Sandra Cisnero’s House on Mango Street offers a first-hand account of the poverty encountered by many Mexican Americans. Esperanza, a young Mexican American girl, shares a variety of experiences that closely follow her development of identity and maturity. Throughout the novel, Esperanza follows the process of maturity and learns the ways in which gender, class, and ethnicity affect her place in society.
At the beginning of the novel, it is clear that Esperanza has many things to learn about life. In the early chapters, Esperanza focuses on childlike thoughts such as the shame she feels for living in a home that is in poor condition. She describes herself as “a balloon tied to an anchor” (Cisneros 9). It is clear that Esperanza feels trapped in this place in life and feels that she is the
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only person experiencing this feeling. However, Esperanza eventually explains that “people who live on the hills sleep so close to the stars that they forget those of us who live too much on earth” (86). This statement shows that Esperanza has matured into understanding her place in society as being just one of the many people in poverty. Esperanza further proves her maturity by vowing to take care of the poor when she has a house of her own. Another important experience in Esperanza’s process of maturity was her loss of innocence. After watching a situation unfold in which her friend, Sally, agreed to kiss a few neighborhood boys in order to get her keys that they had taken, Esperanza becomes overwhelmed at the fact that no one seemed to see the boys behavior as a big deal. Out of bewilderment, Esperanza laid down and expresses “I wanted to will my blood to stop, my heart to quit its pumping. I wanted to be dead…” (97).This specific situation shows Esperanza’s loss of innocence because she is forced to see that her peers are taking part in sexual actions. Esperanza expresses suicidal thoughts because she is horrified that no one else sees Sally’s situation as a problem. At this point, Esperanza’s loss of innocence is only in her mind. Unwillingly, she eventually loses her physical innocence and blames Sally for not saving her. Because she was sexually assaulted, Esperanza is forced to face the fact that she is no longer able to guard her innocence. Throughout Esperanza’s experiences, she sees the affect that gender, class, and ethnicity have on everyone around her.
For example, because of their gender, women of lower class often allow shame to stop them from pursuing education. This is proven when Esperanza’s mother explains “you want to know why I quit school? Because I didn’t have nice clothes” (91). Because of their ethnicity, Mexican American women are also expected to be subservient to their husbands. When telling the story of her great-grandmother, Esperanza describes “my great-grandfather threw a sack over her head and carried her off” (11). This situation shows that sometimes men of a certain ethnicity assume control over women. People of certain ethnicities that are of lower class are also treated differently because of the color of their skin. Esperanza explains “watch us drive into a neighborhood of another color and our knees go shakity-shake and our car windows get rolled up tight and our eyes look straight” (28). This behavior is common due to the stereotypes that poorer people are more likely to commit crimes. Ethnicity, gender, and class intertwine because of the affects each have on how people are
treated. Apart from her many experiences, Esperanza is defined by her desire to escape Mango street. In the first pages of the novel, she explains the shame she feels because of her house. “You live there? The way she said it made me feel like nothing” (5). Although Esperanza finally got a house, as she wished, the house on Mango Street did not meet her standards. Therefore, for the rest of the novel, Esperanza struggles to accept Mango Street as the place of her origin. In an attempt to see her future in a new home, Esperanza visits a palm reader. The woman does not give Esperanza the answer she wants when she describes that she sees “a home in the heart” (64). It is very clear that it is impossible for Esperanza to move on from Mango Street until she allows it to become a part of her identity. At the end of the novel, Esperanza expresses that “they will not know I have gone away to come back. For the ones I left behind” (110). This statement shows that Esperanza has finally come to terms with accepting Mango Street as her origin. Her maturity is also shown by the fact that she chooses to eventually return for the people were influential to her. Esperanza’s collection of stories are extremely important in developing her identity through this time in her life. In order to have a mature outlook on life, Esperanza is forced to acknowledge that she is just one of many people in poverty and she must accept her place on Mango Street as her origin. Also, through her experiences, Esperanza is exposed to the ways gender, class, and ethnicity affect the upbringings of those around her. Eventually, Esperanza comes to terms with her origins and vows to return once she finally leaves. The compilation of events that Esperanza experiences are extremely important not only to her, but also others who are coming of age.
