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Which one of the vignettes from pages 3 – 53 of The House on Mango Street made the strongest impression on you? In a post of at least 150 words, identify the vignette and discuss its theme or central idea, explaining why it resonated for you. Please do not discuss the same vignette someone else has discussed, if possible.
Also, address comments to others by name so we can all follow along.
88 thoughts on “Week 14 Discussion”
The vignette that made the strongest impression on me, from the short novel The House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros was, “The Family of Little Feet”. In this vignette the narrator and her friends receive pairs of heels. The girls have fun together as they walk around the neighborhood showing off their heels, until older men begin to hit on them. Towards the end of the story, the girls pass by a homeless man and one of them asks him if he likes her shoes. The man says yes but becomes extremely inappropriate and tries to convince one of the girls to kiss him if he gives her a dollar. The girls run off and decide to throw away the shoes after their unsettling experience. This story resonated with me because oftentimes when young girls dress up in clothing or wear accessories that are considered mature for their age, men often view that as an opportunity to sexaulize and harass them. For most young women they go through this experience, wearing red nail polish or lipstick can be seen as something inherently sexual even though it is only make up.
Great choice for a standout poem! It was alarming the way that society as a whole was being very demanding on these little girls due to perceptions based on patriarchal concepts and sexualizing of females. Firstly, the girls were obviously extremely enthusiastic to get pretty shoes, which make them feel like “Cinderalla”, yet right off the bat some man warns them to take them off as he says “them are dangerous”. It is perplexing to think that wearing something like shoes automatically puts little girls in danger, yet right afterward, they are sexualized by several men. It is sad, that by the end the girls say “we are tired of being beautiful”, because wearing what makes them feel that way, inherently puts them at risk of being sexualized by older men, despite them just wanting to have fun.
Hey Jonathan, I agree with your statement. This poem is saddening because most young women experience being sexualized at a young age because of the clothing or accessories they chose to wear. The idea that a young girl isn’t allowed to wear clothing she feels beautiful in because of our perception of what makes a girl promiscuous is absurd. I think this poem gave insight into the awkwardness and dangers women in their adolescence face when experimenting with their self-image and expression.
Serafina! This is vignette fully revealed the dangerous world of men is to the girls. These girls are amazed as to how these shoes suddenly makes their legs long and how womanly they feel. The sexual encounters these girls faced due to their shoes caused them to discard their sexuality easy as a pair of shoes. Indeed, it is sad that these girls had to feel scared and rid themselves of beauty because of the both the danger of her male-dominated society, and the pleasure they gets from being desirable. I think this vignette sets the stage for what is to come; the threatening potential of the adult world, especially its sexual aspects.
Treshel, your comment to Serafina is beautifully expressed and says it all!
Serafina, thanks for the good comments. Yes, I think most girls can remember the thrill of trying on lipstick or high heels for the first time, not quite aware of how provocative their innocent play might be viewed by some as provocative. Clearly these girls don’t yet know about the effect they might have on men. It’s as if they are testing their potential power a little bit.
Hi Serafina, I enjoyed your take in this. When I was a child my family would not let me do some things that were absolutely ridiculous to me at the time. For instance my grandmother would have a total attack if my mother would paint my fingernails any color. Painting of nails would not happen until much later. Red lipstick, well I could all but forget about that if I didn’t want to face serious circumstances. And the heeled shoes you mentioned, yeah it was definitely a no no for a long time and maybe only for a school play. It was also not allowed for me to be in the presence of a man alone, even male family members all because sexualization is no respecter of person ans as been around from the beginning of mankind . Once I became a mother, I myself found myself restricting those very same things on my children, (although not as strict) and I included my boys too now. My grandmother even made bracelets to keep sexual interest in the lil ones away. The girls in the story were learning about something that would return in there life soon enough and I like the way it was told and your analysis..
Janine, I’m so curious. What do you mean about those bracelets your grandmother created?
Hi Professor, the bracelet is called Manita de Azabache and it is common is a lot of Hispanic countries to give one to a new born baby. It is believed to protect the baby from what is called for protection from el “Mal de Ojo, ” the evil eye. When people interact with the baby it is believed to protect the baby from envy and malice which would include lusting eyes. It is usually a little fist made out of pure black jet. Most are usually made of gold, with black and red beads but sometimes the gold is not affordable so it may be made at home from just the beads a the little fist. The bracelet is more common than the necklace for the babies bur some children wear a necklace as they get older. Most are prayed over by a religious figure of the family or the babies God-Parent. If it breaks its considered bad luck and means someone has looked at the child with bad energy. Mines never broke than God or my grandmother and mom would have flipped out.
Serafina, it seemed to me as well that the major theme was how these girls were experiencing being sexualized for the first time and how disturbing it was.
I’ll add that I personally view how we dress or makeup as an expression of art, it can be so freeing and empowering when a woman embraces these aspects into her life, and it can also be a valued skill. Unfortunately, in the eyes of society or in some men’s eyes, it’s just another thing that is sexualized and in this scenario, it scared those young girls so much they threw the shoes away even though they were so happy about it at first and it killed their joy and maybe some of their innocence in a way.
Serafina I agree with you that today’s society is very inappropriate when it comes to young women just wanting to express themselves with what they have to wear. It’s ashamed we have to tell our daughters to be careful of what they wear because some “men” don’t have respect. I like how you made the comparison with this vignette to the real world of the problems we have in today’s world of young women wearing what they want.
The standout vignette to me was “Our good day” as it connects back/adds to “Cathy the queen of cats” as well as “boys and girls” and “My name is”. From this story, we get the idea that Esperanza is lonely, and just wants a friend, therefore not discriminating against who it is. This connects somewhat to “boys and girls” where she talks about the desire to have a best friend, yet her brothers are only commanding in the house, and ignore her fully when outside. The story also goes gets more context from “Cathy the queen of cats”, as within the story “Our good day” we can see that Esperanza wants friends, and she knows Cathy is only temporary and she is also condescending to people like her and the 2 others looking to buy the bike, that being poor or smelly. Lastly, it connects back to “My name is”, as she hates her name, but when she says it to the 2 girls, she expects them to ridicule her. “Our good day” seems to bring themes like loneliness, condescending fake friendships, as well as negative aspects of self-awareness; it combines all these three to make a poem that builds on the previous stories’ central themes. The story resonated with me because like Esperanza, during my middle school days, I would sometimes befriend the people who were out of place in some way, despite no one else wanting to because I had pity for them. In addition, it stuck out to me how surface-level Cathy was as a friend, and how understanding Esperanza is.
Jonathan, you are a great guy because it’s so rare when a child risks his own status to be kind to the unpopular or left-out kid in school. All I can say is hooray for you. You must have been secure in your own skin. I agree that being accepting is one of Esperanza’s endearing traits, even if it stems in part from loneliness. To me, she seems to have a great curiosity about people.
