Compare and Contrast Essay “The Quinceanera Text” and “Ovatniah” are two very similar and very different fictional stories. Although there are a lot of differences between the two, both stories are equally wonderful to curl up with and read. In the story “Ovatniah,” Marie spends the summer in a place that is very different from her home. Being where she is, Marie goes through some changes within her life, and Marie has to make a tough decision, and in the story “The Quinceanera Text” Ana wants a cell phone for her Quinceanera present.
But what she receives could not be any arther from being a cell phone, throughout the story Ana comes to terms with how great a gift this is (even if it is not a phone). “The Quinceanera Text” and “Ovatniah” have many similarities and differences, like how the setting affects the resolution, or the symbolism and what it represents. In the stories “The Quinceanera Text” and “Ovatniah” they both have important symbolism and that symbolism represents how Marie, and how Ana are growing up. In “The Quinceanera Text” Ana wants a cell phone for a present.
When she opens her gifts, there is nail polish, lip gloss, and earrings, but no phone! She was most anticipating her Abuela’s present, it was the perfect size for a phone! She opens it. And it’s a recipe book! The recipe book that Ana has inherited made her a little confused once it was opened. Her confusion seemed to speak to her Abuela as if to say, Why this. I wanted a cell phone, and this is not a cell phone. Ana did not get that inheriting this recipe book was her Abuela’s way of passing on her secrets of life and womanhood.
Hurt, her Abuela passed, on dancing with the family, this made Ana consider the book, and how great it actually was. She sat down on a loveseat and considered the book. It was a great book, one that held secrets to life that would lead her to success. This book was an heirloom that she now possessed. Ana was a woman when she inherited that book and she had the responsibility to keep it safe. Just like a woman. In the same way as, “The Quinceanera Text,” the short story “Ovatniah” has symbolism. Marie’s grandmother trusts Marie so much she is letting her see where she has hidden her special carving ivory.
When Marie first got to Alaska Marie’s mother had asked her to find out where the special carving vory was hidden, throughout the story Marie comes to a realisation that this was the wrong thing to do. Marie’s grandmother letting Marie get ivory with her is like her grandmother’s way of saying, You’re growing up Marie, you will make the decision to tell your mother or not. I as an adult have made the decision, not tell your mother. Textual evidence to support this is, when Marie told her grandmother that she would not be going to get ivory with her, her grandmother responded with,”I need your help”(Smith 23).
After they made a visit to the ivory hiding place Marie’s mother stopped by, Marie’s randmother knew that Marie’s mother wanted the ivory so she told Marie,”I believe it’s your move, Ovatniah”(Smith 24). Maries grandmother saying,”I believe it’s your move, Ovatniah”(Smith 24). Is symbolising Marie entering adulthood, with the responsibilities of being an adult, in Marie’s case the responsibility is the choice whether or not to tell her mother where the ivory is. In summary, “The Quinceanera Text” and “Ovatniah” have the similarity, symbolism and what it represents. In “The Quinceanera Text” Ana inherits a recipe book from her Abuela.
The recipe book symbolizes how Ana is ecoming a woman, and that by becoming a woman you have more responsibilities, but her grandmother just helped her out by giving her the “recipes” to womanhood or life in general. In “Ovatniah” Marie’s mother wants her grandmother’s ivory, when Marie’s grandmother trusts Marie enough to show her where her ivory is hidden, Marie has to make a responsible, adult decision and decide to tell her mother or not. In the “The Quinceanera Text”and “Ovatniah” they both have different settings, and these settings portray different resolutions throughout the story.
In “The Quinceanera Text” Ana s at her Quinceanera in her backyard, this affects the resolution by bringing memories back to Ana, so she can realise how great her recipe book actually is. In “Ovatniah” the setting of Alaska affects the resolution by creating the hiding place for the ivory that Marie’s mother wants. In “The Quinceanera Text” Ana is in her backyard at her Quinceanera. She saw that her Abuela was upset that she did not like her Quinceanera gift. Ana was sitting on a loveseat contemplating this gift, she is looking around and is remembering the wonderful memories of cooking in her Abuela’s kitchen.
These memories brought to her by the ambience of the party, are why she realises that inheriting this recipe book was going to be a great. Textual evidence to support this is, “The setting sun flamed across the patio. Papa twirled Mama, her arms encircling Juan, and Jaime serenaded Lupe. Consuela texted from the porch, unaware that Manuel, a friend from school, was giving her a love-sick look” (Fanning 20). Reading the recipe book made Ana look around at her family, she listened to the sounds of music, and of tapping feet. This was a beautiful sound to Ana, that is why she said,”It sounded ike poetry”(Fanning 20).
Unlike in “Ovatniah” Marie is in Alaska, with her grandmother where they are carving. Marie’s mother wants the ivory that Marie’s grandmother carves with. This special carving ivory is hidden by the Alaskan snow on an island. The fact that the snow is covering the ivory is why setting affects the resolution. Textual evidence to support this is,” Anaq stopped near a large rock and squatted down, parting a clump of grass. Behind it was a small opening. She disappeared down the hole like an arctic hare”(Smith 24). Marie is in Alaska, she is getting ivory with her grandmother.
Because of the coldness of Alaska Marie’s grandmother had to cover the secret hiding place of her ivory with a large rock so that place wouldn’t freeze as much as the others. In conclusion, “The Quinceanera Text” and “Ovatniah” both have symbolism that represents the character’s growth, both stories also have a setting that affects the resolution, but in different ways. In summary, “The Quinceanera Text” and “Ovatniah” have many similarities and differences. Like the symbolism and what that symbolism represents, and how the setting affects the resolution.
Besides the differences of these short stories they re both equally wonderful to curl up with and read. In the stories “The Quinceanera Text” and “Ovatniah” they both have important symbolism and that symbolism represents how Marie, and how Ana are growing up, but both have differences too, like, in the “The Quinceanera Text”and “Ovatniah” they both have different settings, and these settings portray different resolutions throughout the story. Both of these stories are wonderful short stories that you will want to read over and over again! It’s too bad they are short stories I could read “The quinceanera Text” and “Ovatniah” all day!
