Response to Essays

The three essays we read, "Ali in Havana," "The Stunt Pilot," and "Silent Dancer," represent cohesive essays and not just short stories. These pieces provide more than plot accounts of an event, but also incorporate the narrator's, or the author's, feelings towards and analysis of what is happening in the story. For example, Judith Ortiz in her story "Silent Dancer" describes her father's uncle's face and portrays it as a symbol of the family, "I realize that in his features I can see my whole family. If you were to stretch that rubbery flesh, you could find my father's face and deep within that face- mine." The narrator of a short story, would have only described his face relative to physical features; whereas, in this essay, the narrator provides her own perspective on the significance of his face. An essay uses details and facts to lend greater meaning to an event and allows the narrator or author to influence the reader of this meaning. Both short stories and essays have clear start and endpoints: an event starts and ends within the confines of the piece. However, short stories authorize readers to interpret the story any way he or she wishes; whereas, essays have already analyzed the event or components of the event and allow the reader to simply understand the interpretations.