Character Analysis Of Esperanza Rising

Esperanza and her mother made the choice to leave Mexico and go to California to work and escape Tio Luis, which I believe to be a good decision. Before going, Esperanza was spoiled, rich, and quite full of herself, living in a high social class family, and in general thought of herself better than others. At first, she was against leaving everything she knew and loved, but in the end, found herself liking California. Esperanza made new friends, in particular, Isabel, who taught her many things, even though she was younger. She taught her how to appreciate what she had, and how to get a job done. She taught her how to deal with the fact that

Self-exploration is hindered in this book and my life. I can very much identify with Esperanza perspectives on societal issues that Latin women face. A society dominated by men and women relying on them, whether it is a father, spouse or friend. Men are considered the strong reasonable as where women are weak and emotional, in turn women need men for protection. A young girl may have two story paths, one where she relies on the protection of her father while she watches her mother cater to him or two, witnesses the struggles of a single young woman and absence for a father. This book describes marriage as priority for every girl or else how could she survive; appearances and physical features are highly valued traits. This attitude is not one that Esperanza agrees with, nor do I. For example, Marin she is the girl standing on the street just “waiting for a car to stop, a star to fall, someone to change her life.” This character implies that she does not dream of actively setting life goals for herself and working to earn them, instead she will wait until a man makes it happen for her. The ideology behind this thought being that as a woman she must thrive to be as attractive as possible to heighten her chances of marriage and acquire

All the people on Mango Street were struggling to get by, but they seemed satisfied with just making it. Esperanza was not. There were characters like Esperanza’s mother who was a “smart cookie,” and could’ve been anything, but she let shame get the best of her and dropped out of school. There was also Rafaela who got married before the 8th grade just so she could move into her own house, but her husband never let her leave the house afterward. He never let her see her friends, and the highlight of her week was getting coconut or papaya juice from someone who would send it up in a paper bag attached to a clothespin since she couldn’t leave the house. Lastly, there was the time when she was left stranded by the tilt-a- whirl waiting for a friend that never came back and got molested by a group of boys. The only witnesses were the red clown statues that seemed to be laughing at her. Nevertheless, she let none of this stopped her from going forward and perusing her dream. She still seemed to be struggling with a sense of belonging, but maybe that’s because she didn’t.

Esperanza has a variety of female role models in her life. Many are trapped in abusive relationships, waiting for others to change their live. Esperanza had many struggles in her life, not growing up where and how she wanted to so role models were very important to her. These role models showed her the way she didn't

Esperanza is new to the neighborhood, and was never proud of her previous houses, but the negative intonation that the nun uses on her makes her feel like she is being judged, not on who she is, but what her family can afford. There is the place Esperanza now has to call home and the degrading presumption that the neighborhood already has causes her to accept that she can’t change her image without money and let her personality shine through. She seems to accept her label as poor in the story, “A Rice Sandwich”, where she believes the special, also known as rich, kids get to eat in the canteen and she wants to be part of that narrative, so she begs her mother for three days, to write her a note to allow her eat in the canteen. When she couldn’t endure her daughter’s nagging anymore, she complied. Thinking this would be enough affirmation, Esperanza went to school the next with the note and stood in the line with the other kids. She wasn’t recognized by the nun who checks the list, and has to face Sister Superior, who claims that she doesn’t live far enough to stay at school and asks Esperanza to show where her house is. “That one? She said, pointing to a row of ugly three -flats, the ones even the raggedy men are ashamed to go into. Yes, I nodded even though I knew that wasn’t my house,”(45). Esperanza was compared to the most raggedy men, and had to accept

Thesis statement: Esperanza has a variety of female role models in her life. Many are trapped in abusive relationships, waiting for others to change their lives. Some are actively trying to change things on their own. Through these women and Esperanza’s reactions to them, Cisneros’ shows not only the hardships women face, but also explores their power to overcome them.

