After reading "Sonrisas" by Pat Mor

After reading "Sonrisas" by Pat Mora the first time, my understanding was at a 5 or 6. I have done a lot with poetry - reading it, writing it, and analyzing it - so this was not a new experience for me. As I read it the first time, I automatically started thinking about the literary techniques (or lack thereof) that were used in the poem. These included, alliteration, repetition, lack of set rhythm or rhyme, etc. I took notes on these things that I noticed. When I first read it though, I wasn't completely sure what was being compared in the poem, or what doorway the speaker was in between.


However, as I read it slower the 2nd time, much more jumped out at me. I started breaking down each word and it's relation to other words to figure out the meanings behind them. The more I did this, the better my understanding got. I still wasn't sure exactly what the "clicks" from lines 3 and 4 meant, but I had an idea or two of what they could be. But, by the time I was done reading the poem through the 2nd time I felt my understanding was at about an 8.


After reading it the 3rd and final time, I think I have a very valid interpretation of what the poem means. I don't know if I am 100% correct, but that is the beauty of poems - they can be interpreted in many ways and you never really know if you got it right. However, I feel that I have an interpretation that could definitely be correct.


I interpret this poem as one that is comparing Mexican women to American women, possibly American business women specifically, but I don't think so. The first stanza is talking about the American women with their "cups of black coffee" (3-4) and the "click click" (4) of what I am interpreting to be the women walking in their high heels. The speaker is talking about American women in "crisp beige suits" (6-7), which is why I think it might be referring to women in the business world more than average American women. But many women do wear suits, not only business women, so this could still be referring to all American working women in general. Also, it says "tenure" and "curriculum" (5) which makes me think of teachers as well, not business women. The last 2 lines of the first stanza mention the women not smiling, meaning the speaker views American working women as serious women.


The second stanza of this poem turns attention to Mexican women, or "senoras" (10), who are wearing their dresses and stirring their sweet milk coffee. Right there we have two specific comparisons - the women in the first stanza were wearing suits and drank black coffee, whereas the women in the second stanza wore dresses and drank sweet milk coffee. Also, the women being referred to in the 2nd stanza are laughing and smiling (12, 16) when the women in the first are not. Another difference is that the women being referred to in the 2nd stanza seem to be less active than those in the 1st stanza. It seems to me that the speaker in this poem is caught between these 2 worlds of American women and Mexican women, who have completely different lifestyles and ways of doing things. The speaker can't decide which world she likes or belongs in more, and this poem is a way for her to compare the 2 different worlds she is caught between.

Hasil (Bahasa Indonesia) 2:

After reading "Sonrisas" by Pat Mora the first time, my understanding was at a 5 or 6. I have done a lot with poetry - reading it, writing it, and analyzing it - so this was not a new experience for me. As I read it the first time, I automatically started thinking about the literary techniques (or lack thereof) that were used in the poem. Reviews These included, alliteration, repetition, lack of set rhythm or rhyme, etc. I took notes on These Things that I noticed. When I first read it though, I was not completely sure what was being Compared in the poem, the speaker doorway or what was in between. However, as I read it slower the 2nd time, much more Jumped out at me. I started breaking down each word and it's relation to other words to figure out the meanings behind them. The more I did this, the better my understanding gutter. I still was not sure exactly what the "clicks" from lines 3 and 4 meant, but I had an idea or two of what they could be. But, by the time I was done reading the poem through the 2nd time I felt my understanding was at about an 8. After reading it the 3rd and final time, I think I have a very valid interpretation of what the poem means. I do not know if I am 100% correct, but that is the beauty of poems - they can be interpreted in many ways and you never really know if you got it right. However, I feel that I have an interpretation that could definitely be correct. I interpret this poem as one that is Comparing Mexican women to American women, possibly the American business women specifically, but I do not think so. The first stanza is talking about the American women with Reviews their "cups of black coffee" (3-4) and the "click-click" (4) of what I am interpreting to be the women walking in their high heels. The speaker is talking about American women in "crisp beige suits" (6-7), the which is why I think it MIGHT be referring to women in the business world more than average American women. But many women do wear suits, not only business women, so this could still be referring to all American working women in general. Also, it says "tenure" and "curriculum" (5) the which makes me think of teachers as well, not business women. The last two lines of the first stanza mention the women not smiling, meaning the speaker views the American working women as serious women. The second stanza of this poem turns attention to Mexican women, or "senoras" (10), who are wearing Reviews their dresses Reviews their stirring sweet milk and coffee. Right there we have two specific comparisons - the women in the first stanza were wearing suits and drank black coffee, whereas the women in the second stanza Wore dresses and drank sweet milk coffee. Also, the women being Referred to in the 2nd stanza are laughing and smiling (12, 16) when the women in the first are not. Another difference is that the women being Referred to in the 2nd stanza seem to be less active than Reviews those in the 1st stanza. It seems to me that the speaker in this poem is caught between These 2 worlds of American women and Mexican women, who have completely different lifestyles and ways of doing things. The speaker can not Decide the which world she likes or belongs in more, and this poem is a way for her to compare the two different worlds she is caught between.