Throughout The House On Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros, many symbols, themes, and motifs appear while analysing the story of Esperanza growing up on Mango Street, a poor neighborhood. Symbols are a very big part of this book, because without deeper consideration of the text, this book would just be a series of dull, unrelated stories. One of the most prominent symbols in this story is the symbol of shoes representing our main character, Esperanza, maturing and adjusting into womanhood and her sexuality.
In the book, Esperanza doesn’t want to follow the norms of the life around her; she wants to be independent. Esperanza states her independence by stating, “Not a man’s house. Not a daddy’s. A house all my own,” (Cisneros 108.) The syntax of these sentences stick out and are not complete thoughts, yet they convey much meaning and establish Esperanza’s feeling of not belonging. Esperanza’s feeling of not belonging is also emphasized when her sisters tell her that the events of her life have made her who she is and that is something she can not get rid of. Her sisters explain that the things she has experienced made her who she is by saying, “You will always be esperanza. You will always be mango street. You can’t erase what you know” (105.) What her sisters are trying to tell her is that the past has changed her but it doesn’t have to be a negative thing; it can be used to make her a better person who is stronger and more independent. Esperanza realizes that the things around her don’t really add up to what she believes is right, which also conveys the sense of not
She was not a master of style, plot development or characterization, but the intensity of feeling and aspiration are evident in her narratives that overrides her imperfections. Sandra Cisneros’ The House on Mango Street, written in 1984, and Anzia Yezierska’s Bread Givers, published in 1925, are both aimed at adolescent and adult audiences that deal with deeply disturbing themes about serious social conditions and their effects on children as adults. Both books are told in the first person; both narrators are young girls living in destitute neighborhoods; and both young girls witness the harsh realities of life for those who are poor, abused, and hopeless. Although the narrators face these overwhelming obstacles, they manage to survive their tough environments with their wits and strength remaining intact. Esperanza, a Chicano with three sisters and one brother, has had a dream of having her own things since she was ten years old.
Esperanza is relying on her childhood to help her through life she feels like “a red balloon tied to an anchor” (9,1,3) This passage describes that Esperanza singles herself out for her differences instead of her similarities and she knows it. She also sees her differences as a source of her isolating herself. She floats in the sky for all of the rest of us to see, dangling from a string. Esperanza is longing on for an escape like a balloon similar to her experiences with our society. However against the face that Cisneroz gives her a light voice, doesn't mean that it's not just as strong and
“Home is where the heart is.” In The House on Mango Street, Sandra Cisneros develops this famous statement to depict what a “home” really represents. What is a home? Is it a house with four walls and a roof, the neighborhood of kids while growing up, or a unique Cleaver household where everything is perfect and no problems arise? According to Cisneros, we all have our own home with which we identify; however, we cannot always go back to the environment we once considered our dwelling place. The home, which is characterized by who we are, and determined by how we view ourselves, is what makes every individual unique. A home is a personality, a depiction of who we are inside and how we grow through our life experiences. In her personal, Cisneros depicts Esperanza Cordero’s coming-of-age through a series of vignettes about her family, neighborhood, and personalized dreams. Although the novel does not follow a traditional chronological pattern, a story emerges, nevertheless, of Esperanza’s search to discover the meaning of her life and her personal identity. The novel begins when the Cordero family moves into a new house, the first they have ever owned, on Mango Street in the Latino section of Chicago. Esperanza is disappointed by the “small and red” house “with tight steps in front and bricks crumbling in places” (5). It is not at all the dream-house her parents had always talked about, nor is it the house on a hill that Esperanza vows to one day own for herself. Despite its location in a rough neighborhood and difficult lifestyle, Mango Street is the place with which she identifies at this time in her life.
