- Doris says that Yolanda has "problems that make her act crazy." Does Yolanda have any positive qualities?
- What are the negative outcomes of Doris's decision to run away from trouble?
- Yolanda mentions a song that is about being lonely, even in a crowd of people. Do you think it is possible to be lonely when people are around? Explain.
Sunday, May 17, 2009
The One Who Watches by Judith Ortiz Cofer
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First comment again!!
ReplyDeleteAre Yolanda and Doris poor? Like, are they orphans?
i dont think they are poor jack, maybe they just dont have alot of money. hahah.
ReplyDeletewhy do tolanda and doris have enough problems with the cops?
ReplyDeleteI think it's funny that Doris is just following Yolanda around. I think she should be more independent.
ReplyDeletei think yolanda uses to much slang and she has really poor gramer
ReplyDeleteJack-Yolanda and Doris do not have a lot of money so yes they are poor but they are not orphans.
ReplyDeleteSara- Why would you laugh "hahaha" after typing that the two characters are poor? That's not really funny:(
grammer*
ReplyDeleteYolanda sounds like a very cocky-confidant person, and Mira sounds very shy and scared of Yolanda. I dont think their friendship will last.
ReplyDeletethis lady that works at the fancy store sounds like a real jerk. :x The girls should've acted like they didn't speak english. ;) haha.
ReplyDeleteI didn't really like this story. It kind of made sense, but i don't really get the idea.
ReplyDeleteTyler- They have problems with the cops because Yolanda likes to go into the expensive stores and try stuff on. They usually get kicked out. Also, Yolanda steals stuff.
Correction Tylar, it's Yolanda not Tolanda, just simply pointing out an error and you do bring a good question it's probably because of that they don't have any money when walking in and Yolanda thinks that she can "borrow" the dress, heels, etc.
ReplyDeleteSORRY MS WHITNEY, I put haha, because i said they "were't poor, they just dont have any money." which is like the same thing :P
ReplyDeleteand i agree with Garret, this story didnt really have a meaning to it. i think.
"MIRA!" What does that mean!? I'm so confused. :p I thought it was the girls name, but her name's Doris. ;p
ReplyDeleteMira means 'look' in Spanish
DeleteI know it said Mira or Doris or whatever her name was parents werent around because they played music at a bar(i think it was a bar)but where were Yolanda's parents?
ReplyDeleteweren't*
ReplyDeleteTiffany, Mira is spanish for "Look!"
ReplyDeleteTiffany, "Mira" means "Look" in Spanish.
ReplyDeleteThere is definitely a lesson or moral in the story. If you haven't figured it out yet you should think it over. There is always a purpose to stories. Keep searching you will find it.:)
ReplyDeleteThank you for agreeing with me Sara.
ReplyDeleteI thought the story was interesting. Yolanda seems like a fun person to hang out with for a while, But after some time her stunts would get old. I think that Doris needs to find a different friend, but first find herself, because she seems a little lost. I think Yolanda just needs to grow up. She can still have fun, but in ways that aren't stupid. :p
ReplyDeleteDoes Doris have other friends...?
ReplyDeleteprobably not
DeleteTiffany- Maybe Yolanda's parents weren't around as much as Doris's parents which is why Yolanda was constantly getting herself into trouble?
ReplyDeleteHaha, a band called Caliente? That's kinda lame, I mean, how many bands out there do you know that are named "HOT!"
ReplyDeleteThank you Isaac. :)
ReplyDeleteMs. Whitney-
ReplyDeleteI get the lesson its just the story doesnt really make sense to me.
maybe the lesson to this story is to not give into peer pressure?
ReplyDeleteisaac, you should start a band called "COLD!"
ReplyDelete;)
*yolanda*
ReplyDeleteMs. Whitney, what is a "Super" of a bulding? Is it like a landlord?
ReplyDeleteYes! Sara you've got it:) It's about finding your own independence.
