Analysis of "The Myth of The Latin Woman"

Poor experience after poor experience is what Judith Ortiz Cofer’s piece “The Myth of The Latin Woman” focuses on. From running into drunk men on buses to overdressing for simple occasions to being assumed a waitress in a restaurant, the “myth” of the Latin woman is obviously a negative perspective.

In Cofer’s writing, she uses words in English and in Spanish, to prove her statements about, “master[ing] the English language,” but to help the audience understand the idea that she has stayed connected to her culture. In paragraph 3, she mentions a “bodega,” which without use of the context is difficult for a girl like me, after three years of Spanish classes, to pick up on. Her style of writing is widely varied, focusing on sarcasm about cultural stereotypes or impressively described frustrations with the lack of respect from other cultures and ethnicities. She uses the English language and ties it in with her own background to create a stronger argument.

The speaker is all Latin women, specifically Judith, however her voice seems to speak for more than just one mouth, as she mentioned her friend working on her Ph.D who says “doctor still shakes his head in puzzled amazement at the ‘big words’ she uses.” Judith’s voice is her friend’s voice also. The occasion she is describing is a lifetime of unequal treatment and wrongful experiences. Her past that cannot be undone, that will just focus her on improvement in the future. The audience is majority groups around the world, speaking up for the minority groups about the lack of respect. She uses convincing arguments by describing her personal experiences with great detail and diction, like in paragraph 4 when she says, “... neither the music nor the colors we wore could be too loud.” Her purpose for writing such an essay is to raise awareness and to create a change. She even explicitly states that in her essay in the second to last paragraph, claiming. “My personal goal in  my public life is to try to replace the old pervasive stereotypes and myths about Latinas with a much more interesting set of realities,” and an experience at the third to last paragraph, a woman ordering a cup of coffee just based on her Latina appearance. The subject of this essay was the unequal treatment Cofer faced on a daily basis and her determination to change the world.

Cofer establishes her ethos immediately, detailing in her second paragraph her inability to leave “the island,” Puerto Rico, behind her. She is granted credibility throughout the essay as her experiences add up and her descriptions with spanish terms are taken into account. The audience feels a connection with  this woman, and is therefore drawn to feel pathos from her embarrassing or angering experiences, feeling empathy for Cofer in her descriptions. As for logos, she establishes her logical ideas with actual lifetime experiences. She justifies all the claims she makes with her own personal recollections.

I think this essay was effective is creating an awareness for the rest of the world. Judith, through use of language and choice of style in her writing, accomplishes her purpose.