The House of the Scorpion - Post Reading

“When he was young, he made a choice, like a tree does when it decides to grow one way or the other.”  This is a quote from the book, “The House of the Scorpion”.  This quote was said when Tam Lin, one of the characters, was talking about El Patron, the most important person in Opium. Opium is a land ruled by extremely rich patriarchs who own enormous opium farms. It lies between the United States and Mexico.

Tam Lin said that El Patron decided how he was going to behave when he was young, like a tree deciding to grow a certain way. He said that El Patron is a tree towering over all the others, but that he is twisted. This means that, however powerful he is, he is evil, cunning, and should not be trusted.

“He sacrificed many things on the road to power,” is a quote which I remember from the movie “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows”. While this quote was talking about someone sacrificing things dear to them, the quote from “The House of the Scorpion” has a different meaning. El Patron sacrificed many things, but they were not dear to him. He is ruthless: people’s lives don’t matter to him. He sacrificed his reputation for truthfulness and his honor, however. People know him for being powerful, but they also know him for being evil and ruthless.

This quote can apply in our lives, though not as visibly. People make decisions that change who they are, though they are obviously not in the position of El Patron. If you make a decision to skip class, for example, you might get away with it. You might not see any immediate consequences, but your “tree” would begin to grow crooked, not straight. Eventually, other acts of rebellion would follow, and you would be so far from the original path that it would seem impossible to return to it.

Another metaphor that could be used is a car. It starts out straight, but if it is pointed just slightly in one direction or another, soon it would be going in a completely different direction. This is why you must take care to think your decisions - and their consequences - through completely before doing anything.