ReplyDeleteWHAT HAPPENED TO YOLANDA?!?!?!?! I HATE CLIFF HANGERS?!?!?! WHY WHY WHY WHY. The story was boring, I think, it couldn't keep my attention. Yolanda is crazy, why would you steal a purse from an expensive store in NEW YORK CITY when theres bound to be dozens of cameras and security guards.
ReplyDeleteAnd Haha Sara. (: "WE ARE COLD, THANK YOU!" Then someone would throw a jacket upon stage and say, "NOW YOUR WARM!"
ReplyDeleteThis story is kind of boring compared to Jared and Dear Marsha, (so far.)
hahaha WOOOO! I FINALLY GOT IT =)
ReplyDeleteDoris kind of just follows Yolanda around, you'd think that'd get boring after awhile?
ReplyDeleteI mean, why is Doris hanging out with Yolanda in the first place? Does she not have many friends or what?
I'm confused. o.O
But in the end you can tell that she made the right choice in running away or she might have ended up getting in alot of trouble, when she really didn't do anything.
But I guess that's what happens when you don't choose good friends.
Overall, I liked the story. :)
I agree with you lesson suggestion Sara, that was one of my lesson ideas too
ReplyDeleteI think that Yoland is inconsiderate and doesnt care what other people think. She shouldve thought first before stealing that purse. Doris on the other hand is shy and wants nothing to do with trouble. That lady in that store was a jerk>=Q haha
ReplyDeletehaha! isaac! that be super funny. :) I'd be the one throwing the jacket on stage.
ReplyDeleteand yeah, i agree with you Isaac, this story is not as exciting as the other ones, Marsha had a weird ending, and Jared was a sweet and loveable story :)
this one is just blahh.
I think Yolanda might act out so much because she misses her father, and if i were Doris, I'd ditch Yolanda if all she wants to do is get into trouble. :p
ReplyDeleteI meant Yolanda.
ReplyDeleteI really liked this story i think that doris should try to talk to yolanda about her problems. I also think that even though yolonda has problems she can still be a good person if she works through them. I wish the story ending would have told what happened to Yolonda.
ReplyDeleteI agree with brittany i think yolonda could have fun in a more mature way and doris should find a better influence to hang out with.
right
DeleteJack brings up a good point. What could drive a person to want to try and steal an expensive purse from a store with tons of cameras and a crowd of people? If she knows she is probably going to get caught...why do it? Any guesses?
ReplyDeleteThis story was okay. It most definately was not my favorite. But i thought it was interesting. I personally didn't like Yolanda, she was trouble. Tiffany i didn't know what mira meant either. I think the moral of the story is that being kind of dnagerous can be fun until there are going to be consquences.I think Doris needs to get a better friend,and stop skipping school.
ReplyDeleteSara,
ReplyDeleteI know right? All this spanish is getting annoying also! It's like, the author is totally American, and he's randomly placing Spanish words into the story.
Well that's her job Skylar, to make sure that nothing is interrupted during the fashion show...I think.
ReplyDeleteI loved this story, it had a really good meaning, this is what i learned from this story, life is too short to fallow people around, be yourself and a strong being make your own decisions and choose your own actions wisely,when you know something is wrong dont do it. And tell those people how you feel and if they dont listen, they dont care.
ReplyDeleteI really want to know what happened to Yolanda but i suspect that she probably just got arrested or kicked out yet AGAIN! She doesnt matter as much what matters is that Mira found the right path to get on and is not fallowing yolandas bad ways anymore!
I really wanted to find out what happend to Yolanda.
ReplyDeletemaybe stealing things is her, thats how she believes in her self or something crazy jazz like that. The only reasons she'd kee doing it for no reason would be to make her happy.?
ReplyDeletek
Deletesomw crazy jazz**
ReplyDeleteAHH some*
ReplyDeleteMs Whitney- she probably steals it because a combination of she has stolen tons of things before and she's not that smart... thats my guess
ReplyDeleteMs. Whitney- maybe she get's like a rush of excitement when she gets away with it?
ReplyDeleteThat's my guess. :/
I think that the stroy had no meaning but it's not Yolanda's fault that she has no money and a good education. I agree with Miss Whitney and maybe it wasn't that her parents weren't there it's that her parents just don't care what happens to her.