Esperanza dreams of someday having a satisfying life. She doesn't want her path of freedom to be cleared by having a baby or finding a husband. She has no desires to fall into the trap of dependency. As the author writes, "Her power is her own. She will not give it away" (Cisneros 89).
Most of the neighborhood's citizens are of diverse ethnicities including Esperanza, whose dad is Mexican and whose mom is Latina. The opening of this book shows us a lot of different characters and the discoveries of their ethnic backgrounds and how they are affected by poverty, loss, and the struggles in everyday life. After moving into the dilapidated red house on Mango Street, Esperanza suddenly becomes close friends with Lucy and Rachel, two girls who live in the same neighborhood. All the girls act liked they’ve known each other their entire life, but they obviously didn’t. Lucy, Rachel, Esperanza, and Esperanza's little sister, Nenny, have many exciting adventures on Mango Street like walking around in heels, buying a bike together and just having
Throughout the novel, Esperanza’s overall perception towards her identity shifts with time. In the beginning of the novel, Esperanza hopes to part away from her culture, heritage, and family by changing her name so that she can define herself on her own thoughts and terms. She wishes to start her own life and depart from a name that embraces her authentic family heritage. As time passes and as Esperanza becomes more mature and sexually aware, she hopes to define herself as someone who is “beautiful and cruel…the one who drives the men crazy and laughs them all the way” (Cisneros 89). As she matures, Esperanza turns to writing as a means of defining herself. In the final parts of the novel Esperanza forces herself to stop setting herself apart from her family, heritage and most importantly her roots. As a writer she finally finds the identity she sought for by interacting with the world and observing it in a different way. Time allows Esperanza to realize her self-identity as she matures. As Esperanza states, “They will not know I have gone away to come back” (Cisneros
Esperanza has expectations her whole life about what she is going to turn out to be and what she has to do, but also feels like her life is already determined. Ever since Esperanza was born, people tell her that she was “born on an evil day” (Cisneros 58) and that her mother, Lucy, and Rachel pray for her. If anyone was told that their entire life then it would make them feel down and can make them feel like they are evil. Esperanza feels even more like a bad person when they pretended to be her blind aunt, almost imitating her. “And then she died… And then we began
After Esperanza recognizes that it may take a while to find her dream house, she starts to appreciate the house on Mango Street. Esperanza realizes how many differences there are between people who have very nice houses and not very nice houses, she begins to think about what her life will be like in the future, “One day I’ll own my own house, but I won't forget who I am or where I came from. Passing bums will ask, ‘Can I come in?’ I’ll offer them the attic, ask them to stay, because I know how it is to be without a house” (Cisneros 64). As Esperanza beings to look at a different perspective of the world, she still looks forward to pursuing her dreams, but she understands the negative impact people may be dealing through, she doesn’t want them to go through what she has to. As Esperanza becomes more mature, she has a greater appreciation for her house: “What I remember most is Mango Street, sad red house, the house I belong but do not belong to” (Cisneros 79). Esperanza remembers the house on Mango Street the most out of all the houses she has lived in, she feels like her heart belongs to the house but her mind doesn’t. Thus, Esperanza beings to develop more appreciation towards her house the more she grows up and looks at a different view of
Unfortunately, her great-grandmother was forced to marry, unable to ever forgive her husband, and spent her life staring out the window, as do so many other women in Esperanza's community. With determination, Esperanza makes clear that she rejects the notion to be like that. She states, "I may have inherited her name, but I don't want to inherit her place by the window" (Cisneros 11). Women who are confined and staring out the window is a pitiful, recurring concept reiterated throughout the course of this story. Furthermore, Esperanza refuses to inherit her great-grandmother's destiny, knowing that to be "like a wild horse" (Cisneros 10) is advantageous. In addition, Esperanza verbalizes that there is no way that she will "accept this heritage passed on by so many women before her, who had to passively watch their lives who had to passively watch their lives pass them by, and perform the tasks that were expected of them" (Grum 43). Esperanza's mother offers incentive to Esperanza as she "encourages [Esperanza] to try to be the master of her own destiny and amount to something in her life" (Grum 43) because Esperanza's mother knows that she, herself "could've been somebody" (Cisneros 91). A warning is also provided as Esperanza's mother also instructs her that "shame is a bad thing because it keeps you down" (Grum 91). As a result, this drives Esperanza
