Character Analysis on Sandra Cisneros' Short Stories

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Recommended: Mexican american family life

Characterization:

This story is about racial discrimination between the Mexicans and the Americans. Clemencia, who is a Mexican-American, is straddling two different cultures. Bitterness and resentment in Clemencia causes her to behave in a rebellious and destructive way. Due to her mother's influences and the day her mother abandons the family for white men which fuel her resentment against the white and she also share her negative feelings towards the Mexican race by refusing to get romantically involved with Mexican men and commits adultery with married white men.

With reference from paragraph 9 and 13 (page 69-70 and 71 respectively) tell me the hardships Mexican-Americans struggles with trying to fit into the totally different cultures. The native Mexican feels that these immigrants and their descendents are not "Mexican enough." From paragraph 44 (page 80) "he could never marry me", shows that the American feel that the Mexican-Americans are not "American enough" to be part of their culture. With two different cultures, it is extremely tough for the Mexican-Americans to fit into the two cultures completely without any disagreements as many people have the impression that Mexican lacks a sense of pride and worth due to their lowly-paid jobs, for example, bus drivers, butchers, waiters.

Furthermore from paragraph 8 (page 69) "If he had married a white woman from el otro lado..." helps to understand how two different cultures and their conflicting stereotypes can damage relations with the Mexican-American race. She also mentioned on how her father, a native Mexican married down by marrying her Mexican-American mother.

Next, from paragraph 37 and paragraph 40 (page76 and 77 respectively) tells me that Clemencia shows her racist views by having strong resentments towards the white women. She purposely tries to afflict pains into their marriages by having affairs with their husbands. She openly confesses that she would think twice hurting women of the same race as her. All these actions revealed to me that she is filled with hatred against them because white women possess things such as nice, lavish material possessions, stability in life and most important of all, love which she is being denied as Mexican-American. She also shows her racism against the white women by calling Drew's wife names like stupid and bitch and makes fun of her courtesy towards her over the phone.

She also demonstrates her racist views towards her own race by refusing to get romantically involved with Mexican men. Her contempt against the Mexican men because they belong to the lower class of society.

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