Problems with Hurricanes

“Problems with Hurricanes” (1991) is a humorous and poignant free verse poem by Puerto Rican American poet Victor Hernández Cruz (b. 1949). The poem utilizes brevity, a simple narrative form with straightforward language, and ironic humor to communicate its message. The poem explores themes surrounding death, fear, and irony. It specifically focuses on how things are not always the way they seem, and sometimes the things we are not on the lookout for are the things we should focus on. Cruz has stated that his poetic inspirations are the Puerto Rican culture of his parents and the modernist world of New York City during the 20th century. This poem combines the imagery of the former with the style and technique of the latter. “Problems with Hurricanes” is one of Cruz’s most well-known poems and was included in his 2001 anthology New and Selected Poems 1965-2000.

Poet Biography

Victor Hernández Cruz (b. 1949) was born in Aguas Buenas, Puerto Rico, and moved to New York City in the United States when he was five years old. Cruz did not learn English until two years after moving to New York City when his father bought a television. He described his learning of English as a difficult journey pieced together through television, radio, and making friends with other Puerto Rican immigrant children and African American children in his neighborhood who helped him learn the language.

Cruz was also a voracious reader as a teenager, often reading poetry at night while neighbors played music and sang on the rooftops of his neighborhood. It was at this time that Cruz discovered his main poetic influences: Spanish poet Federico Garcia Lorca, Chilean poet Pablo Neruda, and Beat poets like Allen Ginsberg and Amiri Baraka. He would also later be influenced by William Carlos Williams. He began writing poetry in his youth and self-published his first poems in a chapbook titled Papo Got His Gun! And Other Poems (1966), followed by his first book of poems, Snaps (1969), with a traditional publisher when he was 20.

Early on, Cruz’s poetic focuses were apparent. In his first volumes of poetry, Cruz focused on imagery and experiences of his native Puerto Rico and New York City, where he grew up. Cruz uses “Spanglish” in his poems, which is a combination of English and Spanish. This combination of languages, along with Cruz’s ability to embody the city and the country with his words, earned his early poetry quick praise, including from poet Allen Ginsberg, who at the time was one of the most famous poets in America.

In 1968, Cruz moved to California, where he continued to write and worked with local schools to bring poets into the classroom. However, he missed New York City and returned after eight months in California. In 1971, Cruz returned to Puerto Rico for the first time since he was five years old. While there, he wrote the poems that would make up his collection Mainland (1973).

For the rest of his adult life, Cruz would live in various places like California and Puerto Rico, and he traveled often. He wrote his most famous book of poetry, Red Beans (1991), while living in Puerto Rico. All of his poetry embodies the sounds, sights, rhythms, and spirits of the places he has lived and the cultures that define him. Cruz is now considered one of the most important poets of the Nuyorican movement, which is a group of poets from Puerto Rico who grew up in New York City in the 1960s and 1970s (See: Background). Cruz is also a co-founder of the Before Columbus Foundation and has taught at a number of colleges.

Poem Text

Cruz, Victor Hernández. “Problems with Hurricanes.” 1991. Poets.org.

Summary

“Problems with Hurricanes” depicts a conversation between the speaker and a “campesino,” or a poor farmer. The campesino tells the speaker that when there are hurricanes, the real things to fear are the flying plants and fruits that the wind throws around. He tells the speaker that it would be incredibly embarrassing for a family to have to pass down the story that you died after being struck by a flying banana.

The campesino explains how there are more honorable ways to die, including by drowning or by being smashed into a rock by the wind; however, he says it would be a disgrace to die by way of a flying plantain.

In the final stanza, the speaker says the campesino takes his hat off as a sign of respect to the wind and then offers his final advice: He says not to worry about the wind, noise, and water—instead, one should be wary of mangoes “[a]nd all such beautiful / sweet things” (Lines 34-35).