Paternostro's Register

"My grandmother does not have to think to answer this question either. She explains to me matter-of-factly that Imelda is the daughter of a trabajador from the interior." (Pg. 96)

"My grandfather asked Tulio if he was willing to work, "really" work. Tulio immediately said he was, with a si, señor." (Pg. 97)

With these two previous quotes we can see how Paternostro uses an informal register throughout the memoir. Paternostro develops a relationship with the reader as she describes her experiences with Colombia, her family, her judgements, and traumas. We can see how the register is informal by observing the diction. The use of words such as trabajador and other colloquialisms are what make the register informal and allow the reader to have that relationship with Silvana Paternostro.

Paternostro created the book to tell her experiences with Colombia and the war that the country has faced throughout it's existence. The author does not create the book specifically for Colombians, but as a one, when I read these common words in spanish that she uses, I feel in a way attached to the book.

Paternostro uses an informal register because it is clearly the register that was most suitable for the book. The author is informing us of the situation in Colombia and has no intent of "wowing" us with a ceremonial register. Paternostro does not use a familiar register either because she does not know the reader and at the same time has no interest of using a formal register because she needs to describe her experiences first hand while she develops a relationship with the reader as the book progresses.