Mexican-American poet and writer Gary Soto’s short story, “Born Worker” comments on the values of hard work, integrity, and manual labor. Narrated by a third person narrator, the story depicts two young cousins, Jose and Arnie, situated on two sides of the economic divide, and their ideological positions vis-à-vis working.
Born Worker | Summary
The story begins with the omniscient narrator narrating the popular perception about the adolescent protagonist, Jose, who they say was a ‘born worker’, exhibiting all the physical capacities required for hard, manual labor. He behaved and dressed in worker-like ways since early childhood, and was naturally adept at skills like measuring and cleaning. While his parents are not as much a subject for discussion as Jose is, it is revealed that Jose has learned to recognize the value of hard labor through the lessons inculcated in him by his parents. His mother was a tailor, while his father fixed cables for the telephone company. Upon asking his father what he saw around while being up there on the telephone poles, his father replies, “I see years of work…” Despite being good in academics, he thinks his real destiny is in working, finding ‘ancient strength’ in his worker’s prowess. He believes in the value of hard work, being inspired by his mother, who ‘bled’ on the sewing machine to earn a living for herself and her family.
One day, upon returning from school, Jose finds his cousin Arnie. His distaste for Arnie is revealed – belonging to a middle class substantially richer than Jose’s, Ernie is lazy and spoilt, qualities that are in sharp contrast to the hard work that Jose idealizes. Arnie reveals that he has come up with an idea for making money, explaining that they can form a partnership where Arnie uses his father’s contacts to find manual tasks for Jose to work on, dividing the earnings in half. Not taking him seriously, Jose changes his school clothes, taking out a tissue to clean his face. Seeing this, Arnie asks why he doesn’t use his sleeve like most other boys, to which Jose responds with, ‘I am not like you’, cementing the difference between the two.
As Arnie insists on the deal, Jose realizes that dividing the pay in half is a bad idea for him who would be doing all the work, while his cousin will mostly be sitting around, enjoying the fruits of his labor. He bargains, and finally, the two settle on a seventy-thirty divide, with the added condition of Arnie helping him out. Initially complaining about ‘some people are meant to work while others are meant to come up with brilliant ideas, Arnie finally relents, confirming their deal.
In the following weeks, Arnie turns out to be a productive agent, finding a variety of jobs for Jose to do. While he himself mostly sat around without helping, on some rare occasions Arnie did help him out. However, he often pointed out faults in his work and scope for improvement, which Jose despised, having never heard criticism of his work before.
One day, Arnie takes on the job of cleaning a swimming pool. The boys meet early in the morning, riding a bicycle to travel to the place of work, Jose scaring his cousin with the speed of his pedaling. They arrive at the house of the old man, Mr. Clemens, whose pool they are supposed to clean. The old man appears cranky and skeptical, asserting that he only asked for one boy. Arnie affirms that only one of them is going to work, his cousin Jose, while he ‘supervises’. Meanwhile, Jose wonders at Arnie’s ability to converse with adults in a similarly adult, business-like manner. Eventually, Jose inspects the filthy, grime-covered pool and starts cleaning it, annoyed by his cousin’s cheerfulness. Getting down inside the pool, he wonders how, had the pool been filled with water, his newly-arrived chest hair would have floated, signaling his adolescence. Mr. Clemens asks Jose if he knows how to do his job, to which Arnie replies, ‘He was born to be a worker’. Jose keeps working hard at the pool while Arnie attempts to chat with the old man, being mostly ignored in the process. As the old man leaves, Arnie tries to chat with Jose instead, telling him stories of how he learned to swim during a vacation. Jose keeps ignoring him, trying to finish his work before the sun starts blazing down upon them.
Arnie asks Jose if he has ever been sunburnt. The question is unusual as darker skin tones like traditional Mexican complexions do not usually experience sunburn, getting tanned instead. As Jose replies that he is too dark to get sunburnt, Arnie asserts that he has gotten sunburnt before, babbling about how he is ‘more French than Mexican’ making his skin more sensitive. He goes on about how he is often mistaken for a white, reflecting strong influences of colonial hangover.
