In the novel The House On Mango Street, by Sandra Cisneros, shows how a girl named Esperanza notices how women are treated in her community, and soon finds out her desire for love is destroyed by sexual violence and harassment of other women in the community. There are turning points in Esperanza’s life based upon her interactions with her neighbors. Some women are unlucky for being locked up in a house for being beautiful, being abused to not be like others, or used as an object.
Everyday, Esperanza walks past an apartment with a beautiful, trapped woman named Rafaela. As she looks up to the woman listening to music, she offers sympathy. “Leaning out the window so much, gets locked indoors because her husband is afraid Rafaela will run away since she is too beautiful to look at.” (Cisneros 79) Every Tuesday, her husband leaves to go to the bar and leaves her there, fearing she’ll leave. Listening to the music, she dreams of dancing and being free; like the older women down at the bar. The only thing she has to being ‘free’ is her
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papaya or coconut juice. As she drops money for her to get her juice, she realized she did not want to have a life where she isn’t free. Esperanza grew from Rafaela by understanding how the women on Mango Street are treated by the males. They get locked up for looking like they are or might be another mistake in the family. “Sally, do you sometimes wish you didn’t have to go home?” (Cisneros 82 )During the novel, we notice the increase in Sally’s relationship with Esperanza and her impact on her.
Esperanza slowly understands Sally’s life at home and feels sorrow for her. Whenever they walk home from school, she changes so her dad doesn’t see her in short, tight clothing. Esperanza asks why her father is like that and finally figured out the truth. Her father’s sisters left town with older men and brought disgrace to the family; so he would lock Sally up, abuse her in hopes she would not end up like them. Suddenly, Sally met a marshmallow man and ran off with him, however, she did not get the happy ending of running away like she had hoped. Esperanza understood that her friend was like the women on Mango Street, even after she left; she does not want to be like them. As Esperanza experienced events with others, she needed to understand her needs and
mature. “What he did. Where he touched me. I didn’t want it, Sally.” (Cisneros 99) In this quote, we feel the emotion after she was raped. At a young age, a girl going through this tragic event, the only thing she could do to pull through is to mature quickly. Throughout her life on Mango Street, she has seen people die, abused, and raped; but never knew she needed to mature like she did in the end. From the birthday kiss of the oriental man to the red clowns in the park, her hard times with men developed her character overall. When she saw the women and how they were treated on Mango Street, she knew she didn’t want that life and wanted the life like in the movies. As a young girl, Esperanza went through rough times, grew up quick and knew what she wanted in the end. In the end of the novel, Esperanza knows that if she leaves Mango Street it will always be a part of her. Through traumatic events to great memories, she entered as a child wanting a house not owned by anyone but her family and love from a man; but exited a matured girl wanting a house of her own and love from herself.
The House on Mango Street, a fictional book written by Sandra Cisneros is a book filled with many hidden messages. The book revolves around a young girl named Esperanza who feels out of place with the life she has. She sees that the things around her don’t really add up. The story is told from Esperanza’s perspective and the events she goes through to find herself. Through the strategy of fragmenting sentences, Cisneros establishes that the sense of not belonging, creates a person’s individuality that makes them who they are.
Esperanza meets up with 3 elderly sisters at a wake. One of the older women affirms Esperanza’s secret wish to leave Mango Street, but makes her promise that she will come back one day. Esperanza tells Alicia that she feels like she doesn’t have a home but Alicia convinces her that like it or not that Mango Street is her home and no matter what she will have to come back to make Mango Street a better place because the mayor is
“The House on Mango Street” emphasizes on this issue, even broadens to explain other controversial matters such as abuse, misogynistic views, and stereotypes. The protagonist, Esperanza Cordero moves to Mango Street where she must witness the abuse affecting her friends, neighbors, and family. Either Sally a close friend, Mamacita a neighbor, or her own mother handling 4 children. Over the course of the novel Esperanza changes physically and mentally. Through the use of imagery as well as complex, descriptive vignettes Cisneros epitomizes the misogynistic views within Esperanza’s
As the chapter opens, the first impression of Sire is one of a James Dean type of character. Sire and his friends are just sitting on their bikes, pitching pennies, or in other words, gambling. Esperanza tells us that she is scared of them, which makes me wonder why she would be afraid of them? She then says how her dad calls him a “punk.”
