Volar By Judith Ortiz Cofer Summary

The plot of the story “Volar”, is about a twelve year old child that has a love for superheroes. The story is told in first person by the child. For the majority of the story she is telling us about her dream of flying. She and her parents live in a barrio, which as a Spanish-speaking neighborhood in the United States. She and her parents moved to the United States recently from Puerto Rico. Judith Ortiz Cofer, the author, uses symbolism, setting, and imagery to show the lifestyle of living the American Dream. Cofer creates symbolism through the little girl’s point of view towards her dreams and with her mother at the end of the story. Her dream was about wanting to fly, “So I would stay in my bed recalling my dreams of flight, perhaps planning my next flight” (Cofer 197). The flying in her dreams resembles her urge to wanting to be free and live the American Dream. While the daughter is asleep, the mother and father have time together before they wake her. The mother looked out of the window and say, “Ay, si yo pudiera volar?” (Cofer 198). In

For example, “The view was of a dismal alley that was littered with refuse thrown from windows. The place was too narrow for anyone larger than a skinny child to enter safely, so it was never cleaned” (Cofer 198). By using these few sentences, Cofer provides the information for the reader to understand the living situation. After the little girl wakes up she begins to describe her tiny bedroom and the tiny apartment. For instance, “In the mornings I’d wake up in my tiny bedroom with the incongruous—at least in our tiny apartment—white “princess” furniture my mother had chosen for me, and find myself back in my body: my tight curls still clinging to my head, skinny arms and legs unchanged” (Cofer 197). This also shows that the family lives in a small apartment with small