for students before they encounter the child marriage at the heart of Dominicana’s plot.

• This factsheet from the human rights nonprofit Girls Not Brides offers information on the lifelong repercussions of child marriage.
• This editorial from The Council on Foreign Relations discusses the problem of child marriage in the United States.

Personal Connection Prompt

This prompt can be used for in-class discussion, exploratory free-writing, or reflection homework before reading the novel.

Have you ever been alone in a place where you did not speak the language or fully understand the culture? If so, what were the circumstances, and how did you feel? If not, what do you imagine you would feel in this situation? How would having or not having resources to depend on—money, access to the Internet, education, etc.—change this experience? What would you try to do to improve your circumstances if you had very few resources?

Teaching Suggestion: This prompt is intended to get students thinking about the emotional experience Ana faces after her immigration to the United States. Although many students may have their own immigration experience or have friends or relatives who are immigrants, they may still lack insight into exactly how dire Ana’s situation is. You might point out some of the obstacles that a person like Ana might face—no work permit, no ability to access social services, no access to educational materials, limited social opportunities, etc.—and then ask how many of the ideas they offered in response to the final question in this prompt would be made impossible by such a profound lack of resources.