...Cofer’s “The Myth of the Latin Woman: I Just Met a Girl Named Maria” is about the racist stereotypes that she has encountered in her life. Cofer is known for the publishing of three collections of poetry, four essay collections, four novels, and short story collections. Cofer is currently “Regents’ and Franklin Professor of English and Creative Writing at the University of Georgia” (230). In this essay Cofer often experiences being stereotyped based off her beauty and ethnic background. Cofer is a beautiful Hispanic woman “who so obviously belongs to Rita Moreno’s gene pool” (231), as she stated in the beginning of the essay. Cofer begins the essay by relating an experience where a drunk man started singing "Maria”, from "Westside Story” (231) to her, while she is on a bus trip to London from Oxford. Cofer tries to keep her cool even though everyone around her finds it entertaining. Cofer states “I managed my version of an English smile: no show of teeth, no extreme contortions of facial muscles. . .” (231). At this moment, Cofer is aggravated by the actions of the drunk man but tries to keep her composure. Cofer feels that just because she is beautiful that does not...
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...Scholar Essay Who am I to judge ones race, class or gender? , from the way they to look to the sway in their, who am I to judge what they should be called or what they shouldn’t be called. Just because the individual is a lighter color than me or from a different ethnicity, aren’t we all consider to be as an equal? The binary stereotyping and mixed cultural signals of African American and Latino females are identified in Mammies, Matriarch and Other Controlling Images and The Myth of the Latin Woman: I Just Met a Girl Named Maria examines the race, class, gender, and sexuality and how these representations speak to the African American and Latino women .Race, Class, and Gender are constructed categories that causes controlling images such as Mammy, Hot Tamale, Bad Black Woman, and Jezebels to become a natural way of thinking leading women to act and believe that is who they are and eventually they who will become. Patricia Collins article (Chap 4), “Mammies, Matriarchs, and Other Controlling Images” (2000), defines the oppression, objectification, and controlling images of African American women in the society, as well as the social acceptance of African American women. Collins supports her theories and hypothetical thinking with supporting statements from other black feminist that illustrate similar beliefs and theories that she asserts in her article. Collins purpose and objective is to point out the stereotypical condition of African American women in the society and...
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...Mujeres al Poder Reaction paper submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for ENGL 3130 Intermediate English. It is 7:05pm and I just finished reading “THE MYTH OF THE LATIN WOMAN: I JUST MET A GIRL NAMED MARIA” by Judith Ortiz Cofer and I can honestly say that I am disappointed. This essay made an impact in me because of the fact that I am not only a female but also Latin. It is disturbing and sad at the same time to realize that discrimination and racism still exist in a country that is distinguished by their innovation and prosperity. It has been a country where “apparently” tears and boundaries do not exist. It is unbelievable that in this 21st century there is still no respect not only for women but also for ethnic groups. Even though us women have fought for our rights and privilege equal to men, those fights have won the battle but not the war and there is still plenty to fight to be seen as equal as men and even more when being from a different race. We can all look different in a mirror but inside we all look the same. Hair, height, skin color, accent, religion, political thinking, believes, are just boundaries that racism and discrimination label. It is imperative to change these antiquated attitudes into progressive ones. Now more than ever is not the time to stop fighting. This essay proves how far women have come but then again we need to go further more. We need to keep our heads up high and continue achieving our goals. MUJERES AL...
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...your argument more appealing because the readers, or audience, know that the information given isn’t fake. One can bring ethos to their argument automatically just from their title. For example, King George VI’s speech, given in 1939 the 3rd of September, declaring Britain was at war with Germany already has ethos because of his title as king. His title as king allowed him to speak of war and for no one to doubt him because he is king and wouldn’t lie or joke on such a matter to his citizens. Not everyone can have automatic ethos so most appeal to ethos by having to build up their credibility and trustworthiness to their audience or readers. Judith Ortiz Cofer’s The Myth of the Latin Woman: I Just Met a Girl Named Maria is a prime example of...
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...Living between Two Cultures It has been almost nine years since I arrived from Mexico to the United States. Integrating these two unique cultures has been a wonderful experience. For immigrants in the United States culture differences can be difficult and complicate. Assimilating two separate cultures is an ongoing challenge. In this essay, I will describe the issues many immigrants face in regards to diversity, stereotyping, preserving self identity and personal values. America is nation that is populated with a culturally diverse group of people. The United States has welcomed more immigrants than any other country. The steady stream of people coming to America has had a profound effect on the evolution of American society. America is known as the land of the free and people from all over the world are attracted by promise of opportunity and success. It is not easy for those who move to the United States from other countries. It takes a lot of courage and sacrifice to leave your homeland and come to a new country, but the prospect of a better life makes the risk worth taking. Immigrants who come to America enrich the country by bringing aspects of their native cultures with them. For example, Hispanic Americans celebrate their culture with street fairs and other festivities on Cinco de Mayo. Other cultures, such as African Americans celebrate both Kwanzaa, a festival drawn from African rituals. As the population of the United States becomes more diverse its people are...
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...In the essay, “The Myth of the Latin Woman: I Just Met a Girl Named Maria”, Cofer describes what it is like to grow up in America being a Puerto Rican girl. She explains how the people at her school who judge her and other Puerto Rican girls by the way she dressed. Students would notice that they would dress mature and cover themselves with jewellery for even simply events. Men would flirt with her because of her “exotic” background. She and other Hispanics are portrayed negatively by society, however if people would learn to understand their culture it will better our relationship. In the essay, “Two Ways to Belong in America”, Mukherjee compares her American experience to her twin sister. She explains how she became involved with the United States and accepted the culture; while her sister, Mira, refused to give up her Indian citizenship. Even though Mira spent many years as an educator at the United States and made...
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