Analysis of Volar by Judith Ortiz Coffer
Introduction
Volar embodies a story of freedom from the confinements of human life. The author of the nonfiction story narrates of a life imagined in a dream where she was able to live life devoid of the inhibitions brought about by living life as a human being. Throughout the story, various aspects of the language and emotion employed in narrating the story helps the readers steal glances and sneak previews into the author’s desired life. In the analysis of the tone in the story, the paper will highlight the different ways that the personality of the author manifests in the story and how the tone and presence of the writer helps emphasize on her thesis that comparing reality to the life exemplified in her dreams seems like confinement (Forche 34)
The writer of the story paints two worlds where reality is juxtaposed with imagination. In the beginning of the story, the writer paints a very jovial childhood. The choice of words in the storyline helps show the level of enthusiasm with which the writer approached life. The use of words like ‘avid consumer’ when describing her willful passion for comic books, and the financial commitment she showed towards the purchase of the same shows how her pre-teenage years were filled with joy. In contrast, she shows how her life came to live in her dreams. She tells of a dream that illustrates the level of inhibition that her human life dealt her. This is put in contrast with the fulfillment that she enjoyed in the life she led in her dreams.
In expressing the theme of confinement in her human life, the author uses narration. She tells of the inhibitions that she was able to overcome in her dream. Through a narration of the things she could do in her dream, most of which she was not able to do outside her dreams, we get to understand that she felt confined, restrained and denied. In order to emphasize this, the writer chooses her words well. She marries many descriptive words in an attempt to capture an apt description of her emotions. Through the description, we are able to get that the aspects of life that interest the writer. For one, she is protective of her parents. This is evident when she uses her acquired abilities to sabotage the accounting endeavors of the landlord, who she knows her parents are afraid of.
Our anatomy only allows us to see that which is physically apparent; thereby impeding our vision of hidden things. With the amplified visual capabilities of the writer, she could see the things she could not have seen previously. For instance, she could see past the few blocks in the estate they lived in. With the enhanced X-ray vision, she was able to peek into the lives of the people she was interested in. it is at this point that we learn of her encounter with their landlord. Through this, we learn of the fantasies of the writer. For instance, by focusing her Supergirl dreams on the objects of her desires, she was able to glance into the private lives of individuals that fascinated her, like her teachers, neighbors and the boys she liked.
Freedom from confinement is a valued aspect, and one everyone wants to hang on to. This is not any different for the writer as depicted in the story. The writer describes herself as she wakes up in the mornings from the dream to show her discontent. This is apparent in the way she describes her room, physique, and the incongruous furniture in her room, as she puts it. Her discontent is also apparent in the way she asserts the disappointment that she causes her parents when she gets out of bed before time. Her efforts to hold on the imagined life manifests in the way she stays in bed reminiscing about her flight dreams and plotting her next flight. This shows her unyielding attempts to hold on to the exciting life she led in her dream.
In expressing the theme of confinement vis-à-vis the freedom the writer enjoys in her dream, she employs various stylistic devices. The apt allusion of various inanimate things to embody aspects of her life is emphasized using these stylistic devices. They help change the tone throughout the story to exemplify the varied emotions of the writer. The following is an analysis if these stylistic devices and an insight into their relevance into the tonal variation in the story.
The writer in the story uses a meticulous choice of words to express the various themes. The choice of some words gives an aspect of emphasis on certain aspects. This has various implications especially when used in various contexts throughout the story. For instance, in the introductory sentence, the writer uses the phrase ‘avid consumer’ to describe her love for comic books. The use of the two words expresses that the writer is not just a random reader but a passionate reader of comic books. The use of the word incongruous to describe the furniture in her room emphasizes the fact that her mother’s choice of furniture does not conform. This emphasizes her keen eye and refined taste. The writer uses various sensory details in order to convey her message. For instance, the writer says that her hands hardened as steel as she went u the flight of stairs for emphasis.
Diction
Diction is an important marker of quality writing and has an influence on the tone of a piece. The writer in the story explores a wide range of diction ranging from casual or ordinary to formal. In addition, the author uses a preponderance of verbs and adjectives that embody various aspects and intended by the writer. For instance, the use of adjectives that describe her metamorphosis into a Supergirl shows her admiration for the new body. She even uses words that embody dissatisfaction with her own body when she wakes up n finds her flat chest unchanged. The use of Puerto Rican words imbues to her culture thereby bringing in a social context.
Sentence structure
The writer mixes up long and short sentences in her paragraphs. The short paragraphs convey short and simple messages while long sentences convey long and complex messages. This shows her diversity and by extension can be translated to mean her ability to survive in different contexts. Whereas some of the sentences carry direct and simple messages, others convey flowery descriptions of various situations. For instance, when the writer describes her changing body, she uses a flowery language depicting her literary prowess and giving flair to her piece. However, she blends this with concise sentences that carry succinct messages. This offers a change of tone with more emphasis on certain areas (Nord 74)
Figurative language
Throughout the story, the writer’s attempts to express her thesis are very apparent. Towards this end, figurative language has been copiously used throughout the story for comparison. The use of similes stands out throughout the entire story. For instance, the writer compares the height of the stack of comic books in her closet to herself. This shows the many comic books that she owned. She also compares the hardening of her hands during the metamorphosis to steel. She also compares her long, hard and sleek body to a supersonic missile. The use of this attribute applies emphasis on certain attributes.
Conclusion
Tone is a very important aspect of literary work. Without tone, we would not understand the emotions and inclinations of the writer. The use of tone in this story helps the writer express the difference between reality and imagination and the confinement that is evident in real life vis-à-vis the freedom evident in the imagined life.
Works cited
Forche, Carolyn & Gerard, Philip Writing Creative Nonfiction. Cincinnati. Story Press. 2001. Print
Nord, Christiane. Text Analysis in Translation: Theory, Methodology, and Didactic Application of a Model for Translation-Oriented Text Analysis. Amsterdam. 2005. Print.
