American History ANALYSIS OF THE SHORT STORY ORAL PRESENTATION BY: LOURDES QUINONES JUARBE

Author: Judith Ortiz Cofer is a Hispanic writer, she was born in Hormigueros, Puerto Rico, in When she was three years old her family moved to Paterson, New Jersey. In 1986 she won the Riverstone International Chapbook Competition. In 1989 she was nominated for a Pulitzer Prize with her novel The Line of the Sun. At this moment she is living in Georgia. She is married and has a daughter.

Main elements in the story

This story is a narration of some events. It is made in first person. Characters: 1. Elena- the narrator, the protagonist 2. Mr. De Palma-teacher 3. Elena’s mother 4. Eugene-Elena’s friend 5. Eugene’s Mother

Settings This story is set in Paterson, New Jersey in the early 1960s and the same day that the President Kennedy was shot and killed.

Conflict This story is about a girl called Elena, she belong to a Puerto Rican family, she spends a lot of her time sitting at the window in the building where she lives, called El building. The story tells us about her troubles at school, her low esteem, her time staring to the neighbor’s house. She met this boy called Eugene that she liked, then she was confronted by Eugene’s mom, who does not like her because she’s from an immigrant family and live in that dirty building. In others words this short story is about personal tragedies, such as the President Kennedy assassination and the prejudice against poverty and immigrates.

I noticed that this story talk about Elena’s deepest feelings, shame. She feels shame about her skinny body (she wishes to be like the black girls) she is also shame of the place where she lives. The story, also talks about respect to death and religion, the sorrow over the death of the President Kennedy. I understand this short story was named American History because takes place while a very important event in the American history is happening, the assassination of the President Kennedy. Through this story I learned about the reality that immigrant have to face in a country who criticize them and judge them, just because of the way they looks and the way they live. And also I had the view of what Americans felt that tragic day that President Kennedy was killed.