Dreams In Sandra Cisneros's The House On Mango Street

As the book progresses, Esperanza witnesses the emerging sexuality of her peers and begins to encounter her own sexuality, too. This is a confusing state to be in, and Cisneros captures the confusion by blending these moments of sexual exploration with the brutality of gendered violence. Men beat their wives and daughters, and in most cases the sexual encounters in The House on Mango Street are unwanted. The boys and men of this book tend to take things, while the girls and women deal with the consequences. Esperanza knows all this already, and it contributes greatly to her desire to

All the people on Mango Street were struggling to get by, but they seemed satisfied with just making it. Esperanza was not. There were characters like Esperanza’s mother who was a “smart cookie,” and could’ve been anything, but she let shame get the best of her and dropped out of school. There was also Rafaela who got married before the 8th grade just so she could move into her own house, but her husband never let her leave the house afterward. He never let her see her friends, and the highlight of her week was getting coconut or papaya juice from someone who would send it up in a paper bag attached to a clothespin since she couldn’t leave the house. Lastly, there was the time when she was left stranded by the tilt-a- whirl waiting for a friend that never came back and got molested by a group of boys. The only witnesses were the red clown statues that seemed to be laughing at her. Nevertheless, she let none of this stopped her from going forward and perusing her dream. She still seemed to be struggling with a sense of belonging, but maybe that’s because she didn’t.

She was born in Chicago, Illinois. Cisneros grew up in a Latino family around the 1950s and 1960s. She had a Mexican father and Chicano mother. Cisneros was encouraged by her mother to read and was not insisted with spending all of her time performing classic “women’s work”. Cisneros welcomes her culture with open arms, but acknowledges the unjustness between the genders within. Having experience growing up in a poor neighborhood in a working class family while facing the difficulties created by racism, sexism, and her status, Esperanza longed to leave the barrio. Later, she finds her capability to succeed individually and find a “home with herself”; she worked to recreate some Chicano stereotypes for her community. Cisneros didn’t want to

In the collection of vignettes, The House on Mango Street, Sandra Cisneros develops the theme that people should not be devalued because of their financial circumstances through metaphors of classism, the motif of shame, and the contrast between minor characters Alicia and Esperanza’s mother. Esperanza, the protagonist, is a Mexican-American adolescent living in the rural Chicago region. She occupies a house on Mango Street with her father, mother, two brothers, Carlos and Kiki, and little sister, Nenny. Mango Street is filled with low-income families, like Esperanza’s, trying to adapt to their difficult circumstances. Esperanza realizes it is difficult, but she dreams of leaving her house and Mango Street altogether.

Not a daddy 's. A house all [her] own" (Cisneros 108). Esperanza wants her own house, and not her father 's or her husband 's which shows her growth into an independent person. She wants "a house all [her] own", which shows the importance of her finding her own identity. She emphasizes on "Not a man 's house... [or] a daddy 's" because she is not someone 's daughter or wife, but her own person. Before, Esperanza did not know that she needed to have her own identity, but by wanting her own house and not a house that belongs to someone else, it shows the transformation that Esperanza experiences since the beginning. Because in the beginning, she did not have her own identity, but by realizing and understanding the importance of her independence and her own individuality. Thus, through her self-growth, Cisneros demonstrates how Esperanza becomes a more independent person as well as her experiences with the world transforming her into a more mature woman.

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

Esperanza wishes to be grown so she can be free from Mango Street, but she is faced with a sense of powerlessness and no role models to show her to be powerful. Esperanza is surrounded by women who have submitted to their fate instead of standing up for themselves, except for Alicia. Esperanza, instead of following every woman who has submitted to their powerlessness, has chosen a role model who is showing her to be powerful. After Esperanza is raped, the peak of her powerlessness, she is speaking with Alicia, “No, this isn’t my house I say and shake my head as if shaking could undo the year I’ve lived here...No, Alicia says. Like it or not you are Mango Street, and one day you’ll come back too. Not me. Not until somebody makes it better. Who’s going to do it? Not the mayor” (Cisneros 106). Alicia is telling Esperanza that no matter how hard she tries, Mango Street will always be a part of her past, and she will come back someday. But at the same time, she’s hinting to Esperanza that she is strong enough to come back and change Mango Street for the better. Because who else is going to do it? Esperanza understands Alicia’s message to her and reflects upon what she wishes her future to be like, “One day I will pack my bags of books and paper. 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...They will not know I have gone away to