Esperanza was able to provide the audience with an image that was vivid of her surroundings through her diction and tone. Esperanza presents a series of stories that she deals with in her neighborhood as she grows up. Esperanza arose from poverty and always dreamt of having a house of her own. Sandra Cisneros' strong cultural and gender values have a tremendous influence on The House on Mango Street. Cisneros feels that the Mexican-American community is very abusive towards the treatment of women because men are seen as the powerful, strong figure.
In The House on Mango Street, Cisneroz agitates the theme of diversity through her use of characters and setting. Cisneroz paints a multitude of events that follow a young girl named Esperanza growing up in the diverse section of Chicago. She is dealing with searching for a release from the low expectations that the Latino communities often put women whether young or old are put against. Cisneroz often draws from her life growing up that she was able to base Esperanza's life experiences on and portray an accurate view on Latino societies today. Cisneroz used the chapter “Boys and Girls” and “Beautiful and cruel” to portray Esperanzas growth from a young curious girl to a wise woman. She came into her own personal awareness and her actions that she has to now be held accountable for.
Women’s Escape into Misery Women’s need for male support and their husband’s constant degradation of them was a recurring theme in the book House on Mango Street. Many of Esperanza’s stories were about women’s dreams of marrying, the perfect husband and having the perfect family and home. Sally, Rafaela, and Minerva are women who gave me the impression of [damsel’s in distress].CLICHÉ, it’s ok though. It’s relevant They wished for a man to sweep them of their feet and rescue them from their present misery. These characters are inspiring and strong but they are unable to escape the repression of the surrounding environment. *Cisneros presents a rigid world in which they lived in, and left them no other hope but to get married. Esperanza, however, is a very tough girl who knows what she wants. She will keep dreaming and striving until she gets it. She says, "I am too strong for her [Mango Street] to keep me here" (110). Esperanza learned from all of these women that she was not going to be tied down. She said, "I have decided not to grow up tame like the others who lay their necks on the threshold waiting for the ball and chain" (88). **Especially after seeing that Sally was suffering so much. Sally’s father is making her want to leave home by beating her. Sally "said her mother rubs lard on the places were it hurts" (93). There is not enough lard in the world to be able to cure the pain within Sally’s heart. Sally, "met a marshmallow salesman at a school bazaar" (101). Pretty soon " sally got married, she has her house now, her pillowcases and her plates" (101). Her marriage seems to free her from her father, but in reality she has now stepped into a world of misery. This was supposed to help her heal; " she says she is in love, but I think she did it to escape." (101). Unlike the other women Sally has no escape, no poetry, not even papaya coconut juice, not to mention, " he does not let her look out the window" (102). That is why "she sits at home because she is afraid to go outside without his permission."(102). Rafaela’s situation also involves imprisonment in her own home. Cisneros introduced us to Rafaela, a young beautiful girl whose expectations from marriage were to obtain a sweet home to live in. Instead...
The House on Mango Street presents mainly women who are “assenting readers” and who influence Esperanza to change. She does not realize in the beginning of the novel that she can challenge the male supremacy because she has grown up with it. She never realized that she simply agreed with their viewpoints until she becomes aware of her own sexuality. Esperanza then realizes this can be used against men but that it can come with a price when she is raped.
“Someday, I will have a best friend all my own. One I can tell my secrets to. One who will understand my jokes without me having to explain them” (9). These are the longing words spoken by Esperanza. In the novel The House on Mango Street, Esperanza is young girl experiencing adolescence not only longing for a place to fit in but also wanting to be beautiful. This becomes complicated as Esperanza becomes more sexually aware. Throughout the novel, Cisneros argues the importance of beauty and how Esperanza deals with beauty as a part of her identity. When Esperanza meets Sally a new friend, Esperanza’s whole world is turned upside down. Esperanza’s views on beauty change from a positive outlook to a negative one by watching how beauty has damaged Sally’s life.
