Jake Becker

Professor Andrea Malouf

English 2610
26 June 2016

HOLY TOLEDO
There are reasons to be proud of who are and where you are from. Insight into
your past and traditions can be beneficial to finding solace in this chaotic world. Yet
sometimes those ethnical badges embroidered into our psyche can cause trauma and
confusion. Championed by superstition and segregation they are subconsciously
eviscerating our compassion. Instead of being a platform in which you can comfortably
launch off of, it can be a shackle that prevents you from flying. In Joseph Geha`s work
entitled Holy Toledo, I believe there is an underlying theme which promotes this idea.
Which is that your identity and cultural belief can keep you from becoming a more selfactualized person.
Being proud of ones identity is something that should be respected, yet this pride
can easily lead to dogmatic tendencies which prevent one from living a life imbued with
love and compassion. The identity in Holy Toledo which is being glorified is that of an
arabic culture which Sitti and her son Eddie represent. Sitti is the historian of this
cultural identity and Eddie is the enforcer. Given that fact that Sitti is an inherent pack
rat and she is also depressed given the circumstances caused by her past sorrows, this
causes her to have mental as well as emotional anguish. Sitti is also faced with the fact
of her old age and inevitable evaporation into the void. The combination of these things

has lead her to cling onto her arabic identity and customs, she is direly devout to these
ideals and will not relinquish them no matter the cirumstance. An example from the text
that supports this; Sitti`s room was papered with dark flowers. The walls, like everything
else in that house, were cluttered. Holy Pictures hung in uneven diamond patterns
above the bed, and there were photographs everywhere. (Geha 1) This signifies her
clinging to the past. Sitti is devout in her beliefs and regardless of how much separation
they cause within her own family she is willing to let her dogma be the steward of her
psyche. Sitti`s psyche is something which is damaged by her integration into a new
culture, this dissonance is highlighted in Dustin Johnson`s essay regarding Li-Young
Lee`s poem, For a new Citizen of These United States. Johnson points out that dark
images to convey this loss of self, as if this idea of self is subsiding into the back
recesses of his mind. (1) This loss of self is something which can experienced when
integrating into a new culture and is something in which both texts highlight upon.
The separation that this allegiance to ethnic identity has created is not only on a
societal level but also in the household. In regards to the societal aspect of separation,
this is highlighted in the text with regards to the view of Mikhail Yakoub`s wife(Sitti`s
daughter in-law). Her name is not given in the story, and I believe this is to show the
insignificance of her importance to the Arabic Community depicted in this story. This is
shown in the following text. Since she was an American, the people hardly mentioned
her when they talked about the dead (Geha 2) This begins to enforce the idea of one
being hindered from seeing the world beyond skin color or ethnic creed, and how
cultures can intentionally seclude themselves from anything outside their communal

beliefs. Which as shown in this story can prevent you from having a relationship with
people who are integrated into your family.
The notion of separation takes a more intimate turn when we began to delve into
Sitti`s son and grandson. Mikhail Yakoub is the shining example of one who feels
tethered by their culture identity and seeks to break free of the superstitious and
dogmatic aspects of it. He sees that these things only stifle the ability to grow and
become more than what you're told you are. Mikhail is represented as a black sheep in
his family, and from this his alienation and inevitable self-exile from his culture happens.
How he is viewed by his Arabic community is represented in this passage Afterward
nobody spoke much of him except to repeat what was already known: that Mikhail
Yakoubmarried later in life(and to an American) a failure at any business he tried,
finally a widower with childrenwas never a lucky man. (Geha, 3) This ideal of luck;
good or bad, which comes up a few times in this story represents superstition. This is
shown in the story by Mikhail viewing old men in a coffee shop being frightened by an
omen of a bird. He takes this lightheartedly. A passage which also represents Mikhail`s
hope of being free from dogmatic superstition is this. But then Mikhail Yakoub never
respect luck as the others did, not even grudgingly. He preferred to be free of it.(Geha,
4). This passage to me is also insinuating that Mikhail wanted to not just be free of luck
but also of his ethnic tethers. This leads to him leaving his roots which unfortunately
includes his kids. When this happens most people regard as him as if he was a ghost.
People who mentioned Mikhail Yakoub at all spoke of him as if he were gone forever.
But he wasn't dead.(Geha, 5) This to me signifies the systematic exile that takes place
within communities when one is deemed strange or a heretic of customs. If they are