A poignant figure in Esperanza’s life is her own grandmother. In fact, Esperanza was given her birth name after her grandmother. A touching gesture that came from good faith. A name may have some value, but for Esperanza there was a high intrinsic quality to such a simple component. Despite, never encountering her own grandmother in person, Esperanza was grateful to have fond memories by carrying her legacy through her name. Life’s motto concerns dealing with adversity and carrying the legacy of one’s family eternally. Being confident and smart was the only way to live by. No man was needed to help raise and nurture herself. Her grandmother instilled in Esperanza a sense of fortitude and independence. It is sad that a regret of Esperanza is linked to her grandmother, further illustrating the physical and mental hardships one can endure in

Throughout the novel, The House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros, we see the main character, Esperanza, overcome several obstacles in her life and evolve as the novella progresses. Esperanza feels empowered by many things in her life, but most often we see her use her writing as an empowering vehicle for her escape from all of her troubles in her day to day life.

The House on Mango Street is a bildungsroman about a young Latina girl, named Esperanza Cordero, who has various struggles while she is searching to determine who she is and where she belongs in this world. The author, Sandra Cisneros, addresses several themes in the book of which three are significant; language barrier, self discovery, and gender roles.

Esperanza is the strong-willed main character who wants to break free from the limitations and expectations of a women set by her community. Unlike majority of the women in her neighborhood, she dreams of her escape from this discriminatory treatment. As she blossoms from a young girl to a mature women, she comes to the realization that she can never escape, because that house on Mango Street is a part of her. She can only learn from her experience living her never flee from it. When Esperanza creates creates an original piece of poetry, she shares it with Aunt Lupe, who in return, shares some insightful advice. (60-61) Writing through all forms can allow people to escape the realities and bounds of life.

Sandra Cisneros’ The House on Mango Street tells the story of a young, teenage, Latina girl named Esperanza, living in the late twentieth century. Esperanza takes her readers through her life and adventures through each chapter of the novella where each time she learns something. She faces the troubles of racism, friendship, and strange neighborhoods and most importantly, figuring out how she wants to spend her life. Through her race and wealth, Esperanza has created her identity as a shy, poor, and ambitious person.

When society faces obstacles that are deemed a burden it is often forgotten that those same Experiences and tragedies often shape an individual's outlook on life and inspires personal growth from within. The Novel, The House on Mango Street reminds its readers that even in the worst of times there is still a lesson to be learned as seen through the eyes of a girl named, Esperanza. The coming of age story deals with dark underlying struggles blanketed in the innocent viewpoint of a child forced to grow up frighteningly quick. The main protagonist, a young Chicano girl, reminds the audience of the importance of learning from past experience in order to form an identity entirely based on the individuals own volition. Sandra Cisneros, The author of House on Mango Street, uses Esperanza's struggles caused by her race,gender, and economic status to instill the theme of identity.

The House on Mango Street is a collection of vignettes written by Sandra Cisneros that is about a young Mexican-American girl named Esperanza, and the struggles of her life as she transitions from childhood into adulthood. Esperanza wants to find her true identity, but the conflicts and struggles that she faces throughout the story. Her town is a part of her adventure to find her self identity. She picks herself up, learning and figuring herself out throughout the novel. The author uses symbolism throughout the vignettes to convey the deeper meaning of conflicts developed in the novel, to show the difficulties of growing into adulthood.

The novel “The House on Mango Street” is written by Sandra Cineros. It deals with family, neighbourhood and dreams of a young Mexican girl, Esperanza Cordero growing up in Chicago. The novel begins when the Corderos move into a new house on Mango Street in the Latino section of Chicago. The fact that it is the first house they have ever owned, make them proud. But when Esperanza sees it, she is disappointed by the red, dilapidated house. It is not the one their