ReplyDeleteZach i think shes just being a jerk..>=o
ReplyDeleteMs. Whitney, my guess is that she thinks that she is popular or she may want to model for the cameras
ReplyDeleteI think Yolanda steals because her father was killed in a robbery. She wants to take after him... or was her father not in the robbery, and was a victim who was randomly shot?
ReplyDeleteIsaac- i dont like the randomly placed spanish sayings either, thats weird?:p do spanish people talk like that?
ReplyDeleteI think people steal for many various reasons, they dont have money and they need things, they are stupid and want to be cool and show off by saying look here i stole these arent they cool? Or they just simply do it for the adrenaline rush they get. knowing that they could get in trouble but they could get away with it and it makes them feel bad. Yah know what i mean?
ReplyDeleteMs Whitney- Why do you think Yolanda steals?
ReplyDeleteThis story confuses me. :p I think the ending is just dumb.
ReplyDeleteI hope Yolanda eventualy grows up a little. It'd be nice if her and Doris could be friends again. They seem to get along well together, except the whole thing about Yolanda and her stealing problem. :x
ReplyDeleteThis story was a cliffhanger! But it wasn't that bad because I didn't enjoy this story as much as the last couple, it kinda lost my attention..
ReplyDeleteI think Doris has learned she needs to pick a better friend next time.
I think that even though Yolanda isn't the richest person she still shouldn't steal stuff. I can see why she would want to but just because she doesn't have what other people do doesn't make her any less cool. And she shouldn't want to grow up to fast being a kid is fun.
ReplyDeleteI completely agree with Lauren. Maybe she just wanted to do it because she thought if she had nice stuff more people would like her.?
ReplyDeleteIdk. :/
Any other ideas?
Mark- why do you think thgis story has no meaning? I got alot out of it so im just curious how one person can learn from something and another person gets nothing out of it???
ReplyDeleteWouldn't it be hard to give up a friend like that? Doris really seems like she loves her though...
ReplyDeletetotally agreed;p
ReplyDeleteMS. WHITNEY- I think she does it for the attention. I think that since maybe her parents arent around that often she feels that need to get attention other ways, such as stealing.
ReplyDeleteDAELYN- I disagree. I liked Yolanda. I think she's like every other immature, attention seeking junior higher here in Edison. Just a little wilder. I admire her for the risks that she takes. She isn't afraid and i think that she's really independent because of that. Although i do think that she can still be a crazy, wild, independent girl without doing stupid stunts and definatly without putting other people in danger of getting in trouble with her.
Thanks kayla, at least someone agrees with me!
ReplyDelete:p
I have the same question as Isaac, was his dad killed while he was robbing something or was he the victim. I would guess he was the one stealing
ReplyDeletei agreed with you LAUREN L:P haha
ReplyDeleteWow..you guys had some good guesses. Some of them I didn't even think of. I think that Yolanda is stealing to get attention. She obviously doesn't get a lot of attention at home so she trying to get attention any way she can. I don't think she is really concerned with whether it is positive or negative attention. She just wants to get noticed by somebody.
ReplyDeleteI didn't like the story because like marc said it didn't have a real meaning besides don't follow people that have bad decisions
ReplyDeleteThe rush that Kayla was talking about is probably true becauese when you get away with something it feels good but you will later have to suffer the conciquences.
ReplyDeleteBrittany- i disagree with you, because i dont think yolanda steals to get attention, most people assume that because they have never been in a situation like that, not saying anything bad twords you. But its more than that, if they just wanted attention they could do something where more people noticed because not many people know others steal unless they go arounf gloating about it.
ReplyDeleteOoh, great point brought up. :o
ReplyDeleteWhat did her Dad die from, maybe that's where Yolanda gets her stealing problem from?
Brittany, you sound so smart on these blog things:)
ReplyDeleteThanks Sara (:
ReplyDeleteI try. ;D
Something I don't get about this story is Doris(think thats how you spell it lol) if she knows that Yolanda is a bad infulance then why does she hand around with her?