Hi Jonathan, I really like the way you manage to tie the ideas of these four different vignettes here. This is exactly the author’s main intention with the whole collection of vignettes in the story “The House on Mango Street”. I love that Esperanza follows her instincts to get to know better the two girls and ignores Cathy’s negative advice. I think that is very important don’t rely upon other people’s opinions about other persons.
The Vignette that standout to me from The house on Mango Street was ”My Name”. This vignette develops this girl desire to become her own person. “Esperanza” is an old name, carrying with it an unwanted legacy, her great-grandmother’s domestication and the unwelcome effect of separating her from others English speakers who cannot pronounce it beautifully as it should be. Esperanza, whose name means “hope” in Spanish, seems to feel burdened by her name. “It was my great-grandmother’s name and now it is mine.” Esperanza intends to avoid her great-grandmother’s fate: “I have inherited her name, but I don’t want to inherit her place by the window.” This vignette resonates with me because just like how Esperanza’s grandmother spends her life looking out the window and afraid to take chances or doing new things, my grandmother does the same. She trapped herself and could have probably done more to change her situation and be happier.
Treshel, yes, I think this vignette about names would make a great discussion in itself. How do we feel about our names? How much do they seem to tie us to a particular path or destiny? I love the line you choose from the vignette because it expresses so well how Esperaza does not want to have the life of her grandmother, a theme which runs through many of the chapters.
Hi Treshel, I like your explanation of this vignette. A name is a gift that parents start with when they are born, and name use throughout their lives. Even if you do not like it, you cannot change it. Her name means “hope” in Spanish, but she lived a life similar to her great-grandmother with the same name. She has the same name as her, so she thinks she has a similar fate, but the words Names and natures do often agree, so I thought her way of thinking could change her life.
The most interesting vignette for me from the House on Mango street was “Boys & Girls”. In this vignette, the narrator expresses the desire to have a best friend one day that she could confide and trust with her secrets. At a young age, she understands that her brothers are each other’s best friends, and outside the house, they are only allowed to play with their male friends. She explains that as a result, she is compelled to socialize with her sister who is too young and who needs to constantly be taken care of. Which means her young sister is her responsibility. In addition to the girl needing a friend to hang out with, she compared herself to “a red balloon, a balloon tied to an anchor.” I predict her goal is to one day escape Mango Street, because of its references to floating and flying. This vignette resonates with me because sometimes at a certain age, girls want freedom and need friends of their age to talk to, and most importantly they need their own space.
Hi Fatu! I love how you explained this vignette. Esperanza explaining how she felt like “a balloon tied to an anchor” was very powerful to me. A balloon is light weight so she’s referring to herself as possibly light and delicate and the anchor represents her sister holding her back from her freedom. I have felt that way in the past and I am sure many others can too. I also agree that many girls do want their freedom at a certain age and I think it’s because there are so many expectations for us and things limiting us being a girl and becoming a young woman. We want to break free from that and being our authentic selves.
Fatu Bah, really nice understanding of the vignette, Esperanza is in need to have someone to express herself freely, someone who can understand her and also hangout with. Her two brothers seems to follow the old rule of we don’t know each other outside the house, and her sis is way too young to understand her teenage mind, so she seems to end up alone in her mind with her responsibility. I agree with your interpretation of the red balloon part, she hopefully will escape Mango Street, but I also believe it could mean that she is on her own, a one single and lonely balloon, tied up with something she cant change, to her family and situation. The last part is completely true, girls do need friends and their own space, but is not just girls but everyone, socializing is a need for humans. There is something called, “Maslow’s Hierarchy of needs” and Love/Belonging is part of it, that’s what Esperanza is missing in her life, the feeling of belonging.
Fatu, thanks for this very sensitive response to “Boys & Girls.” I think your comment about the red balloon is a good example of how readers get to understand Esperanza’s nature. It’s an image, but it expresses so well the desire she has for freedom and her need to rise above her present life.
I agree with Fatu, about how the main character of “Mango street” is looking for a best friend that she can tell her, all of her secrets. I also relate this to my personal experience by the many ways that I had to look for friends that I will trust and also feel controllable when I’m with them. The main thing that anyone is looking for a friend is someone also around their age by them having the same feelings because they had a previous experience in their life.
Fatu, I like the quote you used, “A red balloon, a balloon tied to an anchor.” I agree that one of her goals may be to escape not only mango street, but also everything that it represents. The house on mango street represents a lot to the young girl, evidently as she’s written so much about it. This metaphorical balloon is bound by an anchor to this place and time in her life that she is ashamed of and wants to separate herself from in order to feel ‘free’. But it also could just mean she feels bound by responsibility to take care of her sister, therefore being forced to neglect her desire to have a friend her age to feel ‘free’ with. The color of the balloon could also be significant seeing as red is associated with both love AND anger. She loves and cares about her sister but also feels angry at the fact that she has to care for her. I feel all interpretations are valid and very interesting.
Hi Fatu, I too like the imagery of the ‘red balloon tied to an anchor.” Many times children with lots of responsibility do feel tied down as if on an anchor. Sometimes its because of a younger sibling they may have to be responsible for and sometimes its another family member. In this story the narrator seems to have had many “anchors” because I think the constant moving, having to share one bedroom for six people, the the lack of finances, not having a pretty house with pretty things, would make any child feel stuck. I liked that spoke of the floating and flying of the red balloon as her goal to escape Mango Street, there I think it also represents that she still has not lost all help that its possible to change her situation.Thanks for your good point of view.
Fatu, You expressed this vignette well. Indeed, at her young age she knows that boys and girls in her neighborhood live in separate worlds and her brothers cannot socialize with her outside the house because she is a girl. This girl already understands some of the gender disparity in her society, but for now it is innocent and confined to her siblings. She believes her younger sister is too young to be her friend and this causes her to feel sad and lonely. She dreams of having a best friend of her own one day. As you mentioned, without such a friend she is like a red balloon “tied to an anchor.” Her desire for a best friend of her own is an early indication of her goal of autonomy.
The vignette, “Those Who Don’t” from The House On Mango Street, made the strongest impression on me. The vignette discusses the topic of social discrimination and stereotypes. The narrator describes how the people who come into her neighborhood are afraid, thinking everyone living there is dangerous and will stab them with a knife. She explains how those people “don’t know any better” which refers to the simple fact that they don’t know the neighborhood or the people personally to judge so quickly. This reminds me of the neighborhoods in Brooklyn. There are certain neighborhoods, such as Crown Heights, Brownsville and East New York, that have a bad reputation of being dangerous. Those neighborhoods are viewed as poor and dominated by people of color. Neighborhoods are judged by their lack of money or racial superiority. For example, Park Slope is not seen as poor or dangerous compared to Brownville because of the race of people living there. It is disappointing social discrimination occurs so often. The narrator does admit at the end of the vignette that when she goes into a neighborhood of “another color” her “knees go shakity-shake” and her car windows “get rolled up tight”. This illustrates her also being afraid like the people who don’t know better. I think everyone is guilty for doing this whether they heard from the media/society or their own parents that a specific neighborhood is dangerous and you shouldn’t go there. It is understandable to feel unsafe when entering a neighborhood you’re unfamiliar with but you should experience and see what it is like before completely judging and avoiding it.
