Every nation has its cultures, and every culture has its people. Like a clay figure, the people of a culture are inevitably shaped by what makes that culture unique and where it will lead them in a world composed of many different ones. The House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros and In The Time Of The Butterflies by Julia Alvarez present two contrasting cultures, one that is depicted through a poor Latino neighborhood in Chicago, and the other on a viciously dictated Spanish island. The roles of men and women along with the importance of an organized church bring with it the image of the residing living condition of the culture, and whether its for the better or worse, the people existing in that culture are a mirror reflection of what that culture is. The vivid expressions of gender roles and the influences of religion in the two extravagantly differing cultural societies in The House on Mango and In The Time Of The Butterflies precisely shaped what became of the characters’ personality and characteristics in their struggling efforts to work their way toward goals and dreams.
Minerva in The House on Mango Street proves to be a copied image of what her poor Latin neighborhood provides. Her role as a poor married woman is that of lesser superiority than a man, and in efforts to control her unstable relationship situations, she resorts to desperation, only to allow what has been eating away at her back in again. “One day she is through and lets him know enough is enough…then he is sorry and she opens the door again. Same story” (Cisneros 85). A poor society produces poor results, as can be told simply by observing the conditions of an abusive relationship like Minerva’s. The land of the free is where the story takes place, where...
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...ng for conditions and situations, the habitants of a cultural society will reflect what that society may bring to them.
Where gender roles, depictions of the home lifestyle, and faith come into play in illustrating the characteristics of a culture are in the people that live in it and practice what surrounds them. Women taking control of themselves has been seen as a commonality between both works. Small differences in the larger idea of a poor Chicago neighborhood and a terrorizing dictatorship show how similar these two diverse cultures can be and what affect it would have on its people. Faith, seen being taken into one’s own hands and strictly enforced by another have left up for decision the question of faith in the people of a cultural society. For as much as a culture has developed, it has developed through the trickling down of its people through the ages.
The House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros is about a girl who struggles finding her true self. Esperanza sees the typical figures like Sally and Rafaela. There is also her neighbor Marin shows the “true” identity for women on Mango Street. She also sees her mother is and is not like that at the same time. The main struggle that Esperanza has is with beauty. This explains why most of the negative people that Esperanza meets on Mango Street, and her gender, helped her see the mold she needed to fill in order to give herself an identity.
“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
A beautiful, captivating, and revolutionary story, In the Time of the Butterflies, was written by Julia Alvarez and is a true account about struggle, courage, and love between four sisters, their families, and the people they encountered in their lives. This captivating story is so easy to relate to, as it’s written by a woman, about women, for women. What comes across clearly throughout the story is the Mirabal sisters’ passion for the revolution and how it overwhelmed their lives and the lives of anyone that was involved, or came into contact, with them. This resulted in the sisters being better revolutionaries than mothers, wives, sisters, or daughters. Their passion for the revolution is what drove them the most and what ultimately drove them to involuntarily put their families’ lives at risk. They participated, and were involved in the revolution in spite of the risk of imprisonment and torture. The Mirabal sisters fought until death for what they believe in and the benefit of their country.
Although different, the cultures in In the Time of the Butterflies by Julia Alvarez and Nectar in a Sieve by Kamala Makandaya share a lot of the same conflicts. Conflicts between the characters and society are what cause the themes. The two books are very different but they share three main themes that are still prevalent in societies today. Feminism, societal classes, and the struggle of power are the themes that fill both books.
Symbolism is the key to understanding Sandra Cisneros’ novel, “The House on Mango Street”. By unraveling the symbolism, the reader truly exposes the role of not only Latina women but women of any background. Esperanza, a girl from a Mexican background living in Chicago, writes down what she witnesses while growing up. As a result of her sheltered upbringing, Esperanza hardly comprehends the actions that take place around her, but what she did understand she wrote in her journal. Cisneros used this technique of the point of view of a child, to her advantage by giving the readers enough information of what is taking place on Mango Street so that they can gather the pieces of the puzzle a get the big picture.
Sandra Cisneros once said “'Hispanic' is English for a person of Latino origin who wants to be accepted by the white status quo. ’Latino' is the word we have always used for ourselves.” In the novel I read, The House on Mango Street, by Sandra Cisneros the main character a twelve-year-old Chicana (Mexican-American girl), Esperanza, saw self-definition as a struggle, this was a major theme in the novel through Esperanza’s actions and the ones around her. Esperanza tries to find identity in herself as a women as well as an artist throughout the novel through her encounters. Esperanza was able to provide the audience an image that was vivid of her surroundings by her diction and tone. Esperanza presents a series of stories that she deals with in her neighborhood as she is growing 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 in 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. Women are seen as failure and can’t strive without men in a Mexican-American community. In this novel you can see a cultural approach which examines a particular aspect of a culture and a gender studies approach which examines how literature either perpetuates or challenges gender stereotypes.
