The Motorcycle Diaries Lesson Plan

What changes when Guevara and Alberto lose their motorcycle? What effect does the reader feel?

Guevara and Alberto were already depending quite heavily on the help and hospitality of others, but when they lose their motorcycle, they become even more at the mercy of those who might help them. This increases the sense of tension and suspense for the reader, as we feel (as Guevara himself puts it) that their ‘difficulties increase.’ We also feel the increased strain of the journey and the inevitable slower pace at which they must travel. On a basic level, we also cease to hear about the bike, which one could argue has become itself a character so far in the narrative.

How...