Esperanza is faced with several major events that forces her to mature at a young age. In these events readers can see how she grows as her emotions change. In the beginning of the book, Esperanza’s father passes away (p. 22) and their family home on the ranch, El Rancho de las Rosas, catches on fire (p.40). This is the beginning of Esperanza's quickly changed young life. As a young girl she realizes life will never be the same. She once was wealthy and lived life with the help of housekeepers. Papa also had field workers to help with his needs on the farm. Raised with a positive perspective on life, her hopes and dreams are soon challenged. Esperanza is forced to leave everything she has ever known to move to the United States. The fire is symbolic because the family is forced start all over, in life, along with her social

With all of the bad things going on around Esperanza, she was very optimistic and made the best of everything she could. For example, in chapter one, Esperanza explain how she and her family had always grown up poor and that they always had dreams of one day owning a big beautiful house like the ones that they saw on television. One with a back yard and a basement. When Esperanza's family was forced to move her parents had purchased the first house that they could afford so they wouldn't have to continue paying rent. The house was nothing like what they had spoke of or dreamt about. But Esperanza states, "I then knew I had to have a house. One I could point to. But this isn't it. The house on Mango Street isn't it. For the time being, Mama said. Temporary, says Papa. But I know how those things go.." Within this paragraph it shows that Esperanza isn't exactly happy about where she is living but she is going to make the best of it and do what she has to do to get out of there and have a house of her own. One that she can point to.

The first time Esperanza makes an appearance in the book, she is younger and easily manipulated, especially by her friends. Esperanza meets a girl named Cathy, a snobby girl that lived on Mango Street. When Cathy tells Esperanza “Okay, I’ll be your friend. But only until next Tuesday. That’s when we move away.” Then as if she forgot I had just moved in, she says the neighborhood is getting bad” (13) This was a racist statement towards Esperanza and her family, something she doesn’t quite understand yet because Esperanza thinks Cathy forgot they moved in, yet she was actually being racist. This is the first time Esperanza is exposed to racism in the book, therefore exposing her to the outside world. Later in the book, Esperanza meets Sally, a beautiful girl with shiny black hair, that all she seemingly just wants is to love, and Esperanza wants to be just like her. “I like your black coat and the shoes you wear, where did you get them? I want to buy shoes just like yours.” (82) Sally and Esperanza become friends, but later in the story, in the chapter Red Clowns, Esperanza is put in a dangerous situation where Sally walks off

Esperanza’s insecurity about where she lives and how she lives is the conflict of the story. A tradition her father, Nenny, and herself has is going to the houses on the hills, she believes she looks like the hungry asking for food so she no longer goes. Esperanza is so ashamed of her house that when someone ask which house she lives in she denies living in those flats. She becomes aware of how poor her family is when she must go to work to help pay for private school, this encourages her to get out of the flats. Esperanza sets out to be able to support herself on her own and buy the house she has been dreaming of since she was little.

In conclusion, we know that Esperanza’s negativity of herself begins to slowly change as she slowly experience what accepting means and how she began to accept where she was from . Throughout this book, Cisnero showed us accepting is an important part of growing in life as well as determining the true you. In the beginning she hated her life always wanted to escape out of Mango Street versus the end she says she is going to come back. From the beginning to the end, Esperanza finally accepted where she was from and how Mango Street has developed who she became

Esperanza has hopes far beyond the stereotypical expectations of Chicanos within society at the time but her status and mindset does not match those goals. As far as her status, she is apart of the lower class class family who were dreamers and fed unrealistic concepts into their children minds of one day having this “dream” house but in all actuality, they knew it would never happen. For example, on page 4, Esperanza

When a character is exposed to an incident in which his or her perspective is forever changed, he or she will gain knowledge and maturity. An event such as being raped is an example of how one can lose his or her innocence. The House on Mango Street leads the reader into analyzing his or her own life. It shows how Esperanza’s pure view of life has changed to become a more sophisticated and realistic one. Growing up is something that everyone, at one point or another, goes through. This loss of innocence is something that is unavoidable and irreversible. When people lose their innocence, they gain maturity and gain knowledge. When a person losing the pureness in them, they open their eyes and they are able to see the world for what it really

Esperanza is the strong-willed main character who wants to break free from the limitations and expectations of a women set by her community. Unlike majority of the women in her neighborhood, she dreams of her escape from this discriminatory treatment. As she blossoms from a young girl to a mature women, she comes to the realization that she can never escape, because that house on Mango Street is a part of her. She can only learn from her experience living her never flee from it. When Esperanza creates creates an original piece of poetry, she shares it with Aunt Lupe, who in return, shares some insightful advice. (60-61) Writing through all forms can allow people to escape the realities and bounds of life.

As a young girl Esperanza is asked one day where she lived by a nun from her school who happened to be walking by. Now before this moment Esperanza never really notice her living situation, all she knew is that her parents loved her and wanted her to go to school. When the nun rudely said “You live there” (Cinceros 5) and pointed at the shoddy apartment building, it is then Esperanza started to build a dream inside of her head because of the look on the nun’s face, unsatisfactory.