In “The Myth of the Latin Woman,” authored by Judith Ortiz, she describes the life of a Latin Woman, and the hardship that is created through the cultural misinterpretation as well as misrepresentation, from the way Latinas dress, to the way they walk or talk. Frequently throughout her essay, Ortiz recounts occurrences in her life where these cultural differences were prevalent. She also illustrates the environment she was subjected to as she grew up, “We spoke Spanish, we ate Puerto Rican food bought at the bodega, and we practiced strict Catholicism…” (877). In addition, she depicts her home, where her “...family lived in a large urban center in New Jersey during the sixties, where life was designed as a microcosm of [her] parents’ casas on the island” (877).
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As it is known, human beings shape perceptions of others, in her case, Americans stereotype the Latin women as, “...the ‘Hot Tamale’ or sexual firebrand” (878), as well as “... domestics, waitressing, and [performing] factory jobs…” (880). Then going on to give examples of the commonality of these and why they have become stereotypes. On one hand, being that these jobs “are all that’s available to women with little English and few skills” (880), Ortiz, fist hand, has dealt with individuals who have mistaken her as being a ‘domestic.” In the latter half of her essay she refers back to an incident that commanded a presence in her memory, where a woman “...ordered a cup of coffee from [her], assuming that [she] was the waitress” (881). She acknowledges that she is “...one of the lucky ones” (881), that “...books and art have saved [her] from the harsher forms of ethnic and racial prejudice that many of [her] Hispanic compañeras have had to endure”
As it is known, human beings shape perceptions of others, in her case, Americans stereotype the Latin women as, “...the ‘Hot Tamale’ or sexual firebrand” (878), as well as “... domestics, waitressing, and [performing] factory jobs…” (880). Then going on to give examples of the commonality of these and why they have become stereotypes. On one hand, being that these jobs “are all that’s available to women with little English and few skills” (880), Ortiz, fist hand, has dealt with individuals who have mistaken her as being a ‘domestic.” In the latter half of her essay she refers back to an incident that commanded a presence in her memory, where a woman “...ordered a cup of coffee from [her], assuming that [she] was the waitress” (881). She acknowledges that she is “...one of the lucky ones” (881), that “...books and art have saved [her] from the harsher forms of ethnic and racial prejudice that many of [her] Hispanic compañeras have had to endure”