ReplyDeleteI like this story because it makes you think what happen to Yolanda?Aand why would she steal so much? The story could have had some more fun stuff in it though.
ReplyDeleteOkay since most of you think she does it for attention, why is that? How do you know? What makes you think that??? proof??? lol
ReplyDeleteYolanda and Doris are two totally different people! how did they even meet and become friends? they are total opposites! I think its good to be different people but i mean their personalities are oppposites! and i would probably be more like yolanda than doris because i dont follow people i do my own thing but i am still not crazy like Yolanda.
ReplyDeleteI think that Yolanda steals just to try and get her way and to try to impress doris or the other kids at school
ReplyDeleteLauren- why do you think she doesn't do it for attention?
ReplyDeleteBrittany- Like I said being dangerous and taking risks can be fun until there are serious consequences. I don't admire her for that. But i agree with the fact of not putting other people in danger.
ReplyDeleteLauren- I agree with you.
I don't feel Yolanda is immature.?
ReplyDeleteI think she's just confused on life and what she should do.
Obviously, she wasn't brought up in very good childhood. So, maybe she has some internal problems with family and such.?
Also, I have a feeling that the death of her Dad had a bigger impact on her life then she says it did.
To give Yolanda a break the lady at the model thing was kinda mean and yeah Yolanda needs to find a friend that enjoys stealing too
ReplyDeleteBesides from the fact it was a cliff hanger
ReplyDelete<(-,-)> I thought it was a really good story but I agree with Sara it does make you think what happens to Yolanda but it was still a very good story to pass the time reading <(^,^)>
Mandy- Because, i have experience with this issue and i know how it is to steal or be around people who steal. They dont act all OMG I JUST STOLE!!! they do it because they want the item they are stealing, doing something for attention and doing something because you want something are 2 tottaly different things. I just dont see how people can judge like that and not have ever been in that situation.
ReplyDeleteBrittany- Maybe because she desn't have many friends and because Yolanda gets into a lot of trouble not many people want to hangout with her.
ReplyDeleteSo maybe Doris just wanted a friend and Yolanda was there.?
Well, that's my guess. :)
Okay, I finished the story. I was NOT impressed with the choice, because it was extremely boring. I just can't relate to this story, AT ALL, and I guess I like stories I can relate too?
ReplyDeleteThe story also reminds me of something I've read before, but I cannot think of what it was. Maybe it was a movie? The whole, Puerto Rican thing reminds me of Jennifer Lopez for some reason, because she is Puerto Rican.
I can't think of what movie it was... it had Jennifer Lopez in it... and she was a maid in New York. It reminds me of that, even though Jennifer Lopez's character didn't steal anything.
MARISSA,
Her father died in a robbery. What is unknow about the robbery, is if he was a robber, or victim.
MARC,
Your bring upo a great point, as the same with Kayla. When you get an adrenaline rush, you just feel so good. Sometimes when I listen to music, I just get so into it, I have a miniature mosh-pit with myself. It is amazing what such a thing could do.
I think that yolanda is stealing because mabye her dad abused her or told her that steating was ok. Or mabye she dose it because it makes her think shes cool when she dose it.
ReplyDeleteI don't understand why Doris follows Yolanda around when she knows that she will end up getting in trouble for everything they do.
ReplyDeleteIsaac- the "Super" is the landlord:)
ReplyDeleteEveryone is putting my they think Yolanda steals, so I will too.
ReplyDeleteHonestly, I think she steals because of her lack of money. She cannot dress nicely. Another reason why I think she steals, previously mentioned, is because her Father died in a robbery, whether or not he was the robber.
Thank you for clarifying Ms. Whitney
ReplyDeleteI didn't really like this story. There wasn't much of a point and it didn't really make sense to me. :P
ReplyDeleteI pretty much agree with Mark T. but i doubt her dad abused her and maybe she saw her dad stealing so she maybe thought it was okay.
ReplyDeleteIsaac you make a good point.