Mr. Clemens comes back to inspect the progress. While leaning down to admire Jose’s work, his hearing aid accidentally falls into the fall. As the old man attempts to retrieve it from the deeper end of the pool, he too accidentally falls down, injuring himself badly in the process. Seeing this, Arnie screams and runs away in horror, refusing to take any part lest the responsibility or blame falls upon him, even refusing to call 911. Jose on the other hand, supports the old man in pain, calming him down. Assuring Mr. Clemens that he will be fine, he calls the Emergency Services and provides first aid to the bleeding man. As the emergency service arrives, Jose muses that his father would have been proud of him today, realizing that he is not only a good worker but also a good man. He looks at his cousin, now back in the scene once again, explaining to the paramedics how he had warned Mr. Clemens about being too close to the edge, and wonders how different the two of them are.
Born Worker | Analysis
The story reinstates the goodness embodied in hard work and manual labor, reinforcing traditional Christian associations of labor with honesty, integrity, and faith. Although religion is not mentioned in the narrative, the association is unmistakable. Moreover, the story also contains numerous semi-autobiographical elements, with Jose’s racial and cultural heritage, as well as the economic background and the values of his family, closely resembling Soto’s own. The story reminds the audience that in a capitalist society that has forgotten to appreciate the value of labor, rewarding wealth and productivity instead, any kind of manual work does not deserve to be looked down upon. Bourgeoisie elitism has often been condescending to the working class, as is reflected by the condescending attitude of all who tell Jose that he was born to be a worker. Arnie and his family bring the bourgeoisie influence to light, representing the upper-middle class that depends on the hard-earned money from the manual labor of the working classes to earn their commission, employing minimal efforts on their own while using generationally acquired cultural capital to gain wealthy and influential connections and use them for their own benefit.
Arnie’s effortlessness in conducting himself in a formal, businesslike fashion despite having received no training is proof of this cultural capital, that Jose lacks. However, despite having an infinitely more privileged and comfortable life, he has not been taught to value honesty and integrity, which remains the primary difference between him and Jose. From this angle, the story then appears to uphold a Marxist-communitarian ethic and code of conduct, glorifying the working class over the capitalist bourgeoisie.
The story also raises the issue of colonial hangover in postcolonial diasporas, presented through Arnie’s obsession with proving to Jose that he is more white than Mexican. His manner hides an inherent disdain towards colored populations, which is reflected in his self-identification with the whites.
Lastly, Jose’s work ethic and character are also tied to the idea of masculinity in most cultures including Mexican, his strength, physical ability, aptitude at manual tasks, as well as passing references to his facial and body hair, all connect to an idea of masculinity that is associated with physical strength and virility.
Born Worker | Characters
Jose – An adolescent, working-class, Mexican boy in America who values hard work and manual labor. He has an extremely strong work ethic, and is honest, responsible, and punctual, besides having a natural aptitude for manual labor. At the end of the story, Jose realizes that he is not only a good worker but also a good man.
Arnie- Jose’s cousin from a middle-class family. Higher up in the economic spectrum, Arnie is spoilt, pampered, and lazy, with inflated ideas about his own brilliance. He considers people like Jose to be the ones who should be working and views them with condescension. He also displays the parasitic properties of the capitalist bourgeoisie who profit on the commission from working-class labor. He is also influenced by a culture of colonial hangover that considers whites to be superior to other races, constantly trying to prove that he is more white than Mexican.
Jose’s parents – Josie’s parents are the strongest influence on his character. They are both low-earning, working-class professionals who have instilled the values of hard work, honesty, and integrity in Jose. His mother inspires him through her labor and sacrifice, while his father teaches him to find a future in hard work, a future that is honest and self-made.
Mr. Clemens – Mr. Clemens is an old, wealthy man whose pool Jose and Arnie were cleaning. Despite having plenty of wealth, he is not kind or gracious enough to treat the two boys well or pay them both separately. Displaying typical upper-class traits, he appears suspicious of the boys’ intent and skill, constantly doubting Jose’s ability and reminding them that he’s only going to pay one of them. At the end of the story, however, Jose’ act of rescuing him brings about a change in his attitude, although not displayed in detail.
