Analysis Of Love In L. A By Dagoberto Gilb

People all over the world are gentle and kind right? The problem here is that others know that and they have no issues with taking advantage of and deceiving those nice people. “Love in L.A.” by Dagoberto Gilb is a short story that provides an outlook on this playful side of reality. It is normal and a good sign if someone feels guilty over lying, but this story shows a man who has no regard over who he hurts by lying and using trickery. It isn’t uncommon to see this kind of behavior in our modern day society and Gilb is acknowledging it in this short story. Gilb’s use of characters, events, and tone conveys the friendly aspects of life and how some people take advantage of those aspects.

Gilb sets his story in Los Angeles, a town known

Gilb gives off a comedic and deceptive tone with the character Jake. Jake is too busy day-dreaming to avoid getting into a car accident but is sly enough to avoid paying for his action by exploiting the kindness of a women whom he tries to flirt with. Jake makes sure to add a little charm to this meeting with Mariana so as not to seem suspicious of lying. Jake spits out lines like “‘Any damage to the car? I’m kinda hoping so, just so it takes a little more time and we can talk some.’” (665) and lines like “‘You’re not married, are you? Not that that would matter that much to me’” (666). Jake is joking around with this woman enough that she doesn’t notice anything off about his information or lack thereof, because on top of the charming jokes he tells, jake is lying profusely. When asked for his information Jake “made up a last name and address and wrote down the name of an insurance company an old girlfriend once belonged to.” (666) Jake obviously does not care for the wellbeing of Mariana and is willing to go to extreme lengths to escape any consequences. Jake is a prime example of a member of our society who takes advantage of others for his own