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Lopez Silence And Rebellion: Redefining Chicana Identity

543 Words3 Pages

ENGL 1301 Mr.Manzoni July 2, 2024 Moises Lopez Silence and Rebellion: Redefining Chicana Identity Sandra Cisneros’ Woman Hollering Creek and Other Stories investigates the complexity of being a Chicana in America. Cisneros uses differing narratives in “Woman Hollering Creek” and “Never Marry a Mexican” to explain her experiences with cultural conflict as well as societal pressures that stem from it. This essay will compare and contrast the protagonists, Cleofilas and Clemencia, highlighting the sensitive topic of Mexican heritage and the implicit message Cisneros conveys to Chicana women. The character, Cleofilas, in “Woman Hollering Creek,” is an example of the traditional Chicana woman, who sacrifices herself for others. She is imprisoned by matrimonial expectations imposed on …show more content…

Her dreams, which are figments of imagination, offer her a glimpse of an independent self who knows love. However, these fantasies are shattered pieces that reflect her broken soul’s existence. The code-switching in Spanish and English, as she tries to salvage her identity through it, alternating between her cultural expectations and the individual need for self-expression: is a representation of her internal conflict. For instance, she states that “I’m not talking about leaving him.” but later contradicts this statement with “I’m leaving.I’m going back to Little House” (Cisneros 42). In terms of her journey’s ending, Cleofilas ushers us into uncertainty regarding whether she’ll ever come to real liberation or let herself succumb to suffocating domesticity. However, the main character in Never Marry a Mexican, Clemencia, goes against such traditional female roles. She emphasizes sexuality and fights against the male-dominated patriarchal framework within Mexican culture. Her utterance “Never marry a Mexican”.

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