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...
Characteristics are what define us as human beings. When comparing and contrasting one person to another, characteristics is used to do so. Characteristics such as physical appearance or emotional perceptions help define how a person is perceived, and how we do, or do not compare in such ways. Authors use descriptions of physical characteristics to help us paint a picture in our mind of characters’ appearance from their books while, characteristics of a character’s mentality help develop a personality for us to relate to. It is important for authors to develop personality so readers can relate or understand the differences from themselves and the characters of their stories. The house on mango street is a book written by Sandra Cisneros which, is about main character Esperanza coming to age. Esperanza speaks frequently about having a house she can be proud to call her own. The house in this story represents both physical and intangible wants and needs of the main character. I cannot compare myself physically due to the difference in sex but, Esperanza and I do have similarities
The author, Sandra Cisneros, grew up as a Mexican-American woman in Chicago, Illinois. Her mother was Mexican -American and her father was from Mexico; she makes a clear point the difference between the two cultures. She graduated from Loyola University in Chicago and from there enrolled in a Writers’ Workshop at the University of Iowa. Bad Boys, a book of poetry, was published by a small press company that specialized in Latino literature in 1980. It received little notice. But her first fiction collection, House on Mango Street, was published in 1984 and gained the noticed of the New York publishing establishment. “The work is organized, like Mango Street, around the central female protagonist, whose views of her extended family help to clarify her own character” (Perkins, 390). The story “Woman Hollering Creek” came from her 1991 book of stories entitled Woman Hollering Creek and Othe...
The Statue of Liberty is an American icon because it symbolizes freedom, success, and the power of this nation. This image is what the U.S stands for to the outside world. Foreigners strive to move to America because of its wealth and acceptance towards all races and ethnicity. “How the Garcia Girls Lost Their Accents” recounts the story of how Carlos Garcia, Laura Garcia, and their four girls move from the Dominican Republic to the United States to escape a dictatorship, and establish a new life in flourishing New York City. Many unexpected culture shocks await them in their new country. Although the girls find it difficult to adapt at first, they soon begin to assimilate and Americanize. On the other hand, “The Struggle to Be an All-American Girl” by Elizabeth Wong illustrates the life of an Asian American having to embrace two entirely different cultural identities. Both the Garcia family and Elizabeth Wong's family have to deal with two opposing cultures without losing too much of their heritage. The book and the essay are similar in that characters in each story lose much of their original tradition. However, they are different in that the families move to the states for distinctive reasons, and the cultural preference of “The Struggle to Be an All-American Girl” is more evident than that of “How the Garcia Girls Lost Their Accents”.
Esperanza, the main character of The House on Mango Street, a novella written by Sandra Cisneros in 1984, has always felt like she didn’t belong. Esperanza sought a different life than the ones that people around her were living. She wanted to be in control of her life, and not be taken away by men as so many others around her had. Esperanza wanted to move away from Mango Street and find the house, and life she had always looked for. Through the use of repetition, Sandra Cisneros conveys a sense of not belonging, that can make a person strong enough to aspire to a better life.
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.
A role model an influential person whom one imitates. Role models contribute key life lessons to anyone looking up to them. Role models provide basic structure both to achieve greatness and to learn from the mistakes that they have made in their lifetimes. Role models provide many benefits to those who look up to them, making life decisions easier because of the examples they have set. The book The House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros reveals many role models for the young, female Latina protagonist, Esperanza. As expected, the women in the Mango Street neighborhood significantly influence Esperanza. She has a variety of female role models. Many are trapped in abusive relationships, waiting for others to change their lives. Some are actively trying to create change on their own. Through these women and Esperanza’s reactions to them, Cisneros not only shows the hardships women face, but also explores their power to
The women of Mango Street are looked down upon by men based on their lack of respect for women. Marin and Minerva feel trapped and will not leave to restraints of Mango Street. Sadley even in 2015, this happens to women all over the world, not just Mango Street. Cases of these abuse crimes come up everyday in the newspapers, rich or poor, educated or uneducated, no one is
In the novel, The House on Mango Street, Sandra Cisneros describes the problems that Latino women face in a society that treats them as second class citizens. A society that is dominated by men, and a society that values women for what they look like, and not for what is on inside. In her Novel Cisneros wants us to envision the obstacles that Latino women must face everyday in order to be treated equally.