Bold and brash? More like "this is a blog about boy and girl stereotypes at a lunch table"

Boy’s Lunch Table

          As lunch began people readily split off into their already predetermined groups. For the most part it was guys with guys and girls with girls. I sat down at my usual table of all guys. The over saturated air of testosterone prevented any of us from sitting too close to one another. A minimum distance of one foot of empty space between each of us was required. Our man spreads had to be perfectly executed in order to achieve maximum comfort. While lunch will always be seen as the time to eat all of our favorite food (soup), it was also a time for relaxation. Memes flying from one guy to the next at a time with boisterous laughter and chatter. Any outsiders looking in on us would think we must have been escaped mental patients from the neighboring facility. No lunch would be complete without someone spitting the ultimate RIP at the perfect moment and directed at the perfect target. This RIP had to be crafted with the utmost care and precision for maximum effect. However, you never really had to worry about if it were funny or not because you could always just cover up an awkward silence with yet another meme.
          However, if it were a particularly boring day we might have had actual cohesive conversations. They were usually straightforward and contained little to no emotional depth. After all, feeling emotion is for the weak. Questions like “What are you doing after school?” would fill the air. Not that we would honestly care, because again emotions, but it would be used just to fill the gap of silence until someone was able to say something funny or bring us more soup. Once again memes were there to save the day. Anyone would didn’t want to participate in any of the main conversations would be quite content with just sitting there on their phone playing games and listening to the humorous background.

Eating lunch with the guys is the way to live.

Girl’s Lunch Table

          As lunch began people readily split off into their already predetermined groups. For the most part it was guys with guys and girls with girls. I sat down at my usual table of all girls. We sat as close to each other as humanly possibly. We would converse almost entirely quiet and secretive. If we didn’t allow you at our table then you had no business knowing what was going on. We drew ourselves near, closed and restricted and began our usual daily chatter of drama. Our phone screens would never go dark as even though we were engaged in conversation, we also had to be connected to our social medias. I don’t think for one second we could be detached from the online word. Our conversations never consisted of anything academic related, because that stuff is for the guys to deal with. Us girls with coast through life on looks and marrying someone rich. So naturally, we talked about boys and all the drama that came with them. However, no girl was free from our conversations either. Especially the bitches that sit across the cafeteria from us.
          However, if it were a particularly boring day we might have just sat on our phones with no chatter whatsoever. The girls around me respect that fact that sometimes I don’t want to talk to them and I respect their decision when they don’t want to talk to me. We’re just so close to each other. Like super besties. I don't know what I would do without lunch and being able to sit with my friends. With lunch almost over, we would realize that we hadn't started our lunch and would to simply just go without because if anyone saw us eating besides each other it would be a disaster for my social life.

Eating lunch with my girls is the way to live.

The Myth of Latin Women

     Judith Ortiz Cofer is able to create the passionate piece of literature, “The Myth of Latin Women: I Just Met a Girl Named Maria”, in a way that seems like a one-on-one conversation with an audience member yet also a broad perspective piece on ethnic relations meant for a wider viewing. Cofer’s subject varies throughout her writing, as she shares multiple stories from her life. However, the most important one seems to be the first mentioned: the man singing to her on the bus. This story opens up her essay and gives the audience an introduction to the issue she will address. Cofer’s purpose for writing this short story seems to be quite simple: she wants to address the way people perceive certain races and ethnic backgrounds.
     Now then, how does she achieve this in the unique way I described earlier? Well, Cofer utilizes a very calm tone throughout her work. She never seems to get too emotional or frustrated with what she’s writing. Her sentences are meticulous and thoughtful, full of strength and drive not emotion and sentiment. One sentence really stuck out in my mind when reading her piece, “I resented the stereotype my Hispanic appearance called forth from many people I met”. The key word in this sentence is “resented”. It’s tense in this case is past. In fact, her whole essay is written in past tense. Her use of this tense on words, such as resented, shows her evolution from resenting the stereotype, to now how she resented the stereotype. Cofer no longer resents people perceiving her ethnicity in a certain way; she now accepts it but has decided to commit her life trying to changing it. The use of past tense in this essay shows her acceptance of life’s misfortune but she never says that she is content with how others perceive her. This precise choice of word tense allows for the tone to continue its soft and calm delivery.
     Cofer’s ability to concede to other’s points of view and then rebuttal is done beautifully in her story of her date at her first formal dance. She explains how this boy expected so much of her, mirroring her mother and other mature female figures in her life. Cofer accepts the fact that her background and surroundings can and do change the way others perceive her. She forgives people in the sense that they simply don’t understand her culture and background. The clash of customs between Latin America and the “White World” is too large for first generation immigrants to assimilate into. Cofer uses arguments for and against her points in such a way that isn’t combative, but elegant. Throughout the work you never really think she has any aversion towards anyone who may perceive her differently because of her ethnicity. She learns and adapts to further her goal of changing the way others perceive her people. Her goal isn’t to anger or fight people who see her as a Maria, but it is her goal to educate and influence their outlook from here on.
     At one point in her work, Cofer expands her story to more than just how people perceive Latinas. She brings up her thoughts on why so many people see her the way they do. “The myth of the Hispanic menial has been sustained by the same media phenomenon that made ‘Mammy’ from Gone with the Wind America’s idea of the black women for generations…”, Cofer utilizes other false perceptions of races and ethnicities to further strengthen her resolve and show her audience that others that receive similar stereotypic treatment should work together. Even though this is only one sentence in her entire piece, I believe it is extremely important. It gives the audience someone to blame, the media. Cofer needed someone for her audience to point fingers at. If there is no central force then the problem becomes generalized. Her use of combining her struggle with other people’s allows for her sympathizers to grow in her audience and help in her fight.
     Overall, Cofer does an excellent job of delivering a well-written piece of literature. This piece shows a wide range audience just how important it is to fight racial stereotypes. However, Cofer’s subtle and calm tone throughout the piece shows her want for an educational and informal way of change. I believe that Cofer would disapprove of direct confrontation and would much prefer passive remarks to help better change someone’s point of view on her ethnicity.

