How Does Jaela Leave Her House On Mango Street

In Esperanza’s neighborhood, compliant women are trapped by their husbands and over- come with feelings of low self worth and insecurity. In the vignette “No Speak English,” Esperanza describes the arrival of Mamacita, a mother who is forced by her husband to leave her homeland and move to Mango Street. Troubled by Mamacita’s solitude, Esperanza explains, “She sits all day by the window and play the Spanish radio” (Cisneros 77). Mamacita, forced to leave her home, feels overcome with feelings of seclusion and sorrow. In submitting to her husband’s will, Mamacita illustrates the powerlessness and vulnerability of women. Similarly, Rafaela, another woman imprisoned in her house on Mango Street, is discontent with her submission to her husband’s wishes.

In describing Rafaela’s husband as someone who only likes Rafaela for her looks, Esperanza illustrates male superiority over women. Rafaela, submissive and alone, is forced to passively live a life of solitude by her aggressive husband. Likewise, Esperanza’s friend Minerva is forced to submit to her husband’s wishes. Esperanza, troubled by Minerva’s vulnerability, explains Minerva “is only a little bit older than me but aural she has two kids and a husband who left her” (Cisneros 84). Minerva, who is forced to mature from a young age, is faced with the realities of raising children while still being a child herself. In abandoning Minerva, Minerva’s husband illustrates the inferiority of women. Mamacita, Rafaela, and Minerva illuminate the harrowing effects of female submission and feel trapped in their feelings of low