Mama Elena is the widow with three daughters: Rosaura, Gertrudis, and Tita, and she is also the main cause of Tita’s suffering in Like Water for Chocolate by Laura Esquivel. Because of Mama Elena, Tita’s entire life is distorted and she has to spend her time with tears and despair. Especially, Mama Elena abuses the power of family tradition and misuses the power as the head of the household to decide her daughter’s marriage and life. First, Mama Elena abuses the power of family tradition. Tita’s family’s tradition is that the youngest daughter has to take care of her parents until they die and can’t marry during caring for her parents. Tita is the youngest, and that’s why Mama Elena said to Tita “You know perfectly well that being the youngest daughter means you have to take care of me until the day I die” (Ch.1). This tradition is really unjust because it’s only for the youngest and that person has to suffer all the hard works. Also, Mama Elena can’t force Tita to follow the family tradition because she doesn’t know how hard is for Tita to obey her mom every single time and can’t have Tita’s own opinions. …show more content…
Even though Mama Elena knows that Tita takes care of Roberto all the time, she says, “I think it would be best if Rosaura went to live with my cousin in San Antonio, with her husband and little boy” (Ch.4). Also, she doesn’t console Tita when Roberto died, rather, she slaps and abuses her daughter because Tita blames Mama Elena for Roberto’s death for the first time. Head of the family means a person who cares all family members, and encourages or console them when family members are having a hard time. However, what Mama Elena has done to Tita is not the right thing as a head of the
basis of the plot and themes of this novel. The fond memories she possessed of her mother and the harsh ones of her father are reflected in the thoughts and
Even though she is a very strong woman she knows her role in the family. Ma knows when it is her time to help the family and when it is appropriate to step back and let the father run things. It is an unsaid statement but known by all in the family that "ma was powerful in the group" and they look to her for important decision making (133).
An example of this is is when he is married to Rosaura but still has relations with Tita . Another example is when Pedro has sexaul relations with two sisters at the same time.An example of this is on page 173 when mama Elena and Tita are talking “I told you many times not to go near Pedro.Why did you do it? “ I tired mami ...but…”, this occurs after Pedro has been married to Rosaura after a while and Tita is pregnant with his baby so he had to have relations with them both at the same time. When pedro makes the choice to marry Rosaura to be close to Tita but he, breaks her heart because she will see her true love with her sister every day. This shows that Pedro has no regard for Tita's emotions even though he thinks he's doing trying to good for Tita. An example of this is on page 32 when Pedro and Tita are having conversation “Forgive me, Pedro. Did I hurt you?” “ Not as much as i have hurt you. Let me say that my
Because of the life that Christine leads, the role of mother and daughter are switched and Rayona often finds herself watching out for her mom. When Ray comes home from school, she would often learn that her mother had gone out to party. Times like this meant that Rayona had to care for herself. It is not uncommon for one to stay out late; but when it is the parent who is doing so, one must question the responsibility of the person. When Christine leaves the hospital, Rayona shows up and helps prevent a potential disaster. She realizes what her mother plans to do, and that her mom will not crash the car with her on board. While Christine is not very reliable, she has no wish to hurt Rayona either; Ray's prediction was correct. As a child, Rayona must fulfill more obligations than a normal teen. Over the time that leads to her abandonment, Rayona begins to feel displaced from her mother. Christine's increasing self concern causes Rayona to feel her mom is ignoring her, when that is not true at all.