ReplyDeleteDAELYN- Well duh :p I dont admire her for stealing! Just for taking risks.
ReplyDeleteLAUREN- I think that some people would do stunts that big for attention. You don't have to have proof that she did do it for attention. It's just a guess. But I think that even if she did do it for a different reason, attention was apart of it. I also don't think that she wanted attention from EVERYONE. Just the people she was there with, because she thinks it makes her seem dangerous, and cool? or something like that. I just don't agree with you that she didn't do it for attention at all.
But I think that her Dad is a big reason for why she steals things, I mean he was involved in robberies. That had to have some kind of imapct on her.
ReplyDeleteIsaac: I think we've all seen that side of you. xD
Thank you Mark.
ReplyDeleteKayla, what do you mean by
ReplyDelete"we've all seen that side of you."
So i like Doris' decision! She shouldn't kepp following Yolanda around because she will end up in trouble and she can find who she really is! This was a great story and i didn't even expect the end to be the way it was. Also, this story is knd of random it starts so weird and it goes into how they snuck ition a fashion show!? What the pickles? It's so random!
ReplyDeleteYa kayla we have all seen that side of Isaac!!!
ReplyDelete:)
Okay, i dont understand why people are saying she would steal because she was abused by her father. For one her dad died in the story, it never said he beat her or did anything abusive to her. So in that case you are adding onto the story and thats not always bad but try to look at the facts.
ReplyDeleteLauren,
ReplyDeleteI don't think people are trying to judge Yolanda and her actions. They are doing the same thing you are doing. They are making a prediction based on their own personal experience with someone of Yolanda's nature. Because everyone in the class has had different experiences in their life they are of course going to have different interpretations as to why Yolanda chose to stole. Nobody is wrong. The story doesn't state the answer so we can only make our best guess. That is what everyone is doing:)You all bring up good points. Once again I am impressed:)
This comment has been removed by the author.
DeleteHello, Ms. Whitney. I do not know you and you do not know; however, I am a high school student from Puerto Rico who has read "An Island Like You" (the book in which "The One Who Watches" was published) by Judith Ortiz Cofer. I feel as if I should contribute to this interesting, albeit "somewhat" old, conversation.
DeleteOn the topic of Yolanda and the reasons behind her actions: While it is clear that she desires the attention, it is also my belief that her motivations for stealing go much deeper than that. In the story, her father and his death are mentioned. This was not done carelessly. If one goes to the story "Don José of La Mancha" (also found in "An Island Like You), in which the narrator is Yolanda, it can be discovered that her father worked as a security guard for a store and that, after his death (caused by a bullet wound after a robbery in the store), the store refused to pay the insurance. They did not even say sorry. Obviously, this incident caused Yolanda to amass great resentment towards stores in general. As a result, and as away to vent her anger, she steals from stores in order to "avenge" her father.
i'm confused about that side of isaac?
ReplyDeleteI think me and doris are very similar we've both had issues with are friends but i've worked through mine so maybe her and yolonda will work through their issues.
ReplyDeletewell i personally thought this story was bad it did not interest me at all
ReplyDeleteI thought this story was okay but I think Doris should have made the choice that she made a loooong time ago.
ReplyDeletei liked this story but i agree with renee that she should have done that a long time ago...but im sure it was hard to just walk away from your best friend at a time like that.
ReplyDeletei dont get the ending..did yolanda get caught for stealing? because doris heard sirens when she was leaving.
ReplyDeleteI think this story was ok, but Doris and Yolanda don't seem like the best of friends they seem to different.
ReplyDeleteI don't think Yolanda follows Doris to get her in trouble but I think she manages to get her in trouble wether shes trying or not. Also like Tiffany kinda said, i would ditch her if she was always getting me in trouble. She didnt seem like too good of a friend.
ReplyDeleteBlake S.
This story was pretty boring anad lost me in several spots. It was a good plot but just not one I enjoyed :l
ReplyDeletei dont et the end of the story...did Yolanda get caught??
ReplyDeleteYoooooooo
ReplyDeleteThis is so preppy
ReplyDelete