War Rages On in Like Water for Chocolate by Laura Esquivel

After she has an affair with a tenant her mother forces Polly to marry him. Gender related family traditions are hard to get out of because they are hard standing; societal traditions bear the judgment of everyone. The De La Garza family tradition states that the youngest daughter in a family must take care of the mother instead of marrying. She isn't allowed to have her own life. Tita disagrees with the rigid tradition because it confines her to a life without love.

War to her is a necessity because she needs the business from the soldiers in order to survive, but on the other hand, war is her ultimate enemy. She is doing everything to keep her and her children from being involved with the war. It was her husband’s death that lead to her natural defenses for her children and the war which in turn resulted in expressing her strong maternal instinct. Also, Mother Courage is forced to make decisions and puts a lot of effort into trying to stay with her children. For example, when the Cook proposes to Mother Courage, Kattrin realizes that the Cook thinks she is a burden and does not like her.

She keeps Tita from her true love, Pedro, and it is later revealed that Mama Elena herself once suffered from a lost love, embittering her for the rest of her life. Any child of her is deemed unworthy when he/she does something that is against her "rules." She takes this to the extreme where the rules are imposed on her more "public family," John Brown and Pedro included. Her stern stature is noted when her daunting gaze makes the Revolutionary general Juan Trevino uneasy. Eventually, her pride and distrust is revealed to be her major flaw which causes her death.

Women throughout time have been forced to cope with the challenges of motherhood along with society’s expectations as to what a mother’s relationship should be with her child. Novelist, Agatha Christie said of the relationship between mother and child, “A mother’s love for her child is like nothing else in the world. It knows no law, no pity, it dares all things and crushes down remorselessly all that stands in its path.” In Beloved, Toni Morrison examines the same idea; ultimately showing that the mother’s willingness to protect her child at all costs often endangers the mother herself. Beloved is set in the late 1800’s but Sethe’s experiences as a mother ring true with the experiences of mothers throughout time because the act of being a mother is timeless. As a child Sethe was separated from her mother both physically and mentally because of slavery, so when she has her own children she is determined to keep her family together.

Clemencias mother wanted better for her daughter, to not be thought of as marrying down. This resulted in Celmencia becoming promiscuous and never marrying at all. Sandra uses a strong cultural male accepted role of being promiscuous in Clemencias female character. She flipped the roles to enhance Clemencias power but showed the result as being powerless and bitter. Clemencias climax of power proved to be as she lay with her lover as his wife give birth to his son.

Kate's attitude about her birthmark and her attitude towards her mother become a source of tension in their relationship. She hates that her mom simply will not apologize for the birthmark.. Kate begins to hate her mother for her lack of compassion and so she seeks other women with which to form bonds. Mo Rhodes and Angela become substitutes to compensate for the close relationship that Kate lacks with her own mother. Mo Rhodes is the epitome of a "cool" mom. When the Rhodes' move in across the street, Kate is intrigued by Mo and overwhelmed by the chance to get to know Misty, a friend her own age.

She is mad at her mother, her sister, and especially Pedro. She is the first one who rebelles against her mother; her mother was tries to get Tita to break, but she will not show any weakness when her mother is around. Since her mother has arranged Pedros and Rosaura’s marriage, t... ... middle of paper ... ..., in love etc, the people who eat her food will be affected by it. This book talks about how a young women named Tita who rebels against her mother, Mama Elena , for the better. She was the only person who was able to stand up to her.

From a young inexperienced girl, to a full grown and independent woman, Tita fights against Mama Elena’s rules before and after her death, in order to make her own choice about herself. Through her struggle for freedom, Tita molds herself into a mature woman. At the beginning of the novel, Tita presents herself as an immature, and defenseless girl in the face of Mama Elena’s rule because of her inability to stand up for herself and rebel against Mama Elena. The start of the novel tells the reader about Tita’s dear lover, Pedro, who she could not marry due to the tradition of the family. Even though Pedro and Tita are madly in love, Mama Elena brutally denies Tita’s request in marry Pedro.

Tita, our protagonist, struggles against her mothers’ tradition, to “serve” her until the day she dies, without having a life of her own. Tita desperately fights for her freedom and love, while Mama Elena stands as a prime opposition that prevents her from living her dream. The other two sisters are caught in between trying to find their own purpose in life. The writing is filled with magical realism, where the food plays an important part as it shows the characters true nature depending on their relationship with it, as well as evoking all sorts of emotions. One particular chapter of the book that shows the absent mother-daughter relationship is the first chapter, January – Christmas Rolls, which sets not only their relationship but also their personalities that can be seen through their actions.

(199). After all this time Tita finally stands up against her mother, and puts her in her place. She chooses to fight back instead of just remaining quiet and obeying her mom's orders. Throughout the novels Like Water for Chocolate, and Mater Harold...and the boys, Tita and Sam experience discrimination. The difference between them were that after Sam protested, he was still treated the same, were as when Tita rebelled, she was set free.