Sheilaya, you make some great points in your comment about preconceived ideas people have about neighborhoods. Esperanza too has her own nervous reactions to being out of her place. People who don’t live in a particular neighborhood don’t know about the community that exists there that they don’t see and will never know. In these vignettes we see a whole world that exists in Esperanza’s neighborhood full of people outsiders might consider strange or scary.
Sheilaya,
To emphasize what you just stated, her narration here also implies that such fear depends on a lack of knowledge of the neighborhood and its residents, who likely aren’t as dangerous as they may appear to those who don’t know them. I totally can relate to what Esperanza is talking about. One day at the company that I used to work for, our chief security officer told us that on his way to work from new jersey he had to take a different route due to an accident. Then he proceeded to explain that once he arrived at Washington Heights (in Harlem) he had to close his window and keep his gun on his lap because of the people who lived in that neighborhood. The racial prejudice and racial profiling Esaperanza describes is the reality we are living through right now.
The vignettes from “The House on Mango Street” by Sandra Cisneros that I would like to talk about is “Cathy Queen of Cats”. Is about a woman that has a lot of cats and likes to gossip about everybody in the community. Cathy is one of those persons that think that they are better than others. She brags of being part of the French real family, and because of that, she will move from the neighborhood that is getting populated by people that she thinks are from less class than her. Alicia is a college student that according to Cathy is now trap since she attends the university. I think that Alicia stopped being friendly with Cathy because she doesn’t approve of Cathy’s superior attitude toward other people. Esperanza knows what type of person Cathy is, and part of being new to the neighborhood include dealing with prejudice fellow citizen like Cathy. This vignette resonated with me because in my first job I met a woman that told me the life of everyone in the office after just seeing me for maybe an hour. She didn’t even know if I was related to any of the people that she was gossiping about. Similar to Esperanza’s approaches, as a new worker I only received that woman information with a warning sign of what she was capable of.
After reading ” The house on Mango Street” I have realized the vignette that had the strongest impression on me is “My Name”. We learn the real name of the narrator which is Esperanza. She talks about the meanings of her name in both English and Spanish. In English her name means” hope” and in Spanish her name means “too many letters”. She states that she likes the way her name is said in Spanish but not in English. She is named after her great-grandmother and both of them were born in the Chinese year of the horse. The horse is supposed to represent strength and for women is bad luck if born with this sign. She goes on to reject this superstition and believes women should not be discouraged to have strength. She starts talking about her great-grandmother and how she was forced into a marriage and calls her a “dark horse” . She says her grandma would look out the window at how her life went by. She goes on to say even if she inherited her grandmothers name , she does not want to inherit her “place by the window”.
Hey Alexsander! I loved the way you explained this vignette. I would have loved to hear how this vignette resonates with you. But I feel like in the time period this short novel was written, men thought women could not be strong or they could not be better than men. I feel like they’re parents named the narrator “Esperanza” or “Hope” in english because they had hoped that she would change their generations and she would change the pattern they had going on.
The vignette from The House on Mango Street that made the strongest impression on me is “Boys & Girls”. In this vignette the narrator explains how boys and girls are in two separate worlds. And I feel like it’s just like that with my siblings, I am the oldest so I have to take care of the rest. My sister is 15 but she is only my sister, I still do not have that bond with her where I could talk to her like my friend. But she is my responsibility. My brother and my baby brother are the boys and they stay in their own little world. I would have loved to have an older sister or a best friend of my own so I could tell her all my secrets. This vignette resonates with me because I understand that every girl goes through phases and the older you get the more freedom you want, and that’s where you want friends of your own. And sometimes your siblings can’t be your friends.
I also liked this vignette because I have a younger brother and when I was younger, I felt the same way that Esperanza felt about her little sister Nenny. Also my brother and I are 14 years apart so its hard to relate to him sometimes because of the age gap. Esperanza describes her relationship with her younger sister as an anchor or someone holding her down. That’s also relatable but in a sense that she has to be responsible for her because her older siblings won’t do it.
Sorry I forgot to say your name Nicole before responding to your discussion post.
Regina, please be sure to respond to others by name so we can all follow along. Thanks!
Hi Nicole, I agree with everything you said. Esperanza wishes for a best girl friend of her own, as she realizes the differences between boys and girls. She looks at her own family as references. Carlos and Kiki are each other’s best friend, and truly no friend to Esperanza and Nenny. Esperanza longs for her own best friend, to whom she can tell all the secrets in the world. I would also like to have an older sister or a friend whom I could trust. I have a younger brother whom I look after and I am 10 years older than him, so we don’t have much of the same interests.
One of the vignettes from The House on Mango Street, that impressed me the most and that resonated with me, would have to be the first one from pages 3 to page 5. I choose this vignette because it surprised how Esperanza somehow looked at the good side of living in the house on Mango Street, like when she said, “We don’t have to pay rent to nobody… or be careful not to make too much noise…” She listed these good parts of living in this house before explaining how terrible the house actually is. I like how she mentions the fantasies and dreams both her dad and mother have, this is something I had hear before from a lot of people, the idea that they will get what they want only if they won the lottery. This idea or mindset is common in “poor” countries, like DR, Mexico, Chile and many others. One of the sad parts is that her parents “sell” in some way those dreams/ideas and as a child she believed in them, daydream about the perfect house, perfect car, clothes, the perfect life, but they get a really awful shock of reality. They see that what they dreamed of or what was promise is really different from reality. She does a really well done by describing the perfect life and then the house on Mango Street, reality, it lets the readers to compare and somehow notice how awful the house looks. Almost at the end it is showed that she is embarrassed of her house, as she mentioned that while showing where she lived to someone, “the way she said it made me feel like nothing.” Such a horrible feeling for a kid to have but is understandable, I guess many if not all the kids have had feel embarrassed at some point on their life. The author used something that is used normally in poems, which is repetition, it was mention, “There” a couple of time to show in part the importance on the situation Esperanza is currently in.
Esperanza had been living as a nomad with her family, as they are always moving from place to place. This could create some problems to her as it will be almost Impossible to find friends, live a normal or as normal as she can get life (we see this reflected in the following vignettes), those types of situation could bring Esperanza some psychological problems, which I am not going to mention, but it is possible.
I have to mention that I had also read this story in the past, and it was really enjoyful/good to read it again, funny enough that I remember what I was thinking the first time around, also what I was doing, mostly hearing the teacher mumbling about something of the story that I didn’t care much about.
