Every member of society has been affected by the construct of gender. The implication of norms in this system has involved expectations for men and women, which have produced consequences for those that have been forced to fit into a undesirable role. These regulations have not been questioned unanimously, but have often been challenged individually through artistic and poetic expression. Judith Ortiz Cofer’s The Changeling and Stacey Waite’s The Kind of Man I Am at the DMV both explore different perceptions of gender. The authors use a character at the receiving end of the norms to describe how transgressions towards them are often reprimanded and punished. Though there are parallels between the poems with concepts of misunderstanding and social conformity, the elements they implemented individually were very effective, as well.
Judith Ortiz Cofer’s The Changeling incorporated a perspective from a young child to convey gender through nurture. In the first stanza, the speaker defined her identity as a female and admitted to cross dressing. She described the action as molding …show more content…
Rather than describing gender through the innocence of a child, she reflected it through the eyes of a transgender person. The transgender community faces aggressions from different levels on a regular basis, especially in more conservative areas, making such a character crucial to demonstrate the issue. One of the most notable tactics that was utilized in the internal structure of this poem was repetition, which brought attention to the phrase “the kind of man I am.” The speaker used this phrase to reiterate the expectations for action and appearance with regard to being a male. “The kind of man I am…is thick gripping hands to the wheel…” (29). Though the speaker identified as male, the notable choices in his expression lead other characters in the poem to question his