Skip to main content

What is the moral dilemma in Judith Ortiz Cofer's "American History"?

In Judith Ortiz Cofer's "American History," the protagonist, Elena, faces a moral dilemma on November 22, 1963. This is the day President John F. Kennedy is shot and when the country mourns the shocking loss of a beloved man. Elena and the other students from school are sent home out of respect for the country's loss. Elena notices on her way home that her apartment building is completely silent. This silence is unusual because there are usually different types of music blasting from the windows and people socializing out front. On this day in history, however, Elena's building is silent to show respect for a time of mourning.


The moral dilemma occurs when Elena decides to go to Eugene's house for their study date rather than to church with her mother. Elena's mother attempts to change Elena's mind by saying the following:



"Hija, the president has been killed. We must show respect. He was a great man. Come to church with me tonight." 



Elena's mother believes her daughter should cancel studying to attend church with her to pray for President Kennedy, his loves ones, and the nation. Elena does not want to miss going into the house next door for her study date with Eugene. Elena's mother argues that her daughter is forgetting who she is and what she should be doing at a time like this. Also, she takes the time to inform Elena that she is headed for trouble if she continues to chase after Eugene and her dreams about his house. Again, the moral dilemma is whether Elena should exercise respect for the president's death or go to Eugene's house to study.


Ultimately, Elena exercises her freedom to make her own choices and decides to go over to Eugene's house against her mother's wishes. Elena is not able to enter the home, though. Eugene's mother, who has a prejudiced and intolerant attitude towards other races and social classes, refuses to give Elena permission to enter the home or be friends with Eugene.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

etymology - Origin of the greeting "Sweet dreams".

Does anybody know the etymology of the phrase "sweet dreams"? I tried googling but did not find anything satisfying. Is this a relatively new phrase of the modern world or has this been in use for some time? I think it's the latter one. Answer The OED has the interjection as "a farewell to someone going to bed" from the 20th century: 1908 Sears Roebuck Catal. 198/1 Tenor Solos..Good Bye, Sweet Dreams, Good Bye. But it goes back until at least the 19th and possibly 18th centuries. John Wolcot, writing under the pseudonym of Peter Pindar, used it in his poem "Orson and Ellen; A Legendary Tale" published in 1801: Also from 1801 in The infernal Quixote (Page 287) by Charles Lucas: In the March 1776 of The Universal Magazine was published "The Serenade. A Pastoral Tale. From the German of Gesner" , where the shepherd Daphnis watches over his beloved as she sleeps and sings: The same tale appears in 1776's as Idyl XI, " Daphnis ...
Post a Comment
Read more

Is there a word/phrase for "unperformant"?

As a software engineer, I need to sometimes describe a piece of code as something that lacks performance or was not written with performance in mind. Example: This kind of coding style leads to unmaintainable and unperformant code. Based on my Google searches, this isn't a real word. What is the correct way to describe this? EDIT My usage of "performance" here is in regard to speed and efficiency. For example, the better the performance of code the faster the application runs. My question and example target the negative definition, which is in reference to preventing inefficient coding practices. Answer This kind of coding style leads to unmaintainable and unperformant code. In my opinion, reads more easily as: This coding style leads to unmaintainable and poorly performing code. The key to well-written documentation and reports lies in ease of understanding. Adding poorly understood words such as performant decreases that ease. In addressing the use of such a poorly ...
Post a Comment
Read more

What are the similarities between the relationships of the characters in The Outsiders and Romeo and Juliet?

At first glance, it might appear as if the characters in  The Outsiders  by S. E. Hinton and  Romeo and Juliet  by William Shakespeare do not have much in common; however, when one isolates the core of the conflicts, it becomes clear that the relationships in both stories are rooted in rivalry and secrecy.  In both  The Outsiders  and  Romeo and Juliet , an overarching theme is rivalry. While   socioeconomic status separates the greasers from the Socs in The Outsiders , last names separates the Montagues from the Capulets, who appear to be relatively equal in terms of socioeconomic status. Due to these rivalries, there are instances of deadly interactions in both stories. In  The Outsiders , Johnny kills Bob (whether his actions were justified or not is debatable). In  Romeo and Juliet , Romeo kills Tybalt and Paris, and Tybalt kills Mercutio. These deaths have profound effects on the main characters. In Ponyboy's case, the Johnny's death and other events in the novel inspire h...
Post a Comment
Read more