The strongest impression from the vignettes on pages 3 to 53 of the Mango Street House is “Hips.” This “Hips” reveals her embarrassment about her hips, which have begun to round. As a woman grows up, the appearance changes and as well as the reality of bringing her closer to the position of other women. Her hips begin to round as a woman, and her body is preparing to function as her mother. Esperanza, Nanny, Rachel, and Lucy jump rope one day and talk about their hips, but friends said their hips are great for supporting their babies, and they need them to dance. Besides, she told them, if they do not get them, they might be a man. However, Esperanza is interested in “scientific explanation” and tries to explain it. But they do not have the idea that the pelvis is growing to give birth to a baby because they are talking about the hips that have begun to round in their way. So they are using rhymes to process their world, and Esperanza is embarrassed because she knows about the purpose of the hips she gathered from Alicia. In this case, it is unfamiliar sexuality. Their ages are change not only physically. They are also internally changing, showing that they are still internally childish or Esperanza has grown up to like an adult.
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The vignette that I personally connected with and stood out to me was, “Laughter”. This vignette reveals the bond between two sisters, Nenny and the narrator. The narrator explains how they might not look like sisters at first glances like Racheal and Lucy do with similar lip structure. I found out that the narrator here seems quite judgemental and rude about Racheal and Lucy because she uses the word “Fat” to describe their lip structure and when she mentions the house she automatically assumes Racheal and Lucy might make fun of her simply by observing them. With these observations, she does not seem to like the other pair of siblings, Racheal and Lucy. The part where I resonated with the vignette is when the narrator is hit by nostalgia when they pass by the house. “There was nothing about the house that looked exactly like the houses I remembered. I’m not even sure why I thought it, but it seemed to feel right”. Here, the narrator encounters a house that reminds her of Mexico. I resonate with this nostalgic part of the vignette because I have a cousin sister I bond strongly with. Sometimes even when I don’t speak, she knows what I am trying to say and often we telepath each other when we are out in public. Another reason why I resonate with the vignette is that sometimes when I walk past some houses here in New York, some houses resemble the houses in Nepal. Not only houses but the busy street in Jackson Heights and the street food we get there.
The vignette from “The House on Mango Street” that stood out to me the most was the one titled “My Name” on page 10. The line that says ‘She looked out the window her whole life, the way so many women sit their sadness on an elbow. I wonder if she made the best with what she got or was she sorry because she couldn’t be all the things she wanted to be.” This line reminded me of the story “Eveline” by James Joyce. In that story there is a young woman named Eveline who has spent years of her life looking out a window the same way Esperanza’s great-grandmother had. In the wake of her mothers death, Eveline had no powerful female figure in her life to guide her. She ends up meeting a man who offers her a chance at a new life if she boards ship and leaves with him to a new country. I wrote a paper on the idea of Compliance vs. Self reliance and how many young women in their lifetime are limited by society and so often they end up abandoning their dreams simply because they don’t believe they can achieve them. Many women end up settling down with men and remain unhappy with their lives because it’s easier to be compliant than be self reliant. Hence why Eveline never boards ship and why Esperanza’s great-grandmother spends her life looking out a window. And this is only further proven where Esperanza says that she doesn’t want to inherit her place by the window, instead yearning for a more fulfilling life free of generational burden. I find it particularly interesting to see how such a real women’s issue is interpreted through the eyes of a young girl in this vignette.
Miranda, I just love your reference to “Eveline” by James Joyce and that persistent theme of people—especially women— giving up their dreams. It sounds like your essay on compliance versus self-reliance was a good one!
The vignette “Hairs” made the strongest impression on me because it describes the appearances and features of the characters in the story. In my opinion not a lot of stories go into depth about the characters’ hair. In this vignette I was able to picture what each character’s hair texture looked and felt like. Especially mother’s hair. The theme or centra idea of this vignette was to attach a personality to each character. Mother’s hair is described as bread from a bakery, soft and fluffy. So from reading this vignette I can already tell based on mother’s hair that she is very much tender in the eyes of Esperanza. Esperanza describes her hair as lazy and as you read throughout the story you can tell she is a very laid back person. She goes along with whatever adventure comes along and when it comes to making friends or getting to know people she isn’t judgmental. I think that relates to the fact that her cannot hold barrettes or bands because she is a personality that can’t be controlled.
Hello Regina, I also find this vignette very interesting. I liked the way he described each of his family members’ hairs and described their own personality with their hair. It was very unusual for someone to use the hair to describe someone’s attitude or personality so this is a very interesting read, and it makes you asked the question of how true can this be if we examine it with more detail.
Hi Regian, I agree with you. I also like this vignette. I was surprised by the way the author used hair to describe the character’s personality. Mother’s hair is described as very beautiful, which show her position in Esperanza’s heart. Esperanza’s description of her hair as “lazy” shows how he feels about himself. This way of describing personality in terms of hair is so rare and beautiful that I was struck by it.
Regina, This is a really interesting take on this vignette. I, personally, did not think of her hair as a metaphor for herself, but reading again it seems like its right in front of the reader. It sounds like she is repeating the things that people tell her when they get upset. In reality, she doesn’t seem very lazy at all but people get upset with her laid back attitude and attack her for it. She may even be in a toxic environment that she’s not aware of because she enjoys the goods times and its worried about the bad ones.
The vignette that stood out to me was “There Was an Old Woman She Had So Many Children She Didn’t Know What To Do.” This story made me sad. Rosa Vargas’s children are out of control and the neighborhood that at first seemed sympathetic with her, no longer cares what happens to them. When the author states, “It’s not her fault you know,” It’s reminds me of an old saying that “sometimes bad things happen to good people.” Rosa Vargas who could not have been so old in actual age, because of the bottling and babying she does all day, was feeling old (as suggested in the title,) unappreciated, exhausted and perhaps trapped. In the time period of this book as is still today to be a single hispanic woman with a bunch of kids to take care of didn’t give you many prospects to earn a living. Yet she was left with all these kids as “the man who left without leaving even a dollar for bologna or explaining how come.” So while the man gets to walk away she was the one to suffer in critique and in experience.
My parents divorced when I was eight and I am the oldest of three. My mother had to work two jobs, sometimes three, in the factories just to make ends meet. And the sad part is that many of the friends my mom would make at work, were mostly in the same position and many felt like Rosa Vargas’s. I would here them talk on the rare occasions of a visit.
Lots of kids like the Vargas, kids are out of control, because they feel everything IS already out of control. They just want to be kids and are put in positions they shouldn’t have to be in so in a way they to end up feeling trapped and act out. When the author says “they have lost respect for all things living, including themselves” It’s probably because they are mimicking “the man” who disrespected their mother and them. Sort of “if he didn’t care, why should we.” So everyone looks the other way, until one day Angel Vargas (great name for the character) decides he’ll just fly away. I believe is flying away from the whole situation and I believe ends up losing his life.
My families outcome is different because my father was still somewhat present through visits, but they were sporadic as was any income he would bring. I also had and aunt and uncle who owned the bodega at the corner of our house so they would bring groceries when food was getting to low and on school trip days they would by the trip lunch so we didn’t have to take a “rice sandwich.” So while a sad and all to common story, there can still be hope without the lose of a life if not everybody gives up.
