Summary Of ' The House Of The Spirits '

During this time men and women’s rank was based on their income or who they knew. There was an expectation in the 150’s: “...Brother’s were brought up to be men. The girls had been reared to get married. They knew how to do screen embroidery, sew by machine, weave bone lace wash and iron, make artificial flowers and fancy candy, and write engagement announcements” (Marquez 31). The machismo culture of ‘men should be men’ portrays women as subordinate. It presents that to be valued you must fit the stereotype. Marquez conveys two different types of women the perfect innocent wife and the woman who works at the ‘whore house’. The extreme contrast of the two types of women allows the reader to understand how each is type valued. After it is revealed that Angela Vicario is not a virgin she no longer fits the culture and is no longer treated respectfully. This illustrates the brutality of the culture to meet the expectations. The brother’s were brought up to men and that was the expectation, nothing more, nothing less. Marquez’s shows characterization to illustrate the different types of men and women by using

I read the scary and suspenseful book called “Ghost House” by Paul Kropp. There were four kids (Tyler, Zach, AJ, and Hammy), and AJ made a bet that Tyler and Zach could not stay in the Blackwood house -that was originally haunted- for 12 hours without getting scared and leaving. I thought they would leave but it turns out that they stayed the full 12 hours and in the end they ended up winning the $200. One of the things I took away and I think that everyone should take something away like this from it is that you should never make bets that you don’t have any information on. Tyler and Zach didn’t know much about the Blackwood house and they made the bet anyway. This ended up in them almost losing their lives. I would recommend this book to

In Chronicle of a Death Foretold, the way women have been represented and characterized gives us an idea of how the female gender are treated differently from the male gender as well as children in Latin America during the 1950s. The husbands were given all the authority, also known as machismo, whereas women weren’t allowed to take charge of anything, and were portrayed as weak and impotent.

In this type of alpha-male household, the man wears the pants, and he is able to get away with abusing his wife or daughter(s). This is the cruel fate of Cleófilas’s future. She was going to have to tough it out, every time that Juan Pedro got drunk and laid a hand on Cleófilas. She is tough, considering how much abuse she has to take. The city was even a man’s world, where the women were never outside, just stayed home, cooking, cleaning and taking care of the children: “Because the towns are built to you have to depend on husbands. Or stay home” (242). Even then, it was considered taboo to have a woman in the workforce that was predominantly male. Unfortunately, in those times, a woman’s place in the world was a caretaker for the home and the children, according to men who lived in those times. Cleófilas has spent her entire life trapped in a world that conditions her to see herself as inferior, and to feel that males, fathers, husbands, or brothers are somehow superior beings that she must serve and honor.

Many gender roles and themes are observed, throughout the course of this story, in particular, the single mother role. Women are also contrasted with the men as their lives are constrained inside of the home while the men are permitted to enjoy life outside. Divisions in gender are revealed from the very beginning of the book. For example, in “Boys & Girls,” Esperanza communicates the contrast between herself and her brothers, Kiki and Carlos as she states, “The boys and the girls live in separate worlds. The boys in their universe and we in ours. My brothers for example. They’ve got plenty to say to me and Nenny inside the house. But outside they can’t be seen talking to girls” (Cisneros 8). Esperanza can only interact with her sister, Nenny, but Nenny is "too young to be [her] friend" (Cisneros 8). Esperanza is lonely and dreams of a true friend. She feels that she is like "a red balloon, a balloon that is tied to an anchor" (Cisneros 9). Esperanza is apprehensive that she will be trapped on Mango Street, like all the other women. This particular situation demonstrates the first indication of gender issues in her community.

. . And I would not have liked to be a women.? (45, Ch 2) These two phrases are said by Ferula and her brother, Esteban Trueba, in a bicker about the care for their mother. Ferula is stuck in a position as a maternal figure, to care for the dying mother while Esteban?s masculinity allows him to enter the world carefree and to start a new life for himself. Free of the chains of Ferula?s obligation, her brother has the nerve to confess to her that he understands that women are not given equal opportunity while disregarding her dilemma for selfish purposes. His shallow point of view and strict desire for personal gain characterize Esteban as a careless exploiter of the male favored society and set a trend of irresponsibility that reoccurs in his disrespect for other lower class workers as well.

Call points out that Alvarez emphasizes the unique process of female identity formation as a means of illustrating the brutality of the Trujillo’s dictatorship. “Women not only define themselves in context of human relationships but also judge others in terms of their ability to care” (Call 15), since the Mirabal sisters grow in connection with others, they place high priority on the relationships and needs of others in their lives (Call 10). Carol Gilligan and Lyn Mikel Brown write, “Women tended to speak of themselves as living in connection with others and yet described a relational crisis: a giving up of voice, an abandonment of self, for the sake of becoming a good woman and having relationships” (Call 24). In general, Female development is often described as a process that focuses on connection and relationships to others. Alvarez’s depiction of the Mirabal sisters reflects these principles as her characters mature into strong women by learning the value of “selflessly caring for others” (Call 9). By contrast, the Mirabal sisters’ concern for people contrasts to Trujillo’s character, which Alvarez portrays as violent, selfish and petty (Call

