He's the Man

The opening lines in chapter nine struck me as being exceptionally rattling in comparison to the rest of the autobiography, despite the fact that throughout the entirety of the book Acosta constantly refers to the grotesque and scatological aspects of his life. The incredulous and unsettling fact that Acosta felt himself to be an adult at the early age of fourteen shows the reader that he certainly does believe himself to be a “Brown Buffalo”, in fact Acosta seems to be proud of this fact. Acosta seems to understand the connotations behind the label, and he also needs to the reader to understand the fact that he is a victim of American society and culture; Acosta is a victim of display, his being is placed behind a glass case for the rest of society to look down upon.
At the same time one has to realize the fact that Acosta has been exposed to what people in our society would label as a “bad” childhood filled with resentment and loneliness that consequently led to his exposure to alcohol and everything that “makes a man a man”.
The reader realizes the fact that at an early age Acosta’s emotions had been forced to become numb; his mother hits him until she finally breaks down and cries while Acosta simply looks at her smiling. As I was reading I actually could not believe the words, and pictured an extremely eerie and creepy scene involving Acosta and his mother.
I think it is important that it is in fact the patriarchal influence in his young life that pushes Acosta to become a man at such an early age. His father’s inability to guide him through life, as well as his inability to serve as a respectable figure shown through Acosta’s life as an actual adult. On a smaller note, I found it very interesting to learn about how even Acosta’s football coach taught him how to be cruel and unfair onto others. Everything in Acosta’s youth led to his uncaring and disgusting lifestyle in his adulthood.