Janine, I loved everything about your post. I always read your insightful posts. It is true when you say that the children have lost respect and ar only mimicking their fathers, While i was reading that vignette, I felt like going crazy. I was trying to wrap my head around being a single mom with little to no money to a bunch of kids. That alone is overwhelming.Being a kid, but being help at adult expectations is traumatizing. It may sound dramatic, but it is true. Kids are sduppose to be wild, have fun, and do stupid things I too had my own “rice sandwich” while growing up but I added ketchup to it. Don’t judge be it actually tasted really good.
I do not know what happened but it accidentally posts it. Here is the completed post.
Janine, I loved everything about your post. I always read your insightful posts. It is true when you say that the children have lost respect and are only mimicking their fathers, While I was reading that vignette, I felt like going crazy. I was trying to wrap my head around being a single mom with little to no money to a bunch of kids. That alone is overwhelming. Being a kid, but being held at adult expectations is traumatizing. It may sound dramatic, but it is true. Kids are supposed to be wild, have fun, and do stupid things like drawing on the walls. However, when a kid, who does not have a solid understanding of the world, is put in a position where they have to be an adult and take burdens of that, they are inevitably going to make disastrous decisions because they don’t know what they are doing and how it will effect them. I wish this type of coming of age stories can over time become extinct. I too had my own “rice sandwich” while growing up but I added ketchup to it. Don’t judge me it actually tasted really good.
Janine, thank you for sharing this story about your own experiences and observations that relate to the Rosa Vargas character. As some student in our Monday Zoom meeting commented, the out of control and reckless behavior of the fatherless children at some point seems to be of no concern to anyone in the neighborhood. As you note, it is almost seems as if it doesn’t matter than one of them flies off the roof. Why should anyone else care if the father and mother don’t seems to be the question. Thanks for a great post full of insight.
Hey Janine, your analysis of this vignette is quite spot on! Rosa Vargas’s situation as unfortunate as it is is also far too common. My mother encounters a lot of people in this situation too whenever she’s fixing their hair and I’ve heard countless stories about them. All of the stories seem to stem from this specific issue, and I’ve always wondered how one can remedy this situation to prevent children from being raised in that manner.
Hi Fatu, I too like the imagery of the ‘red balloon tied to an anchor.” Many times children with lots of responsibility do feel tied down as if on an anchor. Sometimes its because of a younger sibling they may have to be responsible for and sometimes its another family member. In this story the narrator seems to have had many “anchors” because I think the constant moving, having to share one bedroom for six people, the the lack of finances, not having a pretty house with pretty things, would make any child feel stuck. I liked that you spoke of the floating and flying of the red balloon as her goal to escape Mango Street, there I think it also represents that she still has not lost all help that its possible to change her situation.Thanks for your good point of view.
Sorry Fatu but this seems to have posted twice.
ENG 201 Sec. 0527
“The House on Mango Street” by Sandra Cisneros is a vivid story composed of clever meaningful vignettes, of these, the vignette of Meme Ortiz stood out the most to me. I also thought there can be some humor writing about a character having the same name as myself.
The piece takes place in Cathy’s home and immediately the reader comes to learn that the boy’s name is not Meme but Juan. Everyone in the neighborhood calls him by that moniker except for his mother. He has a dog that has two names. He is described similarly to his pet companion as wild, clumsy, with his limbs flailing about. There is a large tree outside of the house with broad branches that were home to several families of squirrels. The excerpt concludes with Meme breaking both of his arms in a tarzan swing competition.
There are several important features of this vignette that are worth discussing. Immediately after reading the piece. My attention is drawn to the name Meme. I thought of the actual word itself meme or previously known as “mineme” which is a funny image, video, or text that is copied and shared through various forms of multimedia. According to Oxford the definition of a meme is “an element of a culture or system of behavior that may be considered to be passed from one individual to another by non genetic means, especially imitation.” The second element is the dog. As stated previously, Meme’s pet has two names. One of the names is in English and the other is in Spanish. Ultimately, what ended up to be a choice made in slight humor, turns out to be something I can entirely relate to. The theme relates to Meme’s cultural identity.
For myself, growing up our family was either Boricua (Puerto Rican born on the island) or a “Nuyorican” (Puerto Rican born in New York). I would be the latter. Being a Puerto Rican born and raised in New York you feel like you have two distinct parts of yourself. I was raised traditionally, everyone spoke Spanish, I went to Puerto Rico every vacation I had and learned my culture and where I came from. Hatillo is a city in Puerto Rico. It is a farming town filled with cattle and other livestock. Fresh produce everyday was available everyday locally, and in the morning you can smell the wet dew on the grass and the fresh bread from the bakery a couple miles down the road. There was nothing really around for entertainment, but a lot of work to be done. Maintaining the crops and animals was vital in Hatillo, as it is for most, a primary source of long term income or an investment. Compared to New York city one can understand how different it can be versus farmland. Growing up it felt like two lives both loved and appreciated but not entirely belonging to either. With the later generations in my family, the majority of them do not speak Spanish would never go to Puerto Rico or anything that is disconnected temporarily to the internet. They are more distant to the culture. My family says the youth is more “Americanized.” Even more so in this situation, is the issue of identity. Although they know who they are they haven’t learned where they come from. I can imagine this may be the theme of Juan “Meme” Ortiz.
The most prominent detail that was emphasized was the large tree outside with squirrels on its branches. There is important symbolism in this excerpt. They described the tree branches reaching out giving the illusion that the houses in the neighborhood were sitting on its branches like a little town and the squirrels were the people. I think the tree represented foundation, roots, origins, family. The squirrels were members that knew each other and belonged and lived together. I couldn’t help but to Imagine Meme and the neighbors as squirrels and Meme running about jumping to make his presence known only to fall from the tree and being disconnected from both sides (breaking both arms).
The vignette that stood out to me the most was “Those who don’t.” She explains that when ignorant individuals pass through her neighborhood, they feel unsafe because they feel as if they will be robbed or hurt by them. However, when she would pass through their homes, she would be in actual fear. Not because she felt that her safety was in jeopardy but because someone would assume that she would be engaging in criminal acts and call the police. The theme of this reading would be stereotypes in observational assumptions. This means that people base their stereotypes on the first aspect of an individual they see. This struck out to me because I am half Latina and half black.
I lived with my grandmother, where she was one of the two families of color living in a white neighborhood. When I used to walk to her house from school, as soon as I enter the neighborhood, families walking around would start looking at me as if I do not belong or am an unseen creature. The worst part was my grandmother would be running late coming home, and I would have to sit in the back of the house, which seemed suspicious. That part I understand. One time, a neighbor that lived in front of us called my grandmother and said that a “spanish girl” would go to the back of the house and hide out there, and she was going to call the police. My grandmother called me and informed me that the neighbors are watching and to wait in front of the house to see that I am not doing anything wrong. My grandmother, of course, told her that I was her granddaughter and that I had permission. However, even though my grandmother explained the situation, the neighbor for weeks would sit at her window and watch me until my grandmother would come home. This was not the first or last time I was in a situation like this, but my grandmother had to explain that people see others differently and categorize them based on the first thing they see. As I was reading “Those who don’t,” it made me realize that fear of being seen or categorized as something that you are not has more validity to it than most people think. That statement can be said for everyone. Now clearly, that neighbor was watching me to make sure that I was not a thief but, if I did not know better and known the words in which she described me, I could say that she was watching me so I would not get kidnapped.