The plot of The House on Mango Street symbolizes an immigrant family moving to the United States in hope of a future with more opportunities. It is a story about a girl by the name of Esperanza and the retelling of the events in her childhood. Esperanza faces many challenges growing up in an underdeveloped neighborhood of inner city Chicago. Through her experiences at home, school, and with people she starts to blossom into the young woman she always wanted to be. Esperanza encounters many unjust acts as a result of living in an urban neighborhood. These encounters make her want to move to a different neighborhood because she feels like she does not belong on Mango Street. She feels trapped because she has a dream to attend college and become a writer. Her hope is that she will be able to live a prosperous American life and be able to come back to Mango Street to help those who cannot escape on their own. It is, most importantly, the story of a girl maturing into a woman an...
The House on Mango Street is the tale about a young girl named Esperanza who is maturing throughout the text. In it Esperanza documents the events and people who make up Mango Street. It is through this community that Esperanza’s ideas and concepts of the relationships between men and women are shaped. She provides detailed accounts about the oppression of women at not only the hands of men who make up Mango Street but also how the community contributes to this oppression. As the young girls and women of Mango Street try to navigate the world they must deal with a patriarchal society that seeks to keep them confined. By growing up in this environment where women are confined Esperanza seeks desperately to depart from Mango Street for fear
Esperanza, a strong- willed girl who dreams big despite her surroundings and restrictions, is the main character in The House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros. Esperanza represents the females of her poor and impoverished neighborhood who wish to change and better themselves. She desires both sexuality and autonomy of marriage, hoping to break the typical life cycle of woman in her family and neighborhood. Throughout the novel, she goes through many different changes in search of identity and maturity, seeking self-reliance and interdependence, through insecure ideas such as owning her own house, instead of seeking comfort and in one’s self. Esperanza matures as she begins to see the difference. She evolves from an insecure girl to a mature young lady through her difficult life experiences and the people she comes across. It is through personal encounters and experiences that Esperanza begins to become sexually aware and acceptance her place and self-definition in her community.
Sandra Cisneros reveals her feminist views through her novel The House on Mango Street. She does this by forcing the reader to see the protagonist as an alienated artist and by creating many strong and intelligent female characters who serve as the protagonist's inspiration.
In the Book women are looked upon as objects by men whether they are boyfriends, friends fathers or husbands. The girls in the novel grow up with the mentality that looks and appearance are the most important things to a woman. Cisneros also shows how Latino women are expected to be loyal to their husbands, and that a husband should have complete control of the relationship. Yet on the other hand, Cisneros describes the character Esperanza as being different. Even though she is born and raised in the same culture as the women around her, she is not happy with it, and knows that someday she will break free from its ties, because she is mentally strong and has a talent for telling stories. She comes back through her stories by showing the women that they can be independent and live their own lives. In a way this is Cinceros' way of coming back and giving back to the women in her community.
Even early on she is able to see herself through everyday objects and situations. For instance, outside her window are 4 thin trees, which are described,“ Their strength is a secret. They send ferocious roots beneath the ground,”(74). Even though this vignette is early on, Esperanza at the moment finds reflections of herself , like the trees, which help her understand who she is. In this case she sees herself as a very strong person , however like the trees, not everyone is aware of the strength she holds. This shows that Esperanza has grown up and developed into a strong girl, from living on Mango Street, which carry her through her future, which will be important as she breaks away from Mango Street. Further down the line , as Esperanza concludes her thoughts of her childhood she says,“One day I will say goodbye to Mango. I am too strong for her to keep me here forever. One day I will go away,”(110). There she realizes she is capable of taking a hold of her future and not letting her rough past control what is to come. She sees that she can hold onto her past, but her past can't hold onto her. In other words she gets that her past will always be part of her, but she is too strong for it to make her up as a person fully. Breaking free from Mango Street will be the next chapter of Esperanza’s