Drown by Junot Díaz, a collection of short stories, chronicles the events of Yunior and his family. Each story focuses on Yunior and his struggle to grow up as a Dominican immigrant and find a place for himself in American society. As the novel progresses, Yunior becomes aware of the stereotypes imposed on him and recognizes that being white is advantageous. Yunior's experience growing up in both the Dominican Republic and the United States has shaped his perspective on life and lifestyle choices. Growing up poor in the Dominican Republic greatly influenced the choices Yunior will make later in his life. In “Aguantando” Yunior recalls how poverty was part of his life. Díaz writes: “We were poor. The only reason we could have been poorer was to live in the camp or be Haitian immigrants… We didn't eat rocks but we didn't eat meat or beans either” (Díaz, 70 years old). This depiction of Yunior's early childhood sets the stage for what is to come. Yunior's choices as a teenager demonstrate that he either chooses not to or cannot improve his situation, instead he turns to drugs and alcohol. Yunior's decision to take drugs and alcohol shows that poor people have nothing to live for and simply live for the next best thing. Yunior's tryst with drugs is first seen in "Aurora". To ease his mother's financial burden, Yunior sells recreational drugs on the streets. It's a profitable business that comes with repercussions. Yunior recalls that "Ten here, ten there, an ounce of weed for the big boy with the warts... Things aren't like that around here yet, but more and more kids are dealing and bigger groups are coming from out of town. .. We're still making crazy paper, but it's harder now and Cut has already been... halfway through the paper... and the stereotypes against him have played a role in Yunior's racial identity and how he sees her. Yunior's experiences have taught him that white and Latino are different and essentially being white is better. Yunior's maturation journey has taught him to accept his racial identity as a Latina and his position in life Yunior has not reached the end of his maturation period, but given the environment and his situation it seems that he is in a stagnant phase of his life had he had a more positive upbringing he would be more optimistic about the future , he would set goals instead of getting stuck. In his search for a permanent escape from his reality, he learns that being white is the only way to achieve true success and sadly, Yunior believes, that is not in his future. Works Cited Díaz, Junot. Drown. Boston: Riverhead Trade, 1997. Print