Hi Megan, I really appreciate you sharing your experiences. I grew up white in a white neighborhood, so I had the privilege of never having to think about segregation, and my understanding of discrimination has been purely conceptual. You added another layer to the story for me. I initially understood it as just merely a fear of being an outsider, but your pointed out that it was in fact the fear of being profiled which scared her. The more I learn about discrimination, the more one-sided it appears. Again, thank you for sharing, I really benefited from your interpretation of the story and personal experiences.
Hi Josh, I like everything in your statement. I personally did not experience secretion where I grow up but I did experienced it when I moved to New York. But I can feel the people that has been went through that.
The vignette that made the strongest impression on me was “My Name”. Esperanza is in the period of self-discovery and is defining what she desired her life to be. Her past haunts her, especially after learning she was named after her great grandmother, who was forced to get married and sat by the window feeling sad and remorseful. Esperanza is acknowledged by saying, “I inherited her name, but I don’t want to inherit her place by the window,” this demonstrates the beginning of self-identification and discovery for Esperanza. The main theme in this vignette is the struggle for self-definition. The consideration of changing her name is thought of as an attempt to redefine herself on her own terms . At one time, she desires to be strong and beautiful to attract men while ensuring that they do not harm her. This is relatable in today’s society, where people tend to have two sides of their lives, especially with the social media platforms. People show their best moments but are suffering from depression and other hefty emotions due to the circumstances in life. The vignette is an eye-opener that, as many people need to show their strength and strong will, it is critical to draw a clear boundary between facts and fictions of life.
The vignette that made the strongest impression on me from The House on Mango Street was “The Family of Little Feet” because it highlights the growth of characters as they transition from childhood to adulthood and ends with characters having nostalgia for the past. In the beginning of the story the girls are given high heels and decide to wear them around town. They understand that these shoes catch eyes and others are noticing their steps into womanhood as well. Although, with so many compliments in one day, this new attention is not always the kind they would like to receive. When a dirty bum on the street tries to give Rachel a dollar for a kiss, the girls run away and never wear the shoes again. The negative interactions that they experience while wearing the high heels leave them feeling uncomfortable and not yet wanting to cross the bridge to adulthood. Throughout the short story, the three friends go from a feeling of journey to maturity, steps towards womanhood, and finally a homesickness for their youth.
Hey Altynai, “The Family of Little Feet” and “The First Job” the vignette I chose to write about are both coming off age stories which is interesting because in both the character wants to push themselves into adulthood and quickly get set in a negative experience when they reach adulthood.
Altynai, I love the phrasing you use here about how the girls flirt with adulthood but ultimately experience “a homesickness for their youth.” You’re so right that the characters seem to be doing a kind of dance, going back and forth, taking risks, and often being relieved when they can return to their childhood.
I chose the vignette “The First Job” on page 53, it resonated most with me because it covers so many topics of a coming of age narrative. First the vignette is about the main character getting their first job and having to pay for school. Secondly it talks about being new to a new group of people and having to work with them, so many people have to be able to get into a new job or new group of people and have to deal with being the new kid and get over the hump of making friends. And lastly taken finding a friend but then at least from the way I read it she was being taken advantage of because it said that he didn’t let go when he went in for the kiss. This resonated with me because of how it was able to show elements of a coming to age narrative in a short passage. Lastly because it is a coming of age passage it shows the ups and downs and how quickly things can switch on its head and be stuck in an unfortunate situation.
Hey Neil, I really love how you talk about this vignette and how it resonates with you and in that how it could resonate with others. The whole coming of age thing makes a lot of sense, when we get our first jobs and are in a new environment we feel like we are getting older. Even with college many people finally get the experience of having to pay for school and pick up jobs in order to do that, some may even be first timers. Even the part where you talk about being taken advantage of at your new job as a child holds a lot of validity in real world coming of age experiences. It may not be sexual assault for many but things like overworking are another way this happens.
The vignette that really made an impression on me would definitely have to be “My Name” which was on page 10. In this section, the narrator finally reveals her name as Esperanza and explains its meanings, who she got it from, and how she feels about her name. She even slightly talks about the duality with it, meaning sadness in the English but in Spanish meaning hope. She also goes into a backstory on her grandmother, which she shares the name with, and how she used to be a fierce woman until she got married, afterwards she just looked sad and couldn’t be all the things she wanted to be. A theme in this section has to do with the power behind names and language as a whole. Esperanza hates her name, I would assume because of a combination of its dual meaning and how her grandmother ended up. She doesn’t want to be like her grandmother, staring out the window and trapped, but wants to form her own identity without the weight her name gives her. This particular vignette resonates with me because at one point I felt very similar to Esperanza. I didn’t really like my name for a part of my life because I couldn’t find a suitable meaning to it that would’ve made me happy and satisfied. I was also conflicted, unlike Esperanza, I didn’t like it but that’s all I saw myself as and couldn’t imagine something else. Esperanza on the other hand strongly wants to change hers and even has ideas of what her new name could be.
The vignette that I like the most from the House on Mango Street was “Hairs”. This vignette the narrator shows about the relationship between the family member. Expressing the feeling about siblings and the parents as well. Also, the bond that narrator feel for the mother, the warmth when mother is around with her beautiful scented hair which feel like a safe nest. This vignette relate to me this is because in my family member every one has different hair. I have curly hair and I don’t like curly hair. My mom has too but I love her hair which I don’t know why or maybe I love her too much that I don’t see bed things on it.
The vignette I have chose this week is “The Family of Little Feet” and it resonates with me because it is a coming of age story. The author uses the descriptions of her family members feet to explain their walks of life. Her grandfathers feet were “flat and doughy, like thick tamales and these he powdered stuffed into white socks and brown leather shoes”, while her grandmothers were lovely as pink pearls and dressed into velvety high heels”. We have all played dress up, pretending to be someone else, rushing to reach the age where we are independent. Sandra, Rachel and Lucy are girls who are becoming young women and they end up learning this lesson by wearing the high heel shoes her mother gives to them. They go out flaunting their legs and new shoes, running around the neighborhood. But they soon learn that they don’t want to grow up so quickly and want to embrace their innocence. Being confronted by the harsh reality of the world when a drunk tavern bum asks Rachel for a kiss in exchange for a dollar, is what makes them realize this. Rachel hesitates for a second before the three girls run away and ditch the shoes that are eventually thrown away. This is symbolic because they took off the shoes and never looked back. They couldn’t wait to be mature young women but then they realize what is actually out there.
