A Look into Judith Ortiz Cofers Quinceaera - Research Paper Example

A Look into Judith Ortiz Cofer’s Quinceanera Most cultures across the globe have coming-of-age rituals emphasizing the importance of reaching a certain age for younger people. Upon reaching a certain age, an adolescent is welcomed into society as an adult that has responsibilities and additional rights. In some primitive cultures, the rituals are usually bloody and may resemble physical torture. For some modernized cultures, coming-of-age is celebrated during a milestone event such as graduation or getting a job. In other cultures in between, the coming-of-age is celebrated much like a wedding or a birthday party, with religious ties. In Latino cultures, for example, the young adolescent girls celebrate Quinceanera upon their 15th birthday as a rite of passage from childhood to adulthood (Ruiz and Korrol 598). It is a highly-celebrated event, which shares similarities with an old European tradition of introducing young men and ladies formally into society; however, the participants were 18 years old since it was the legal age during those times (Gutmann 306). For some Latinas who still celebrate Quinceanera, not only is it a celebration to look forward to but also a form of awakening as described in a poem by Judith Ortiz Cofer. Such a tradition as Quinceanera came about due to the need of a woman to become either a priestess or a wife at the age of fifteen; these were considered to be the roles of adult women in the past, making this event to be a huge turning point in the woman’s life (Gutmannm et al. 310). Thus, in the poem Quinceanera, the author was able to describe what a 15-year old girl is facing upon her realization that she is already seen as an adult. It can also be seen as a form of awakening of the different aspects of adulthood, and a realization of the sexuality of the subject, which is in this case the celebrant of the Quinceanera. The form of the poem could make it seem very modern because of the explicit expression of what is going on inside the celebrant’s mind as she is being morphing into an adult. Also, as today’s culture is a much more open-minded, many implications in the poem can be interpreted as the liberation and the celebration of independence of a new generation. However, the poem could have actually been written by a person of an older generation – for example, the mother or the grandmother. This is due to the fact that the celebrant’s mother and all of her previous ancestors were also able to celebrate the occasion, and they also had a chance to think about the possible things that could happen to them after they reach adulthood. It is also a known fact that the younger generation seems to think ahead of the older generation, which is why the younger ones are usually a lot smarter than the older ones, although not necessarily wiser. This poem is divided into several parts. The first sentence may be categorized as the realization of the end of childhood. It goes as: “My dolls have been put away like dead children in a chest I will carry with me when I marry” (Cofer 50). Based on the tone of the passage, the dolls may represent the childhood of the celebrant, which she currently is not living in anymore due to being in the awkward stage of neither a child nor an adult. The next passage describes the excitement of experiencing the celebration, which can be read in the following passage: “I reach under my skirt to feel a satin slip bought for this day” (Cofer 50). With the coming of age also come the additional responsibilities of being an adult, as described by the passage: “My hair has been nailed back with my mother’s black hairpins into my skull. Her hands stretched my eyes wide open as she twisted braids into a tight circle at the nape of my neck” (Cofer 50). The description of as to how the braid was done by the celebrant’s mother can imply that she is forcing the responsibilities of being an adult to her daughter, and that she is opening the daughter’s eyes in order for her to become fully aware of her actions as well as things to come. The additional responsibilities of being an adult – for example, being independent but at the same time diligent in following the instructions of her parents – can be further read and implied from the following passage: “I am to wash my own clothes and sheets from this day on, as if the fluids of my body were poison, as if the little trickle of blood I believe travels from my heart to the world were shameful” (Cofer 50). In this passage, not just the idea of additional responsibilities but also the concept of entering puberty is being introduced by the older generation, though with a rather negative connotation, as well as the idea that it is a rather hushed and perverse subject that must not be talked about in public. Changes in the body also imply that there would also be changes in the mindset of the younger one, and this is affirmed by her questioning the wisdom of the elders, as showed in the following passage: “Is not the blood of saints and men in battle beautiful? Do Christ’s hands not bleed into your eyes from His cross?” (Cofer 50). Lastly, the concept of sexuality is introduced by this passage, “It is as soft as the inside of my thighs”, and is ended by the last passages of the poem: “At night I hear myself growing and wake to find my hands drifting of their own will to soothe skin stretched tight over my bones. I am wound like the guts of a clock, waiting for each hour to release me” (Cofer 50). The duality of both suppressing and expressing the primal desires is implied in these last passages. When a person is said to have come of age, it means that the person has been accepted in to society as a vital member for its development. However, self-awareness and realization is also an important theme in this subject. The different parts of awakening in a person who is coming-of-age can be seen in the poem Quinceanera by Judith Ortiz Cofer. Aside from waking up to the realities of being an adult, the understanding that such additional responsibilities would have to be faced, the acceptance of not being a child anymore, and the realizations of having sexuality as a part of being a human can be implied from reading the poem. Thus, not only it is a celebration of getting older but also a celebration of gaining a new life. Works Cited Cofer, Judith Ortiz. Silent Dancing: A Partial Remembrance of a Puerto Rican Childhood. Houston, TX: Arte Publico Press, 1990. Print. Gutmann, Mathew C., Felix V.Rodriguez, Lynn Stephen, and Patricia Zavella. Perspectives on Las Americas: A Reader in Culture, History, and Representation. Malden, MA: Blackwell Publishers Ltd., 2003. Print. Ruiz, Vicki L., and Virginia Sanchez Korrol. Latinas in the United States: A Historical Encyclopedia, Volume 1. Bloomington, IN: Indiana University Press, 2006. Print. Read More