Thus, it can be rightfully said that the novel’s main message is about finding one’s true identity and accepting it in order to grow as a person. Cisneros did an excellent job of making Esperanza’s goals for herself clear to the reader, through repetition of similar events and Esperanza’s own self-reflection. She would always give her thoughts on the experiences she lived through, whether they were positive or negative. With such incidents, she was able to understand them profoundly and grow. Esperanza’s growing maturity as the story progressed allowed her to look at the most insignificant of objects and deem them worthwhile, a trait that can be used to further differentiate her from the rest of her neighbors on the street. A notable part of the book in which the reader can see Esperanza’s ingenuity is in the vignette ‘Four Skinny Trees,’ in which it states, “When I am too sad and too skinny to keep keeping, when I am a tiny thing against so many bricks, then it is I look at the trees. When there is nothing left to look at on this street. Four who grew despite concrete. Four who reach and do not forget to reach. Four whose only reason is to be and be.” (75.) Esperanza compares herself to the four trees on her street, who grew despite the obstacles in her way. They reached for the skies in a way that she wants to and whenever she is feeling
One of the few woman in the novel who aren't as strong as Esperanza is Marin. Marin is a teenager from Puerto Rico living with family in the U.S. Her main goal in life is to find a man to take care of her. For instance she tells Esperanza that “ What matters,... is for the boys to see us and for us to see them.”(Cisneros 27)This clearly presents how much Marin cares about having a man in her life. Esperanza could help her learn how to be an independent and a self sufficient young woman.
Sister Superior questions Esperanza, asking “That one? She said, pointing to a row of ugly three-flats, the ones even the raggedy men are ashamed to go into. Yes, I nodded even though I knew that wasn't my house and started to cry.” (Cisneros 45) Sister Superior is a character who is a symbol of society. Just because Esperanza is poor, Sister Superior assumes that any house that appears destitute could have been Esperanza’s house. A neighborhood like that, where every house is seen as a bad place to live, is a type of neighborhood that all of Esperanza’s neighbors feel shameful for. The reader is constantly reminded that poverty is apparent, yet silent and ignored. In the neighborhood, there is a family called the Vargases. It is stated that the Vargases “are bad... how can they help it with only one mother who is tired all the time from buttoning and bottling and babying, and who cries every day for the man who left without even leaving a dollar for bologna or a note explaining how come.” (Cisneros 29) Sandra Cisneros communicates through Rosa Vargas’ story that poverty can severely affect the lives of anyone. Furthermore, it can then be argued that poverty comes in many different forms and does not discriminate. Most importantly, the author talks about the poverty cycle. A large, poor family will usually produce more poor individuals; the Vargases are no exception. Poverty is an invisible jail cell that makes the inhabitants inside unable to be understood. Society views the neighborhood in a motion of generalization, and families like the Vargases are trapped in an unfortunate situation that they can do nothing
In the novel, The House On Mango Street Sandra Cisneros tells us a story of a young Latin girl named Esperanza, growing up in Chicago. She also describes the problems that women face on a day to day basis by having men constantly oppressing them and making them feel less worthy and as second class citizens. A society that is dominated by men and abuses and mistreats their women and in which women are more interested in how they look. Cisneros wants us to see the different obstacles that Latino women must face in order to be treated equally and the role of women in that culture.