The vignette that left a strong impression on me was the one titled “Louie, His Cousin & His Other Cousin”. This vignette introduces us to Louis’s two cousins Marin and an unnamed one. This vignette has a slightly darker tone to it than most due to the arrest of one of Louie’s cousins. The cousin, who stole a car decides to visit the block and give everyone a joy ride seemingly aware of the gravity of the crime he committed. This vignette reminds me a lot about some of my distant family and the unfortunate lack of knowledge when it comes to the laws of our country.
Gabriel, please just make sure your responses meet the length requirement.
The vignette that I found was really interesting was the Hairs Vignette. This Vignette like the others was really interesting because it used a different way to describe how the personality and the physical attribute based on their genetics, their hair to be exact. I found this very comic but very interesting as well because many people have different hairs and although my parents have one type of hair I might not have the same hair type as them. For example, my parents have soft hair and I have hard curly hair and I believe that my hair describes my personality because I’m serious but also I can open up to certain people if I believe them to be trustworthy. I found this very interesting because I have never thought that someone’s personality may be attached to their hair type.
Hey Junior, I also resonate with the Hairs Vignette. I never realized that hair texture could be such an attribute to someone’s personality. I resonate because when describing her mother she goes more in-depth than when speaking of other family members and their hair. To me it shows the mother is the security and protector. She is the support system in the family. Who knew so much power could just come from describing someone’s hair in this vignette.
ENG 201-0527
Junior, It was interesting to read your post. I like your correlations of hair to all the members of the family. I can agree that the way we display our hair is an expression of our personality. I read this piece a few times and I couldn’t help but to think that the vignette gives a certain meaning to the hair. I think the hair represents family. I agree that the hair represented each member’s personality as there are different roles to each member of the family. These distinguishing traits point to the unique diversity and dynamics of a family.
There is also an interesting poetic nature to the vignette. The rhythm is somewhat brisk. In the first paragraph note that a rhyming couplet was used. “Everybody in our family has different hair. My Papa’s hair is like a broom, all up in the air.” This poetic language using hair is what the third party can see to distinguish the members but the personification points to the emotional importance of family. In the second paragraph the reader can observe the use of repetition, “but my mother’s hair, my mother’s hair,” also with the words, “holding you.” Sensory imagery was also used with the scent of the bread and the rain outside. This method of repetition shows the reader is in deep thought, reminiscing, or perhaps dreaming of her mother in a conscious state. I recall a similar repetition in Browning’s sonnet 43, where the use of repetition was used to convey the magnitude of her love. Similarly in this vignette, the reader would understand the powerful emotion conveyed through the paragraph for the speaker’s mother. This conveys to understand that with all the differences amongst them that their mother is the heart of the family and maintains, protects and unifies the household.
When I was reading the story of the House of mango street, the most interesting vignette for me was “My Name”. The main idea in this vignette was the main character talking about her name and what it means to her, also how she got her name because of her great grandmother that was a woman that was wild and had her own way of living throughout her life, and how the name Esperanza is making her feel left out because other people can not say her name.” I wonder if she made best with what she got or was she sorry because she couldn’t be all the things she wanted to be. Esperanza. I have inherited her name, but I don’t want to inherit her place by the window.” This makes her want to change her name to another name because of what she’s has seen from her great grandmother’s life.
hello Maryam, this is a good vignette. I liked the way she connected with her grandmother and also was curious enough to learn the things that her grandmother experienced in the past. It was very motivational that she did not want to settle down by a window and be unhappy. She showed that she wanted to know about her grandmother and she was inspired by her story but she was going to learn from her mistakes or decisions and shape her own life as she wanted.
Maryam this vignette was also one of the ones that I felt I could relate to personally. Growing up I have always been recognized for my name because it is not really a common name and have always wanted to know what my name means and where my parents got my name from. I also felt for the girl Esperanza because it is a hard thing being named after someone because sometimes people expect you to grow up to be just as accomplished and then if you are named after a person who had accomplished nothing then people have the weird idea that you will grow up just like them and also accomplish nothing. So reading this I related to Esperanza when she said she wondered about her name and wondered what it meant and then I felt sorry for her because she did not want to be just like her grandmother because they shared a name.
Of the vignettes we’ve read from “The House on Mango Street” so far, “A Rice Sandwich” made the strongest impression on me. Every kid has a desire to want something they can’t have, even if there’s nothing all that special about it. Something as simple as a canteen where other kids have to go eat lunch instead of going home or to a friends house can be sought after if people in our life are telling us we can’t have a part in it. We all like to laugh when a kid says something like, “I can’t wait until I grow up and get to go to work!” and like to think ourselves above that manner of thinking, but we are just as guilty. Someone might “play hard to get” to get us to like them more, or we might get scammed at the thought of an “exclusive” vacation package. Overall, when we are told we can’t have something, it tends to just make us want it more. “A Rice Sandwich” invites us to reconsider our feelings of envy, and ask ourselves whether or not what we’re missing out is all that great.
Josh the vignette “A rice sandwich” also made a strong impression on me. I feel like everyone can relate to this one because every kid has had a desire for something they can’t have at least once if not multiple times. This desire majority of the time to have something they can’t have usually is not something special or something of value sometimes it just something that someone else has that you want. I also agree with you that this vignette is present in the text to help us rethink our feelings of jealousy or evny as you say towards others.
The vignette that made the strongest impression on me was “Hairs” from pages 6-7. The central idea of this vignette was the girl describing the different types of hairs in her family but more specifically her mothers hair. She described her fathers hair her mothers hair and also her siblings hair. The girl goes into detail about how the sweet smell of her mothers hair makes her feel comfortable and safe. This vignette made the strongest impression on me because it reminded me of when I was younger and I would also go and sleep near my mom and I would feel so safe being next to her and whenever I would smell her she would always smell like flowers and I would feel so centered whenever she was around. I can relate to the girl in this vignette because the same way her mothers smell and warmth made her feel safe was the same way my mom’s did for me. I am sure it is like this for everyone when it comes to there mother.
In “The House on Mango Street”, the vignette that impressed me most was “Hairs”. The theme of this vignette is family and personality. I like the way the author describes each family member’s hair in detail to show their personality. The description of Esperanza’s mother can also show her position in Esperanza’s heart and family, and her mother’s hair gives her a sense of security. When Esperanza described her hair as”lazy”, it was indicative of her inferiority complex and negative view of herself. Although the surface is description of the various hair of the family members, be when I imagine Esperanza getting into her mother’s bed, listening to her father’s snoring and the rain outside, and smelling the fragrance of her mother’s hair next to her, a kind of affectionate warmth and happiness naturally come to the surface.
