Bread In The House On Mango Street Cisneros

The Effects of Belonging to Certain Areas in Cisneros Literature
Belonging: “(of a person) fit in a specified place or environment” (www.Dictionary.com 1). Generally, every person goes through a phase of figuring out who they are and where they belong. Using her poetic and relatable writing, Cisneros vividly illustrated what it’s like to question your sense of belonging through Esperanza in the House on Mango Street and Chayo in the Woman Hollering Creek. Both of the characters crave to fit in and find their place in life. The vignette “Those who don’t” relates to the short story, “Bread” in the Woman Hollering Creek because they both emphasize the effects of belonging to Chicana areas.
“Those who don’t” discusses the outcome of living in

Where you grow up determines how you are shaped as a person. Specifically, the people around you mold you into who you are, and for Esperanza/Chayo, it was the Chicano/a community. Since Esperanza had grown up in an underprivileged neighborhood, it usually was not what she desired. She expected that anywhere else would be better- it would fit her description of home. Similarly, Chayo had the same perceptions about where she lived too. Chayo looked at where she lived through the lens of her past experiences, which was revealed as to have been not as she longed for. We could see from “Bread” that she didn’t have very good memories of a place that the Italian man loves, causing her to dislike her community. On the contrary, these two particular parts of the novels differ because Esperanza expresses some pride for where she lives and feels safe in the House on Mango Street. “But we aren’t afraid. We know the guy with crooked he is Davey the Baby’s brother, and the tall one next to him in the straw brim, that’s Rosa Eddie V., and the big one that looks like a dumb grown man, he’s Fat Boy, though he’s not fat nor a boy anymore” (Cisneros1 28). The people Esperanza describe seem intimidating and most anyone would be frightened by people like these. However, Esperanza knows the people not for their daunting looks, but for their

Both of Cisneros main speakers don’t know where they fit in. Esperanza has lived in the Chicano/a community her whole life and knows it’s safe, but wonders about the other races and ethnicities. Chayo recalls bad memories from her childhood, so she isn’t a big part of the Chicano/a community anymore. This being said, Chayo doesn’t know what community she is a part of. However, Esperanza does show some happiness for where she lives, unlike Chayo who doesn’t express any happiness whatsoever. Evidently, the vignette “Those who don’t” from the House on Mango Street and Woman Hollering Creek are character defining moments for Esperanza and Chayo and they compare and contrast the theme of