Throughout the book, Mama Elena was portrayed as the Darth Vader of Like Water For Chocolate. While one of Mama Elena’s daughter,
As the eldest person in the Younger household, Mama is the authoritative figure and has the most traditional views. Being a part of the GI Generation, she shares the
JoyBell C once said “I think that, people are people. That's why the way I treat the lady working in the deli who slices my ham is the same way I treat my friend who drives a Chrysler. That's why the way I treat the guy who packs my groceries is the same way I treat my rich friends. Because people are people. Some are rich and some are poor, and they're all people.” The story is about women from two families, Elena who is from the higher class and Jacinta who is from the poor working class. Sandra presented the rich in such a way that made them so human, and down to earth it was extremely hard to find a villain in the story. Elena’s daughter Magda was so good to Jacinta that she helped Jacinta raise her daughter. Magda wanted their daughters to get the same education and they grew up together. Proving education to a peasant was unlike for the rich, Magda’s sister in law was against her decision of providing Maria Mercedes with the same education as her own daughter Florencia. Magda wanted to send the girls to a private school. Margarita said to Magda that “I think you should reconsider sending that servant girl to school with flor”. Magda said “But the girls are like
Soon after her marriage her fairy tale becomes her nightmare, “the moment came, and he slapped her once, and then again, and again; until the lip split and bled an orchid of blood”. She didn’t react like she thought she would. She has ideas of what she will and will not accept. However, when that totally unexpected moment came she was shocked and spun into denial, as most abused women do. Then later, symbolically shattering all her dreams, “He had thrown a book. Hers. From across the room. A hot welt across the cheek. She could forgive that. But what stung more was the fact that it was her book, a love story by Corin Tellado, what she loved most now that she lived in the U.S., without a television set, without the telenovelas”. Feeling empathy for this character is inevitable. That was a devastating
Tita couldn't comprehend why her mom handled her cruelly, she didn't comprehend Mama Elena's state of mind it was outside her ability to grasp that one individual, whatever her association with another, could dismiss the nice thought in such a fierce way. After all, that they had experienced, Tita thought in an event a few things had changed. Clearly, nothing had changed on the grounds that Mama Elena saw her little girl as she saw herself numerous prior years. In any case, after her mom's demise Tita was edified when she found her mom's affection letters from José, her mom's just special romance. As Tita read her mom's letters, she found the purpose for her mom's identity, both mentally and inwardly. José was the affection for her life. She wasn't permitted to wed him since he had Negro blood in his veins. At the point when Mama Elena's guardians found the adoration that existed among their little girl and this mulatto, they were stunned and forced her into a prompt marriage with Tita's
Laura Esquivel’s most noted work is the novel like water for chocolate, which details the Dela Garza family during the Mexican revolution. Esquivel used magical realism to describe a realistic yet fantastical world. Esquivel’s also presented feminism in her novel by presenting a women empowerment. This paper aims to criticize the power of love, social barriers of class, domination against women community and the discrimination against their races.
His daughters name was Teresa. She wasn’t able to make it back when her mother had passed away. For years her father’s drinking habits terrorized their family when she was younger. Her little brother was trampled by a runaway horse in the market when she was five. After that incident, Teresa had no one to escape with when her father would beat their mother during the episodes of his drunken stupor. After that traumatic event her mother suffered with a men...
As Clarise heads back to her house three strange figures showed up in front of her and said "Mam you have the right to remain silent anything you say or do will be use against you in the court of law you have the right hire an attorney or we will hire one for you" Clarise yells back " What did I do? I haven't read any books" as she barely struggles Clarise passes out. Clarisse is awaken by a bright light she hears strange voices talking around her and screams on the top of her lungs where am I? A tall huge black figure nudges her and says "Can you please keep it down I'm trying to play chess. Clarisse still trying to regain her vision she calmly replies "'where am I?" The dark man responded "you’re in hell sweetie, were all in hell, we been
Even though, Mother is a Nazi, on top of the pyramid of hierarchy, she does not act superior to others, she acts with compassion. Although Mother has many servants, of whom she has no obligation to respect, she does anyway, despite the orders of others, including Father. This is clear when mother continuously stands up for Maria, informing her children, that she be treated with respect as shown in the following quote, as told by Bruno, “ His mother has always told him that he was to treat Maria respectfully and not just imitate the way Father spoke to her.” (Boyne, 1) This quote allows Mothers strong, compassionate character to be declared. Although Maria is merely a servant, and Father, the rule maker, undermines her, Mother does not, much like Pavel, she disobeys the rules of the Nazi, freely confessing her humanity. This act of compassion also brings out many ideas within the plot, such as rebellion, against hierarchy, superiority and the Nazi. As she proves even those who have been corrupt can still be humane, with this sense
In the beginning of the novel, Tita feels sad after argues with Pedro, the love of her life " sapposedly" in the kitchen, she rushes into the living room and sees something that makes her traumatize. Tita sees her sister, Rosaura, sewing the "love sheet", a tradition of the time. Esquivel writes, "Tita
In The House of Bernarda Alba readers get to know Bernarda the mother of five daughters. Bernarda often comes across as a mean woman who just wishes to control her daughters, while in reality she just wants to do what she feels will best protect them. “Until I leave this house feet first, I will make the decisions—my own, and yours!” (Lorca, 223) This makes Bernarda sound like bit of a control freak, as she is basically telling her daughter Angustias that over her dead body will she fight with her sister Magdalena; however, she really is just trying to keep peace and protect them. Then in The Family of Pascual Duarte readers are introduced to Pascual’s mother, whose actions do not show that she cares much about protecting her children. “My father and mother didn’t get along at all. They had been badly brought up, were endowed with no special virtues, and could not resign themselves to their lot.” (Cela, 24) Pascual’s parents, but especially his mother, did not care enough about the safety and well-being of the child in the home to lay aside their differences or find a better way to deal with the problems at hand. Not only that, but it could be a fight over the simplest of things. “So that any circumstance,