Hongbin I really liked the way you talked and explained the vignette you picked which Is “hair”. Who knew how someone hair can show so much. The way you said, “The description of Esperanza’s mother can also show her position in Esperanza’s heart and family, and her mother’s hair gives her a sense of security.” I did not really see this but as you mentioned that I can see Esperanza feeling secured and safe due to her mother
Of the vignettes from pages 3-53, i personally think the one that gave me the best impression was “Boys and Girls.” The two brothers are like best friends and because of how things worked she was alone and didn’t have that best friend figure to express herself as the brothers did. She only has her younger sister to actually socialize with unfortunately. The message you can get behind this is their shouldn’t really be a gender barrier when it comes to things of that nature. As long as you’re a human and empathetic you can express yourself freely.
Manuel, please just be sure your posts meet the length requirement.
The vignette from The House of Mango Street that gave me a strong impression is “My Name” because it was very interesting to me how Esperanza expressed how she truly felt about her name and the Spanish meaning behind her name which is Hope. I noticed that Esperanza mentions that she was born in the Chinese year of the horse and it suppose to be a sign of bad luck for women. However, Esperanza thinks the horse is a strong animal and Esperanza says that the Chinese, like the Mexicans, want women to be weak. This made me realize that Esperanza is well aware of gender issues in her community. I can completely resonate with Esperanza because I also grew up with this kind of thinking or just gender issues where men would believe they are superior and treat their wives like an object. Esperanza states how her name means “sadness” and calls it a “muddy color”. The theme for this vignette is true identity Esperanza seems to be having a hard time embracing her identity. There is also a language barriers between the English and Spanish where she says her name just means “hope” in English, but there are many more definitions in Spanish. Esperanza wants to chose a name that shows her true identity. This vignette sounded more like Esperanza is rebelling her culture since she hates her name.
In the story “The house on Mango Street” by Sandra Cisneros there were a few vignettes but the main one that I wanted to talk about is the one called “My name”. I picked this because it is a very vivid and deep. The way Esperanza explains the meaning of her name and what she thinks her name means was and I believe its symbolic. How her name is sad and depressing yet she thinks it’s also strong and hopeful. She introduces her grandmother saying how they both have the same name and how her grandmother always “looked out the window her whole life”. I believe she doesn’t want to end up like her grandmother always being told what to do and not being able to do anything. Esperanza explains her name being pronounced differently in English and Spanish in school. She decides she wants to change her name to something better and this made me love this vignette the desire to find herself and show people how strong she is. I believe the theme is self definition.
The vignette that made the strongest impression on me is the story, “There was an old woman, She had so many kids She didn’t know what to do” from The House On Mango Street. The reason why is because of how it told the story of a woman that has went through so many hardships and challenges for her children. However, her children do not seem to care much about how difficult they are making their mother’s life and as a result of their mischievous behavior they lost their lives without anyone’s sorrow. This is what I found most interesting about this vignette and why I was thinking that the story can show readers that it can be tough to raise a big family. What I think is the central idea of this vignette is that there are people who would choose to do more then than they can handle and because of that it could cause them to simply give up when things get hard. The reason why I think this is the main idea is because of how the mother was willing to have so many children but then ended up having to go through so many difficulties because of her many misbehaving children then in the end she chose to give up entirely.
The vignette I am choosing for this post is “Gil’s Furniture Bought and Sold” written by Sandra Cisneros, in her collection titled “The House on Mango Street”. In this brief story, Esperanza and her sister venture into the used furniture store, or junk store as they call it. Her sister asks questions to the old man who owns the store and he shows them a old music box. The old man opens the music box but it is not what the sisters had imagined. Nenny, the sister, asks for the price but the old man says it is not for sale and they leave the store. It seems odd, but growing up my grandfather owned a pawnshop and i can remember wondering through the skinny aisles with wonder. The dusty items jump out and my grandfather talks about something to a customer and my heart jumps at the thought of something interesting. Just like Esperanza, my hopes are dashed and see an old record player covered in dust. This story resonated with me through the nostalgia i felt walking through my grandfathers shop.
The vignette that had the best impression on me can be found on page 6-7 called “Hairs”. The central idea of this vignette is that everyone has a different hair texture but their mothers hair resonates with them the most. It resonates with me because I can understand the feeling they’re giving off when talking about the mother. How it’s not like the rest in the household. When talking about the mothers hair they describe it as “sweet to put your nose into when she’s holding you, holding you and you feel safe, is the warm smell of bread before you bake it, is the smell when she makes room for you on her side of the bed still warm with her skin”. This resonates with me because I can feel the security and relate to how a mothers touch can make you feel. In my life, my mother is the biggest figure to me. We may fight but at the end of the day she is my support system, my rock, my everything. She is the security in my life and when i’m with her or have her scent when i’m far away, I feel safe and secure just as how the mother does to the person in the vignette.
The vignette from The House on Mango Street that made the strongest impression on me was “Alicia Who Sees Mice”. I liked this one because it was about a girl who must take responsibility since she was young because her mother died but who still had ambitions to strive for better than what her situation was. She made effort to go to school, even as inconvenient as it was to commute to since it was so far away, but she still did it because she did not want to work in a factory or to making tortillas as her father has suggested the women’s place is at. I believe when Alicia claimed to see the mice, and her father denied and said she was just imagining, that Alicia was aware of her bad conditions in her life, while her father was complacent and tried to push on this attitude on to her, however, its obvious Alicia refuses to and works toward a better life.
The vignettes that made the most impression to me in “The House on Mango Street” is “A Rice Sandwich”. In this vignette, Esperanza envied the children who eat lunch in the canteen instead of going home, and she also hopes to be one of those children. After persuading her mother, she asked her to write a note to help herself apply to eat in the canteen. However, during lunch, the nun exposed Esperanza’s lies and made her feel embarrassed and ashamed. Finally, Esperanza ate her rice sandwich in the canteen with a bad mood. This vignette resonated with me by I t reflects the habit of most people blindly pursuing something in life. For example, when a person performs different behaviors, it will always attract more and more curious people to imitate. Even if it is not as good as expected, it will bring you psychological satisfaction. As crazy as shopping.
The vignette that stuck to me the most from the short novel “The House On Mango Street” by Sandra Cisneros is “Our Good Day”. We are met with two new characters named Rachel and Lucy. Before in the “Cathy Queen of Cats” Cathy, Esperanza’s new friend calls them “Two raggedy as rats live across the street”. Cathy tells Esperanza they smell like a broom but surprisingly Esperanza likes them. Even as the story goes in they ask her for her name and they don’t laugh because Esperanza doesn’t like her name and wants another name. We learn Esperanza is not mad that Kathy left her in fact is happy because she has two new friends and a bike. This vignette stuck to me the most because this all happens too much in real life. How many times do we all hear our family, friends, piers, coworkers talk bad about certain people or judge them. Until we finally meet them or give them a chance we our surprised they are totally not how you were being told. I’ve had people tell me that I’m not the person of what they have heard about me but in contrast a good person. We can take away from Esperanza’s experience to never judge someone from what we heard until we see it with our owns eyes.