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Despotism In The House On Mango Street

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The House On Mango Street: A Study in Feminine Obligation To attempt to thrive in a society plagued by maltreatment and despotism is like trying to build a house of cards in the middle of an earthquake. Failure is the only possible outcome, and opposition simply ends in shame. Thus, in the House On Mango Street, Sandra Cisneros suggests that women fail their responsibilities of protection for each other when surrounded by a male dominant society, as shown in the relationship between Esperanza and Sally. Esperanza fails Sally in “The Monkey Garden” by not following through with her attempts to derail the boys’ devious plan of forcing Sally to kiss them. When the boys take Sally into the garden for their kisses “something inside [Esperanza] wanted to say no”, to tell Sally that the treatment she was receiving from the boys was disgusting (Cisneros 119). Esperanza, however, cannot bring herself to raise objections to the treatment of her friend because of the daunting involvement of the boys, leaving Sally helpless to the hands of the vile youth. The boys are foreign, and, …show more content…

Esperanza calls out, shouting, “Sally, make him stop”, but her friend ignores her pleas (Cisneros 123). The man distracted Sally, resulting in her friend being scarred beyond all measure. The men overpowered Sally’s mind, causing her to fail her duty as a womanly protector. In addition, Esperanza places full blame on Sally because she “never came for [her]”, breaking her promise to return to Esperanza's side (Cisneros 123). Esperanza relies on Sally to protect her from the dangers in her community that she cannot face herself, and Sally’s renege left her truly defenseless. Sally’s blatant ignorance of Esperanza’s state was the result of a man, and because of that Sally failed to uphold her obligation to her

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208 Words | 1 Pages

Analysis Sally’s father is one of the most oppressive male characters in the book, and the situation implies that Sally is trying to escape her abusive home life through sexual experimentation with boys. Esperanza still thinks this sexual experience is glamorous, and she doesn’t connect Sally’s horrible father with Sally’s need to escape. Sally does inspire a feeling of protectiveness in Esperanza, as she tries to shelter Sally from pain and the outside world – but it turns out that this is the same sentiment that paradoxically and tragically leads her father to beat her. Summary Sally admits that her father hits her, but she says that he never hits her hard.

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756 Words | 4 Pages

In the book “The House on Mango Street” there are three major characters that influence Esperanzas ambitions for her future, and let her change and grow as a person. People such as Mama, Alicia, and Sally give Esperanza a glimpse of what it takes to have a good life, and how hard you have to work to escape poverty. Esperanza is really ashamed of being poor, and not being able to wear nice clothes, but she soon learns that it does not matter what people think about you, and that her values are more important. When Esperanza begins desiring boys, she comes upon a girl named Sally, who boys find beautiful.

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1278 Words | 6 Pages

“Isabel, I will tell you about how I used to live. About parties and private school and the beautiful doll my papa bought me, if you will teach me how to pin diapers, how to wash, and…”(p120). This is significant because it proves that Esperanza will do anything to get that job. She doesn’t want to work, but in order to achieve her goals, she has to. And she is willing to do that for her family.

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1445 Words | 6 Pages

Still Esperanza does not get what is going on at this point. She is still so naïve and innocent. Sometimes the reader forgets how young she actually is because of the things she is going through at such a young age. Her mind and her decisions are moving at a faster pace, but she is still so blind to the world.

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601 Words | 3 Pages

During this, Esperanza insists upon the fact that Sally “[...] never came, you never came for me. Sally Sally a hundred times. Why didn’t you hear me when I called? Why didn’t you tell them to leave me alone?” (100).

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493 Words | 2 Pages

The House on Mango Street: Facing Realities In The House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros, many characters struggle with facing the realities of their lives and economical situations. Two prominent examples of this struggle are houses and trapped women. One girl, named Esperanza, is raped while she is visiting the carnival with her friend Sally. Esperanza said, "Sally, you lied.

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433 Words | 2 Pages

Esperanza finds out that she needs to become promiscuous in order to be popular like Sally and she’s not comfortable with that idea. Later on Sally and Esperanza go to the carnival, Sally leaves her alone to go with a boy. Esperanza is now by herself vulnerable and ends up getting raped. She realizes that boys are not what she thought they were, so she decides to focus on herself. Esperanza changes what she thought she wanted for the future.

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946 Words | 4 Pages

Esperanza accuses Sally due to her lack in returning after she goes with a boy who is older than her, but the accusation is deeper than she expects. Esperanza is angry that girls project that kissing goes hand in hand with love. "I love you, Spanish girl" is a scary reminder to Esperanza and that the image of sex that's portrayed in culture is being misrepresented to girls. Esperanza understands that men do not change, and that women need to help one another to get through tough times. At the end of the story, Esperanza becomes an important figure for women’s help in her

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1204 Words | 5 Pages

Many girls desire a female role model from a young age. The way these women are treated, and deal with this treatment can heavily impact the way young girls view themselves, and their future as well. Sandra Cisneros’ The House on Mango Street brings attention to issues of sexism and gender roles. This is done through a series of vignettes about the main character Esperanza navigating life by the example of her many role models. Each role model impacts Esperanza in a special way, Sally who is married at 13, Marin who is waiting to be rescued by a man, and Alicia who is balancing school and home responsibilities.

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437 Words | 2 Pages

The House on Mango Street is set in a poor, primarily Hispanic neighborhood. Author Sandra Cisneros creates an atypical, yet easily digestible world for the reader to experience while learning about Esperanza’s childhood. The culture of her environment influences Esperanza’s development as she becomes a young woman, and contributes to the book’s driving theme of self-empowerment. Mango Street is the source of Esperanza’s growth through her childhood, and it hides sadness and longing underneath stereotypes of Hispanic people. The characters that live in the broken-down neighborhood all seem to represent pigeonholed views of Latino individuals.

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1605 Words | 7 Pages

The House on Mango Street, written by Sandra Cisneros, is a novel about a young girl growing up in the Latino area of Chicago. It is highly admired and taught in a plethora of grade schools and universities. The House on Mango Street expresses the story of Esperanza Cordero, whose neighborhood is full of harsh realities and jarring beauty. Esperanza doesn’t desire to belong- not to her degenerate neighborhood, and not to the minimum expectations of the world. Esperanza’s story is about her coming into power, and inventing what she’ll independently become.

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990 Words | 4 Pages

The argument of women's role in society is an argument that is largely rooted in the history of mankind. In the book, “The House on Mango Street”, Sandra Cisneros explores this topic though the main character Esperanza who is in search for her place in Mango Street and the trials and tribulations of getting by in her world. In the book Cisneros indicates that the biggest obstacle that women face in mango street is women's dependence on men. Cisneros explore this topic through the many women in mango street; these women act an outlook on the future for Esperanza.

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1117 Words | 5 Pages

Esperanza is often humiliated not only by where she lives, but also by her physical appearance, hence causing a restriction in her climb to a higher social class. Esperanza is frequently ashamed of her family’s broken-down house in an urban, poor

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1348 Words | 6 Pages

The main protagonist Esperanza, matures from a childish girl to a young confident woman through many critical and life changing events in the story. Ultimately, the author, Sandra Cisneros implements the symbols of confidence, the house on mango street and the metaphor of shoes to show how Esperanza develops into a more mature state. Sandra Cisneros

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Esperanza says that she will come back, she will come back for “the ones I left behind... the ones who cannot out”. (Cisneros 110). Esperanza is able to go through a change and accept who she is through her community and her family. She is able to use her situation to empower herself, and to be hopeful in her own

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