Mary Kelley
ENC 1002
Dr. V. Hunt
21 Apr. 2017
Growing Up in a Military Family
“The Changeling”
By: Judith Ortiz Cofer
As a young girl
Vying for my father’s attention,
I invented a game that made him look up
From his reading and shake his head
As if both baffled and amused.
In my brothers closet, id change
Into his dungarees—the rough material
Molding me into boy shape; hide
My long hair under an army helmet
He’d been given by father, and emerge
Transformed into the legendary Che
Of grown-up talk.
Strutting around the room,
I’d tell of life in the mountains,
Of carnage and rivers of blood,
And of manly feasts with rum and music
To celebrate victories para la libertad.
He would listen with a smile
To my tales of battles and brotherhood
Until …show more content…
The poem is written in free verse and does not contain any rhyming verses. During this poem she also uses phrases that stand alone. When these phrases standalone like she made them it gives them an even greater significance. If Judith Cofer would have not done this these phrases would have blended into he rest of the poem, and we would not have noticed there significance to the tone and meaning the author was trying to display. For example, in the poem there were two lines that stood alone and they stated, “She was not amused” and, “… as myself.” These gave the tone that the little girl was sad and disappointed her mother didn’t agree with her dressing as a man. Judith Cofer also demonstrated a short allusion during this poem as well. She described the life in the military when the little girl was marching around in her brother’s clothes. She gave us examples of the war by saying, “… I’d tell of life in the mountains, of carnage and rivers of blood, and of many feats with rum and music to celebrate victories…” (Cofer pg. 906) Judith Cofer did a very good job of letting us really understand this poem by all of the different poetic techniques that she …show more content…
Another point that Doyle pointed out in this article was how most of all of Cofer’s poems all include something about her life and family in Puerto Rico. Many Critics look up to Cofer’s poems and work that she has created. For example, in the article by Doyle it talked about how Virginia Woolf took many tips from her and admired Cofer’s poetry. When reading different articles written by multiple critics it is easy to say that Judith Ortiz Cofer was a well looked up to poet by many
ENC 1002
Dr. V. Hunt
21 Apr. 2017
Growing Up in a Military Family
“The Changeling”
By: Judith Ortiz Cofer
As a young girl
Vying for my father’s attention,
I invented a game that made him look up
From his reading and shake his head
As if both baffled and amused.
In my brothers closet, id change
Into his dungarees—the rough material
Molding me into boy shape; hide
My long hair under an army helmet
He’d been given by father, and emerge
Transformed into the legendary Che
Of grown-up talk.
Strutting around the room,
I’d tell of life in the mountains,
Of carnage and rivers of blood,
And of manly feasts with rum and music
To celebrate victories para la libertad.
He would listen with a smile
To my tales of battles and brotherhood
Until …show more content…
The poem is written in free verse and does not contain any rhyming verses. During this poem she also uses phrases that stand alone. When these phrases standalone like she made them it gives them an even greater significance. If Judith Cofer would have not done this these phrases would have blended into he rest of the poem, and we would not have noticed there significance to the tone and meaning the author was trying to display. For example, in the poem there were two lines that stood alone and they stated, “She was not amused” and, “… as myself.” These gave the tone that the little girl was sad and disappointed her mother didn’t agree with her dressing as a man. Judith Cofer also demonstrated a short allusion during this poem as well. She described the life in the military when the little girl was marching around in her brother’s clothes. She gave us examples of the war by saying, “… I’d tell of life in the mountains, of carnage and rivers of blood, and of many feats with rum and music to celebrate victories…” (Cofer pg. 906) Judith Cofer did a very good job of letting us really understand this poem by all of the different poetic techniques that she …show more content…
Another point that Doyle pointed out in this article was how most of all of Cofer’s poems all include something about her life and family in Puerto Rico. Many Critics look up to Cofer’s poems and work that she has created. For example, in the article by Doyle it talked about how Virginia Woolf took many tips from her and admired Cofer’s poetry. When reading different articles written by multiple critics it is easy to say that Judith Ortiz Cofer was a well looked up to poet by many