Part of life involves overcoming obstacles. The Myth of the Latin Woman:I Just Met a Girl by Judith Ortiz Cofer and On being a Cripple by Nancy Mairs are both focused on overcoming obstacles, and while both essays express tenacity and love for books; they are also very different in the type of obstacle they face and the culture that surrounds them. .
Having an obstacle in life it's hard. Both characters show a great way to handle situations in which their hardship can bring them down. On "The Myth of the Latin Woman: I Just Met a Girl ", the author describes how the character reacts when being offended by someone because of her condition. "My friend complimented me on my cool handling of the situation " (Ortiz Cofer 95). Instead, of reacting with angered and outrage, the character decides to react gently. She decides to do the same when she is approached in London by a man who related her to Maria from West Side Story. "I managed my version of an English smile: no show of teeth, no extreme, contortions of the facial muscle-I was at this time of my life practicing reserve and cool " (Ortiz Cofer 91). The decision of facing these kinds of situations smoothly proves the power of self-control. In the same way, "On Being a Cripple ", shows how she fights her condition, and does not give up. "I tend to ignore my fatigue until my body breaks down in some way and forces to rest " (Mairs 247). Fighting such a exhausting condition can be arduous. However, she wants to fight it. Mairs says: "I lead, on the whole, an ordinary life, probably rather like the one I would have led had I not had MS. " (Mairs 247). Both essays reveal how each woman do not let hardships defeat them.
Education plays an important role in the life of the authors. Both authors use this resource to defeat their condition. On "The Myth of the Latin Woman:I Just Met a Girl ", the author relies on education to handle several situations.