I Want a Husband

     While I am only a 16-year-old boy, I have certain expectations in life. I imagine one day I will settle down with a family of my own, no matter other's thoughts on this matter. I hope to find love and possibly marry the woman of my dreams. I have dreams and aspirations that need to be fulfilled and I want a wife that will nurture and respect these goals. Without a partner, life is lonely and empty. But what if my wife isn't good enough? What if she can't support me if I lose my job? Or what if I suddenly want to change my career? I would have to go back to school and I would require someone to support me and my family financially. Come to think of it, my concerns for life would all be solved with a husband. 

     With a husband, I wouldn’t need to work. My family could be supported without me even stepping foot in a job center. If I don’t want to work, why should I have to? My husband is there to support me emotionally and fiscally. He would have to work full-time, making a minimum amount for my need (and luxuries). My husband would do this, without any fighting or negotiation. With the kids now old enough to do their own chores and go to school, it’s only fair that my husband does all the work while I get to stay home and relax. He would make at least a 6-digit salary to support my needs (and wants). If he can’t afford to pay for my car, phone, yoga lessons, magazine subscriptions, and anything else I see at the store, is he really a man? He'll probably have to work a blue collar job. Getting dirty so I don't have to. Why would I have to do it, when my husband can do it for me. 

     I need a rock in my life. A person who can keep me emotionally stable. Whenever I have a fight with one of my friends, my husband needs to be there when I need a shoulder to cry on, even if he's already worked a 10-hour shift. However, above all else, he should always be trying to make me happier. It's only right for a husband to continuously try to make the world a better place for his partner and family. And whenever we argue about something he should always be wrong and I should always be right. It’s only the natural order of relationships. My husband also needs to be fit. Nobody likes a slacker. If he can’t find time to work for his family and stay healthy, that’s his problem. 

     If my husband can’t fulfill these requirements then I’ll simply replace him with someone better. A husband is always replaceable and he should never get mad whenever I remind him of that. A husband sounds pretty good. I think everyone should have one. A person whose whole life is revolved around making you happy. With a husband, you’d never ever have to worry about work or a job, or even supporting yourself financially. They’ll always be a man out there ready to pay for my next meal. I would love to have a husband.

I Want a Wife

I Want a Wife, written by Judy Brady, is an perceptive piece written in order to bring a large problem down to a comical level. With her use of hyperbole, she is able to paint a picture of what a man is looking for in a wife, largely from a feminist point of view. Brady exaggerates the extents of which a man requires certain things from his wife. Speaking only of the most extreme of circumstances and never allowing time for the inclusion of a concession. The author, however, seems to realize this and plays out the work in a mostly humorous, however introspective, way of writing. I Want a Wife utilizes the many stereotypes placed on wives throughout time. The wife needs to clean for the husband, the wife needs to cook for the husband, the wife needs to take care of the kids for the husband, everything the wife does is because of the husband. The wife never seems to do anything because she may want to. This gives the audience the impression that a man only wants a wife that will do things for him, never for herself.
Brady also understates how much men appreciate their wives. She explains how men just expect certain things and aren’t grateful for how much wives work. The author seems to think that men are only looking for some twisted form of slavery when finding love and eventually a wife.
The argument presented in the essay is somewhat weak when looking at it with a “critical eye”. Brady loses her argument’s strength when she neglects to include either logos or significant ethos. Logos is nowhere to be found in the essay which weakens from an analytical standpoint, but for this type of argument, the omission of statistics or facts can be overlooked. However, the argument clearly lacks in ethos. If the essay was written from the point of view of how the wife feels or what the wife wants then there would be a significant amount of ethos. However, Brady’s work is written from the point of view external of the wife. It can be assumed that this essay is being written by Brady under the assumption that this is what a man looks for in a wife. Seeing as Brady is not literally looking for a wife, she has little ethos to speak from. Brady’s entire argument is based in pathos. She relies on her audience feeling empathy towards these “slave women” that work day after day for their terrible husbands that don’t appreciate them.
As this was written in 1971, there has been monumental change in gender roles from then to now. However, issues do still remain but mostly not with the family unit. Gender roles in family units have all but been shattered in recent years. Women are working and living their dreams, rather than their husband’s, more than ever. The notion of comparing today’s society to one back in 1971 is insane, to say the least. More things have changed in society than people could have ever imagined back then. While the issue is still relevant, it is not relatable to Brady’s work.