Feminist Novel 'Like Water For Chocolate'

Gender plays a significant role in family and societal traditions. Some families place such a large importance on that role that it is impossible for a person to achieve his or her goals or live his or her life. Society binds people to strict standards that are difficult to avoid. In Laura Esquivel's Like Water for Chocolate, Tita is forced to follow the tradition of her family. She cannot marry and is doomed to serve her mother for the rest of her life. Her two sisters, Rosaura and Gertrudis, are also effected by this tradition, but in different ways. James Joyce's collection of short stories, The Dubliners, deals with the issues of common residents of Dublin. Polly, in the short story "The Boarding House," is trapped in the

Like Water for Chocolate is Laura Esquivel’s original romantic love story and is often dubs as the Mexican Romeo and Juliet. In just 246 pages, Esquivel creates a breathtaking work of art, strategically incorporating love, desire, nurture, and feminism. This novel is famously known for its magical realism, a device Esquivel uses in order to justify the perception of the novel and to make extraordinary concepts seem normal. In other words, it is the glue that holds the book together. The novel’s magical realism, helps define lust by incorporating the element of fire. By adding magical elements into the day-to-day life, readers can critically analyze the characters and thus understand their thoughts and actions.

The first thing that I saw in a Feminism perspective is that the main characters in the novel is played by women, the first character is a young girl (Mariam) and the second character a girl who is growing up in a less fortunate condition. While reading the novel I found that it was obvious that in the novel, “A Thousand Splendid Suns”, men have more rights than women and that can be seen by the fact that men have authority over women. In the novel it was also a fact in the men’s eyes that the women belong at

1. a) In Like Water for Chocolate the novel deals with issues such as family relationships, the plight of women, sex, love, feminism, religion and to some extent morality.

There are multiple interpretations of the term, feminism. Some regard feminism as the idea of women gaining equal treatment of that men deserve such as opportunities, rights, and power. Whereas, others consider feminism as the idea of women being superior and holding more power than men. In the novel, Like Water for Chocolate, written by Laura Esquivel, there are many implications that define the true meaning of feminism and provides a descriptive, detailed character development which indicates whether the novel supports feminism or not. I am with the majority, who believes that Like Water For Chocolate is feminist novel, due to the fact that characters such as Gertrudis and Mama Elena show independence, courage, and persistence, which indicates

not a feminist novel, because it illustrates how others feel that women are “supposed” to act in

Like Water for Chocolate Essay Recognizing personal strengths and weaknesses is part of the ongoing process of bettering ourselves. In the novel, Like Water for Chocolate by Laura Esquivel, she explains the strengths and weaknesses over the character named Tita De la Garza. Within the context, Laura Esquivel develops Tita’s emotions through feminists. Tita is the novel’s protagonist, struggles her needs for belonging and security. As well as her desires for adventure, sex, and liberation. In Like Water for Chocolate, it simply explains that there is no such thing as a good or bad woman. Every woman in different in their own unique way. Laura Esquivel explains that women are capable of a variety of complex and often contrary emotions

Female characters in feminist literature are constantly highlighted as the protagonist who does not agree to the stereotypic treatment of women in society and refused to be treated the same instead they are prepared to make their own choices, to express their own decisions as well as dealing with the outcomes of their actions. Although every woman is a daughter, a mother, a sister or a wife, any work of feminist literature first deals with her as a woman. The identity of these female characters is not determined by these relationships, roles, or stereotypes. Rather, it is their choices and beliefs that define their identity and they are then associated with these roles. Firstly, there is a big difference between the main female characters; Ofelia, Carmen, and Mercedes. There is an inner conflict towards pregnancy itself where the infant is also the cause of the mother 's worries and sick wellbeing, which is symbolized in Ofelia 's land of magic by

In Laura Esquivel’s Like Water for Chocolate and John Steinbeck’s The Grapes of Wrath, the female characters are presented in nontraditional ways for the times in which the novels are set. Each novel shows a clear distinction between the male and female characters, and it would make sense to feel a feminist vibe from the authors at certain points in the novels. In these novels, the female characters use the traditional distinction between gender roles to change the dynamics of their families and function within the novel.

Throughout this course, I have read two main novels where I have identified various biases. Before reading Like Water for Chocolate and The White Tiger, I have had many biases; however, the authors have challenged it. Like Water for Chocolate, written by Laura Esquivel, is the novel I have read in my book club. Esquivel is a Mexican writer who enjoys writing about the Mexican culture. She explores and describes the relationship between both men and women who live in Mexico. In this novel, every chapter begins with a recipe which represents every major event that happens in Tita’s, the protagonist’s life. Cooking is like a therapy for Tita because it helps her through physical and mental abuse. Life is tough for Tita and she is someone who listens

From a feminist perspective, the way women are presented in this story is offensive. Feminism is the advocacy of women's rights on the grounds of political, social, and economic equality to men. In the story Women are not socially equal to men. The image portrayed of women in this story is is nothing like the women of today.

There is then the focal character, Tita. Tita is the pivotal character in defining Like Water for Chocolate as a feminist

At the time Like Water for Chocolate takes place, the Mexican Revolution rages on. The book takes place during the turn of the nineteenth century, which leads to many other events in the story. The Mexican Revolution took place from 1910 to 1920, and brought many changes to the Mexican culture. In the novel, the reader can see that Gertrudis was one of the many women who participated in the Mexican Revolution, and worked her way up to being a general in the movement. Women that participated in the Mexican Revolution were sometimes found fighting beside the men, which was not something that many women did during that time. Also, during the time of the Mexican Revolution, the soldiers treated many women and young females poorly. Esquivel tells how many women were mistreated, “A group of bandits attacked the ranch. They raped Chencha. Mama Elena, trying to defend her honor, suffered a strong blow to her spine and was left a paraplegic, paralyzed from the waist down” (Esquivel 129). These events are described vividly from her first-person perspective to better understand the situations that took place during the time that the Revolution was raging on.

Writer Ngozi Adichie says a feminist is a “person who believes in the social, political, and economic equality of the sexes,” meaning both sexes are treated equally. “Cinderella” does not portray women as equal to men, rather it suggests that a woman’s value highly depends on a man and teaches girls to become patient victims. For instance, it places attention on a woman’s chastity, beauty, passiveness, as the story accepts abuse, discourages powerful women, and insists on a double standard.

Feminist theory began in the late 18th century, the main goal was to diminish sexism in society and create equality for men and women. Throughout the years, women have succeeded in gaining equal rights. Unfortunately, there are still issues today. For instance, women are paid 78% of what men are paid. One novel that portrays the argument of Feminism is House of Spirits by Isabel Allende. To begin with, Men are characterized as violent and destructive beings while women are forgiving and possess magic. All the women in the book have names that mean light. Finally, the men in the book have all the power while women remain submissive.