Rafaela, a beautiful, young girl, feels controlled by her husband, but sits inside doing nothing to change his undermining demeanor. Equally important, Rafaela 's husband is afraid of losing Rafaela 's beauty to the outside world and feels he has authoritative power over her to prevent this from occurring. Rafaela’s beauty intimidates her husband 's sense of power. Since her beauty threatens her husband, he locks her indoors to strip her from her freedom and show his dominance over her. The quote states that Rafaela leans out her window a lot, which creates the thought that she wants to go outside and explore the world. Rafaela’s husband is afraid of losing her because her beauty is so powerful that he uses male power to restrain her. Rafaela can ultimately deny her husband 's orders and go outside, but she chooses to cower to his authority by staying inside. Similar to Rafaela, Esperanza’s grandmother was an independent woman, strong and proud: “Until my great-grandfather threw a sack over her head and carried her off. Just like that, as if she were a fancy chandelier...She looked out the window her whole life, the way so many women sit their sadness on an elbow. I wonder if she made the best with what she got or was

Analyzing Patriarchy, Hierarchy and Gender in Latin America The injustice of societies is the key trait of Latin America in the nineteenth century, which builds on the foundations of patriarchal and hierarchical order. The film Camila and the book The Posthumous Memoirs of Bras Cubas illustrate the social tension and male-dominated society. Camila chooses to live with the priest that she falls in love with, instead of coping with her family and the governor, Rosas. She breaks the patriarchy by being her authentic self and marrying the person she loves, the priest. Bras Cubas, as a dead man, critiques the Brazil society by telling his stories and life.

“If you want your children you can find them at the river.” I say, and walk away. Roberto storms out of the house and down the old beaten path to el río de la juventud. Outside my house people sing and laugh as they pass on their way to the town for the celebration of El Día de los Muertos. Then, like lightning I hear Roberto’s voice through the night: “Oh, my children!!!” For surely he has found their ghosts floating in el río de la

Indeed, a woman should soften but not weaken a man. This supposition exemplifies the character Casilda from “The Judge’s Wife” short story by Isabel Allende. Although not seen by all as the main character, Casilda is the strongest and most evolutionary personality of the short story. “The Judge’s Wife” is an exceptional tale that follows the progression of characters as they fight against their predetermined destinies and how they are viewed in others’ eyes. Casilda is a catalyst for the evolution of almost every character in the story. Not only does her character grow in “The Judge’s Wife,” but she is also a medium for the growth of the two other main characters in the story. Casilda molds the personality of a majority of the characters in the story, distinctly Judge Hidalgo and Nicolas Vida.

They have even learned to work around the times when Clara cannot control her gift, “the children had organized a system in case of visitors” (8). The powers of young Clara are a common occurrence in the del Valle house and this, while surprising to the reader at first, becomes accepted as they continue throughout the book. Overall in the novel, the magical realism helps to emphasize parts of the story or characters that might be lost in the shuffle otherwise. Without her supernatural abilities, Clara's detached way of living would be less striking to the reader. She is able, from the beginning to predict the earthquakes, deaths of family members, “and recognize people’s intentions” (76). She still doesn't seem to have complete control over them, highlighting her general way of being, since she isn't the most involved mother or wife. Clara as a character is extremely separate from other parts of her life due to her involvement with the spirit world. Other characters might see this as frustrating, particularly Esteban, since Clara's supernatural powers take her farther away from him

Throughout The House of Spirits, Isabel Allande uses violence as a central theme, primarily that against women. Violence as well as the concept of vampirism, conceived by the writer of How to Read Literature Like a Professor, often times blends together within characters such as Esteban, Dr. Cuevas, and his assistant.

In many novels, relationships shape a character. Throughout Isabel Allende's The House of the Spirits dissimilar individuals constantly come together to form relationships that change or develop their disposition. While Allende uses relationships to build upon a character, she also depicts a character's living environment in order to confirm their true soul and lifestyle. Due to the observation of both relationships and environments, a character's true qualities are expressed to a reader. The relationship between two individuals, Ferula and Clara, proves itself a positive product of the union of differing people. Through analysis of Ferula's home and close observation of her bond with Clara,

The character who represents men is Esteban Trueba. After the love of his life dies, Esteban moves to a village where he grew up. He begins to enrich the city and becomes the dictator. Throughout his time as a Dictator, Esteban rapes young women and keeps some as his maids. He does this for the feeling of empowerment. All the civilians of the village are afraid of Esteban. He holds grudges and is violent towards the people who defy him. Although Esteban and Clara have children, it does not stop him from being violent. They have one girl named Blanca and two boys. Besides Clara’s three generations in the book, there is Pedro Garcia’s generation. Pedro Garcia is a trustful peasant of Esteban also called Patron. The Pedro family is compliant with Esteban. Even though Pedro Segundo son of Pedro Garcia, remains faithful to Esteban. When Esteban