In the story “The House on Mango Street” by Sandra Cisneros it follows Esperanza a young twelve year old Chicana (Mexican American girl) who struggles to define herself; also, experiences sexual adversity which she overcomes with her passion of writing. Esperanza must define herself as a woman and her awareness changes over the course of the novel. Esperanza the novel’s hero and narrator is an aspiring writer who wishes to have a home of her own. Also, the story captures a year in her life as she matures emotionally and sexually. Rachel and Lucy Esperanza’s best friends are Mexican-American sisters who live across the street from Esperanza. Lucy the older sister was born in Texas while Rachel the younger one was born in Chicago. Sally is a young girl Esperanza befriends the same year she moves to Mango Street. Sally and Esperanza are the same age, but Sally is sexually and mentality mature which is what Esperanza likes about her. She doesn’t appreciate Esperanza’s friendship often ditching her to run away with the local boys. Her father physically abuses her, so she runs away before the eighth grade to marry a man who treats her miserably. Esperanza feels protective of Sally. …show more content…
After Esperanza and her family move to their new home, she quickly finds a friend in Lucy and Rachel two girls from across the street. During the first half of the year, they have numerous adventures such as: riding bikes, exploring a junk shop, playing jump rope, as well as befriending a young woman named Marin. In addition, for Esperanza and her friends puberty is near; therefore, it exposes them to adulthood and pressures something they’re quite not use to. Also, she constantly nags about her family’s poverty and her difficult-to-pronounce name; moreover, Esperanza loves to write poems who she only shares with people of her
In the novel 5 examples of how boys and girls live in separate universes and their impact on girls’ lives are as follows:
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.
However, she is willing to ask anyway, because she knows it will help her fit in with the other kids. When Esperanza begins her first job, she is very lonely “I was scared to eat alone” (Cisneros,54) She befriends another employee who is very kind to her, “he said we could be friends…and I felt better,”
Hook: In the coming-of-age novel, House on Mango Street, the main character Esperanza narrates the story through her perspective of the situations she encounters as she grows older in her new neighborhood.
Marin said that “she’s going to get a real job downtown because that’s where the best jobs are, since you always get to look beautiful and get to wear nice clothes and can meet someone in the subway who might marry you and take you to live in a big house faraway.” (Cisneros,26-27) This mean she will change her life with man not her own. In this story’s background society is woman should work in a house and man should go outside and make money so this is like man should protect woman. Also, another character that similar with Marin is Rafaela. She is beautiful so her husband didn’t let her go outside of her house. Then, she never left outside and she just look outside through the window. This can be said that women rely on men and leave all responsibilities for men. In the past, this thought, same as them is very normal but as time passes, most people agree for gender equality. Then, literally, gender is being equal. But, Esperanza thought that woman should live in recognition of these thoughts and consider them after she met normal woman in that
In life many people set goals for themselves. For some people it maybe a goal such as obtaining a high test grade and for others it maybe to one day own a race car. Everybody has a different outlook on life and everyone has different goals in which they one day hope to achieve. The people who achieve their goals are those who are motivated and determined to do so. When these goals are achieved it is then when you are a hero to yourself.
Next is Marin; she is a beautiful green-eyed Puerto Rican woman. She sells Avon products and babysits to make a living. Her family lives in Puerto Rico and she’s living with her cousin, saving money for when she goes back to Puerto Rico. Alike Esperanza, Marin is hardworking; she desires a real job where you could wear nice clothing and look beautiful. Marin often relishes in singing and dancing and dreams of getting married to a wealthy gentleman that will take her to a large house far away, altering her life forever, unlike Esperanza who doesn’t wish to be tied down in
1. Identify an instance where Cisneros uses powerful imagery. Explain the effect of that imagery upon the reader. Remember that imagery can appeal to any of the senses, including sight, sound, taste, smell, or touch.
A poignant figure in Esperanza’s life is her own grandmother. In fact, Esperanza was given her birth name after her grandmother. A touching gesture that came from good faith. A name may have some value, but for Esperanza there was a high intrinsic quality to such a simple component. Despite, never encountering her own grandmother in person, Esperanza was grateful to have fond memories by carrying her legacy through her name. Life’s motto concerns dealing with adversity and carrying the legacy of one’s family eternally. Being confident and smart was the only way to live by. No man was needed to help raise and nurture herself. Her grandmother instilled in Esperanza a sense of fortitude and independence. It is sad that a regret of Esperanza is linked to her grandmother, further illustrating the physical and mental hardships one can endure in
I never had a choice. They decided it all for me and the next thing you know, we
Women’s Escape into Misery Women’s need for male support and their husband’s constant degradation of them was a recurring theme in the book House on Mango Street. Many of Esperanza’s stories were about women’s dreams of marrying, the perfect husband and having the perfect family and home. Sally, Rafaela, and Minerva are women who gave me the impression of [damsel’s in distress].CLICHÉ, it’s ok though. It’s relevant They wished for a man to sweep them of their feet and rescue them from their present misery. These characters are inspiring and strong but they are unable to escape the repression of the surrounding environment. *Cisneros presents a rigid world in which they lived in, and left them no other hope but to get married.
The House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros is a coming of age novel of a young Mexican-American girl developing in a working class Chicago neighborhood. The author is much like the main character Esperanza in many different ways. One being that Cisneros was also a Mexican-American girl growing up in a Chicago working class neighborhood. Esperanza is a foil of Cisneros’ beliefs and opinions of her Mexican culture and heritage. While Esperanza is embarrassed of being a Mexican-American around white Americans, Cisneros is proud to be a Mexican-American girl. In Sara Rimer’s article, “San Antonio Journal; Novelist’s Purple
In The House on Mango Street, by Sandra Cisneros, a little girl from a Latino heritage is given birth to. Not literally, but in the sense of characterization. Esperanza is a fictional character made up by Cisneros to bring about sensitive, alert, and rich literature. She is the protagonist in the novel and is used to depict a female’s life growing up in the Latino section of Chicago. Cisneros creates the illusion that Esperanza is a real human being to communicate the struggles of growing up as a Latina immigrant in a modern world, by giving her a name, elaborating her thoughts and feelings, and illustrating her growth as a person through major events.
The House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros, published in 1984, continues to be a staple in American Literature. The novel features the story of a Latina girl, named Esperanza, growing up in inner city Chicago. Told through a multitude of vignettes, the story showcases the struggles Mexican immigrants face in America. Although set in 1984, The House on Mango Street continues to be relevant with the enduring debate over Mexican immigrants in America today.
Personally reading The House on Mango Street made me realize how much I truly relate to Esperanza. The beginning of the book is more to where I relate because for me as well, I moved around alot when I was younger. I definitely relate to the first chapter the most.