Silent Dancing
English 100
14 September 2013
Memories From the Past The written text and photograph for Judith Ortiz "Silent Dancing" reflects back on Cofer's unhappy confusing childhood. Cofer recalls most of her memories from a silent video; both the story and photograph paint a garden of grey memories of isolation, unsettling situations, the struggles of assimilation, and the sadness she experiences as a child. My goal of this essay is to compare and explain the similarities of Cofer’s text to the picture on the book cover of her book.
Cofer's written text and photograph convey very similar ideas about the difficulties of assimilating to an unfamiliar culture. Many times throughout the text Ortiz references the color grey, symbolizing a sense of unhappiness. According to Ortiz, "That single color washes over the whole period" (68). The photograph being in a bland sephia tone, suggests the sadness Ortiz experiences through the difficulties of adaptation while growing up in New Jersey and throughout childhood.
Julia 2
Cofer's text expresses a sense of isolation while growing up in the El building. In order to assimilate to America, her father was fixated on getting the family out of the barrio (70). Since majority of the tenants were Latina, Cofer "Was never permitted to form bonds with the people who lived there" (70). The barrio, where Cofer lived, became a place of quarantine. Due to the guilt of isolating the family, Cofer's father celebrated Christmas with a real tree, and buying a television. The television shows acted as an example of how American culture ‘should be’ and how they ‘should act’. Cofer's photo suggests this same issue of isolation. In the photo she is inside and looks disconnected and uninterested in the toy she is holding, and possibly longing for attention from the photographer.
In the story Silent Dancing there are several references to unsettling situations Cofer faces. Cofer relays a dream she has from this New Year’s Eve
14 September 2013
Memories From the Past The written text and photograph for Judith Ortiz "Silent Dancing" reflects back on Cofer's unhappy confusing childhood. Cofer recalls most of her memories from a silent video; both the story and photograph paint a garden of grey memories of isolation, unsettling situations, the struggles of assimilation, and the sadness she experiences as a child. My goal of this essay is to compare and explain the similarities of Cofer’s text to the picture on the book cover of her book.
Cofer's written text and photograph convey very similar ideas about the difficulties of assimilating to an unfamiliar culture. Many times throughout the text Ortiz references the color grey, symbolizing a sense of unhappiness. According to Ortiz, "That single color washes over the whole period" (68). The photograph being in a bland sephia tone, suggests the sadness Ortiz experiences through the difficulties of adaptation while growing up in New Jersey and throughout childhood.
Julia 2
Cofer's text expresses a sense of isolation while growing up in the El building. In order to assimilate to America, her father was fixated on getting the family out of the barrio (70). Since majority of the tenants were Latina, Cofer "Was never permitted to form bonds with the people who lived there" (70). The barrio, where Cofer lived, became a place of quarantine. Due to the guilt of isolating the family, Cofer's father celebrated Christmas with a real tree, and buying a television. The television shows acted as an example of how American culture ‘should be’ and how they ‘should act’. Cofer's photo suggests this same issue of isolation. In the photo she is inside and looks disconnected and uninterested in the toy she is holding, and possibly longing for attention from the photographer.
In the story Silent Dancing there are several references to unsettling situations Cofer faces. Cofer relays a dream she has from this New Year’s Eve