not bound to the ideals of the group then they are deemed as an outlier. When asked of
where Mikhail has gone, Sitti replies America. The author not just revealing a physical
place but also an ideal. The ideal of America is that of unencumbered freedom to be
something, not just associated with ones ethnic background. There are constant
representations in the text to Mikhail being one of diplomacy. Their father had once
point out to them the different languagesTurkish, Arabic, French, and finally, in
English.. (Geha, 6)The representation of Mikhail and his son Mikhi represents this
archetype of freedom from the bonds of tradition and cultural circumstance, a
perception that is not isolated to linear concepts.
The author is constantly drawing comparisons between Mikhail and Mikhi to
fortify this bond. From the way they touch their hair, to their questioning of established
beliefs. This is setting up the stage for the driving message and climax of this story.
When Mikhi confronts Sitti about her supposed sickness he exclaims that it is all in her
head and that she is fine. This enrages Sitti and she then proclaims that Mikhi has given
her the Evil Eye. This is reminiscent of the symbolism found in Johnson`s work in
regards to a black moth.He catches a black moth while mistakenly taking it for the
irregular postage stamp of death.(2) This death or evil which is being eluded to seems
to be that which is foreign or outside of ones identity/culture, this psychological
dissonance is reflected within the text. The author uses this symbolism to manifest the
conflict between fundamental views(Sitti) and the progressive and rational views(Mikhi).
Sitti is the embodiment of all the sorrow and dogmatic tendencies that narrow-sighted
beliefs can produce, and this can be channeled through ethnic as well as cultural
identity. It is also physically represented by Sitti`s sickness. Mikhi represents the new

idea that is attempting to expose the flaws of the old views and bring forth the new
paradigm of belief. Hence why it is referred to as the evil eye or black moth, it signifies
the death of an old way which to some may be frightening. The author is attempting to
reveal this when Mikhi confronts Sitti about her sickness. You`re not sick at all, Mikhi
said once more, looking up now. He was actually smiling, although his eyes kept
blinking as if somebody were shaking a fist in front of them. (Geha, 7)The smiling links
back to his fathers encounter with the dogmatic-superstition in the coffee shop, when he
laughed and smiled at the situation.
When the conflict between Mikhi and Sitti takes place, the only plausible
remedy is that of force which is provided by Uncle Eddie. He represents someone who
unlike his brother Mikhail, is intertwined with their ethnicity and beliefs. From this aspect
he is willing to unleash retribution on his mothers behalf to keep these ideals alive.
Though one can insinuate from the way the author depicts his nervous tendencies,
Nadia watched her uncle smoke his cigarette with those nervous double-drags. (Geha,
8) that Eddie feels uncomfortable with his role. I believe this is showing the concept that
even though one may not whole-heartedly agree with certain doctrines that are passed
down by their family, that one still feels obligated to maintain those traditions even if
they seem obsolete. Eddie is trapped in these dogmas.
The climax of this story proves the points which I have stated. To show that the
sickness which Sitti is experiencing throughout the story is nothing more than a mental
construct the author provides this passage. Mikhi was right. Here their grandmother
stood,alive hands, working as she spoke, and her voice strong. She wasn't sick at
all.(Geha,9)

The author then creates the overall message about challenging the status-quo of
ones ethnic creed. This is brought forth by both Nadia and Mikhi challenging their
family`s dogmatic beliefs. She isn't sick, she found herself saying, and so calming that
her own voice sounded strange to her. And all Mikhi did, he just looked at her, thats all.
It wasn't the Evil Eye.(Geha, 10). This is the final attempt of the story to bring forth the
over-arching message about how dogmatic devotion to owns cultural beliefs can cause
disharmony.
Finally the connection between Mikhail and his children are complete. Outraged
by the heresy Sitti and Eddie enforce their archaic ignorance upon the children via
Eddie`s snakeskin belt. This to symbolizes the scorn that is created within cultural
groups when outliers speak their mind. The author then uses the concepts of being free
and luckless to show the children`s permanent shift to a more holistic view of the world.
she felt a worlds yet certain anticipation: the two of them luckless, and free. (Geha,
11)The awakened state which in the children which was catalyzed by their father is now
fully apparent. They don't want to be stuck with their ancestral baggage which has
caused such strife and alienation in their family. The author finally completes this
viewpoint by bringing in the concept of America, which symbolizes the mindset of being
free of dogmatic beliefs which cause segregation. Calmly, she closed her eyes and
tried to imagine America, how it will be, and what they should take with them when they
go.(Geha, 12)
This American ideal and how it is something of promise and hope is apparent in
Johnson`s work, This security that he has found within the United States, has given
reason for the narrator to let go. (3) We see how this symbol of America is championed

in both of these texts as something which relieves the shadows and despair of ones
past and ushers in a new paradigm of hope.
Living in the modern post-industrialization age is something which has never
been experienced in our known human history. We are a global community now, we are
more integrated with one another than ever and from that we have achieved so much.
Our story and history of ourselves is something which we should cherish and honor. But
when this volition of our ethnicity or culture reaches a form of zealotry then we began to
destroy all that we've created. Dogma and absolutes can only take us so far when we
began to talk about ourselves, if we want to began to go forth into a more promising
future then we must start viewing ourselves as humans and not subcategories. We all
want security, love and health. We can become more than what we have been told we
are. This can happen if we just attempt to remove the things which only cause division
and conflict; and instead embrace our humanity.

Works Cited

Geha, Joseph. Through and Through: Toledo Stories, Saint Paul, MN: Graywolf,
1990. Print
Johnson, Dustin. Interpretation Essay of For a New Citizen of These United States,
Salt Lake Community College, 2016. Print