Essay On Like Water For Chocolate By Laura Esquivel

cFeminism in the book Like Water For Chocolate
The novel, Like Water For Chocolate, is a story revolved around love, war, and delicious food. Throughout the book, there are times when the book has been arguably a feminist novel and that “Esquivel reinforces the idea of a community of women” (Ibsen 3). It involves mostly women, and each woman has their own distinct personality trait and shows a version of feminism with many male-like characteristics. The definition of feminism is the belief that men and women should have equal rights and opportunities. Feminism supports the theme in the book that no matter the circumstance women can overcome anything. The author shows how feminism is a big part in Mexican culture by showing key characteristics

Mama Elana and her childrens key characteristics.
Throughout the novel by Laura Esquivel, Mama Elena De la Garza is an example that women can take the role of being head of the household, and basically be in charge of everything.

She is shown to be “overwhelming socio-cultural” because she is represented with male characteristics (De Valdes 4). She forbiddens Tita to marry anyone because she is the “youngest daughter [which] means you have to take care of me until the day I die” (Esquivel 10). This statement is an example of women’s role in society, in which it makes the culture “a women’s culture within the social prison of marriage” (De Valdes 1). Through all of the restrictions that Mama Elena gives Tita, she is able to overcome them. Unlike Tita’s other sisters, she “speaks out against her mother’s arbitrary rule” (De Valdes 3). Most women would not “dare to stand up to her mother” and to their oldest sister because of how dominant they are (Ibsen 3). There are many instances when Tita is a brave soul and is able to provide her own opinion. When Tita first found out that she was not able to marry the man she has fallen in love with, she has the courage to say “in my opinion…”(Esquivel 11). In many other households, a woman would not have the courage to do

that.
In the novel, the first daughter, Rosaura, is a common woman in the Mexican culture, but in this novel, she is very frowned upon and not really liked.

When “Mama Elena came into the kitchen and informed that she has agreed to Pedro’s marriage- to Rosaura”, (19) both sisters, especially Gertrudis who says that Rosaura “showing no loyalty, not caring a damn that [Tita] really loved him”, are very upset with Rosaura for not trying to change Mama Elena’s mind, (Esquivel 14)/ (Esquivel 190). Another example being a common woman is “when [she] insists upon preparing her only daughter to be her caretaker” (Ibsen 2). Most women back then would take after their family tradition and not try to fix anything about it, so when Rosaura states that, Tita is very mad at her and Rosaura is frowned

upon.
Gertrudis, like Tita, is an outspoken person, which is a characteristic that is found in a lot of women and men. Many woman back then would do everything in a very traditional way, especially marriage, but Gertrudis is very different. In the novel, when she runs from the shower naked and sees the man of her dreams, she openly lets him “put his arm around her waist, and [lifts] her onto the horse in front of him, face to face, and carried her away” (Esquivel 57). After this incident, Mama Elena disowned her daughter. Most daughters would be upset by this information, but Gertrudis did not care about what her mother wanted and only cared about her own happiness, which is very unlikely in the Mexican culture.
In conclusion, Laura Esquirel uses the traditional view of women in the Mexican culture and changes them by portraying women with a lot of male-like characteristics, which gives off a very feminist point of view. The story shows many points and sides that were not usually acceptable at that time. Esquivez intertwines feminism into this book just enough to make a perfect story.