Como Agua Para Chocolate Summary

Meacham, Cherie. "Como Agua Para Chocolate: Cinderella and the Revolution." Hispanic Journal, vol.19,no.1, Spring 1998, pp.117-128.\

How patriarchal/cultural traditions are enforced and challenged:

1. “…Such portrayals of powerful women as freaks of nature – castrating, perverted and even dangerous – demonstrate patriarchal preference for dependent, malleable, “feminine” women.” (119).
2. Tita uses food to defy her mother and cultural traditions that denied her aspects of human nature, such as crying and love.
3. Mama Elena being forced to marry Tita’s father because it was “a more socially and economically respectable marriage.

Parallels to the Revolution:

1. Mama Elena is the product of a government that used propaganda to ensure women stuck to their

traditional roles, while Tita mirrors the change that the revolution brought, such as more opportunities for women to enter higher education.
2. Tita and Mama Elena got through a series of battles before Tita eventually wins the “war”.
3.

“… Tita has exercised revolutionary powers. … it is clear that her will to live and feel to the fullest of her capacity, “to remain true to (herself) despite adversity”, is at the core of her conflict with her mother and her culture.” (126-127)

Similarities and differences between Like Water for Chocolate and “Cinderella” like fairy tales:

1. Biological mother filling the “evil stepmother” role, only “Mama Elena succeeds where the stepmother fails by securing the marriage of Tita’s suitor, Pedro Muzquiz, to the older sibling, Rosaura.” (118).
2. Similar themes, such as ash as a symbol of loss love and status. Another similar theme is tears. Cinderella uses her tears to water a tree she planted on her mother’s grave, while tears are a reoccurring theme throughout Tita’s journey.
3. “The motif of magical transformation is a crucial element of the fairy tale, without which the humble status of hero would be no match for the powers of evil that she confronts.” (122).
4. “True to the fairy tale, male intervention rescues Tita from her mother’s house and offers her refuge.” (122). However, instead of fighting her battles, John Brown becomes a sort of spiritual guide that help her achieve her full potential

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