Mamamamamamaaaaaaango

I'm not sure if i should feel really depressed after finishing this book or kind of happy because as Esperanza said "One day I will pack my bags of books and paper. One day I will say goodbye to Mango. I am too strong for her to keep me here forever. One day I will go away" (110). This at least leaves the reader with some hope that maybe one person can take their experience in a horrible neighborhood and instead of falling into the cracks, learn from it and allow it to make them a stronger person. I think Esperanza realizes that her years on Mango Street have more shaped her than crushed her spirit. One of the best things about Esperanza is that she can look at the women around her and see their faults. Of course, she stumbles along the way (ex: chillen with sally slore) but throughout the book Esperanza does realize that marrying young can only lead to a trapped life.
Another revelation Esperanza stumbles upon is that wanting to leave just to escape is not enough. She recognizes "I have gone away to come back. For the ones I left behind. For the ones who cannot out" (110). I do admire her promise to come back, but I also wonder what she'll do when she returns for lets say her sister Nenny. Nenny will most likely be married, and what is Esperanza going to do? Force her to leave her husband? It seems as if all of her other friends besides Alicia will be trapped because they aren't strong enough to leave, and I question how Esperanza will be able to rescue them. On that subject, I thought the 3 sisters at the funeral were a bit far fetched for the book. Everything so far has been realistic, and parts even tragic, but the whole part about one of the women reading her mind and saying the EXACT right thing to Esperanza was pretty cheesy. This also makes me see how much Esperanza and her friends rely on the supernatural. Between her visiting the "fortune teller" and praying every day because she believes she will go to hell, I can tell that spirits are an escape for people on Mango Street. When there are no answers to why children get beaten and the neighborhood is so badly neglected, they turn to religion to provide an explanation.
I'll try to rap this up to save everyone the boredom...but lastly I was really affected by No Speak English. It was so sad because this man saved all of his money to bring "Mamacita" to America, and after she arrives all she wants to do is go back home. Then to add to her depression, her son begins speaking English and all she can do is yell at him to stop, but eventually he will be Americanized and know nothing about his real home. I really felt the frustration Mamacita had because she probably had all of these dreams about what life in America would be like, but finds Mango Street instead. Her fate is basically the opposite of what Esperanza wants. Mamacita leaves a home she loves for one that she can't stand. Here it is proven how important a home is and how much it can affect someone.


ANYWAYSSSSS I liked this book but I wish some chapters were longer so there was more of a plot line. The snippets were kewl though.


x0x0x0x0x0x0x peace and lovee

Shweeeet Mangooo

The House on Mango Street has been really easy to get through (especially after reading the awakening) and I like the writing style. The Way Cisneros writes dialogue is interesting, but sometimes really confusing. At first I didn't understand the fight between the four girls, but when reading it again I could decipher it. I thought it was funny when Espy was like "Rachel WOULD say that" because thats such a common term today like "Rachel L. would write 'sup foo' on her blog". Also the fact that Nenny kept listing names while Lucy and Esperz were arguing further shows her ignorant and juvenille characteristics.
I think this book is a happy medium between Montana and The Awakening. It's read-able, but there's enough to analyze. It shows a girls struggle against society without all of the soggy crumpets. Esperanza clearly wants a better life for herself, and I admire her for that. I liked the quote "I wonder if she made the best with what she got or was she sorry bc she couldn't be all the things she wanted to be?" and that Esperenza "doesn't want to inherit her place at the window" (11). This shows that she is aware that everyone has a choice to either pity themselves, make the best out of their situation, or strive to do better. Also, the use of the window reminded me of Wuthering Heights how the windows are tiny there, and at Thrushcross Grange Cathy would look out the window to the home she longed to be in. Esperanza made it clear that she will do more than stare at a life she could have, but she will attempt to make it happen.
Esperanza's relationship with her sister is one part of the "achor" that holds her down. Because Nenny is younger than her, she has a responsibilty to her. Esperanza always upholds this responsibility, showing her dedication to her family. I think this will inhibit her from finding the better life she seeks. I am curious to see who "the boy who is now a man" that watched her dance is. I'm digging the whole house on the street of mango and it'll be a good read over break. SPEAKING OF BREAKKKK EVERYONE HAVE AN AWESME ONEEEE <3333 LeAvE ur CoMmEnTs x0x0x0x0xxxxx

WHY DIDN'T SOMEONE THROW EDZZ A LIFE VEST!?!?!!?

Edna, Edna, Edna....so much to say and so little time. I enjoyed the journey Edna went through and how we could see her gradually breaking away from the life she was given towards a life she desired. But some things along the way I was not too pleased with. Her affair with Arobin just makes me lower the respect I had for my good friend Eddzz. I can completely understand how she fell in love with Robert while being married to Leonce, the she-man, but if she's in love with Robert WHY DOES SHE FOOL AROUND WITH AROBIN??!!! To me, this proves how out of control she is; perhaps she has been closed so tightly into the conforms of society that the second someone rebels against it (adultery) she just grabs at it. In addition, I believe her suicide is not because of Robert at all. I think its more about how she will ALWAYS be connected to her children and as she has said she would never give her "true being" up for her kids, so she will never be able to break free from her previous life. There was no such thing as joint-custody in her days, making her role to her children almost a death sentence to Edna.
Edna also feels like she has no place in society and that no one understands her. When she goes on a rant to Robert about how she has freedom from all men his face goes white and he says "What do you mean?". Then before her suicide Edna explains "He did not know; he did not understand. He would never understand". The fact that no one would ever come to terms with her new way of life makes her want to commit suicide. Edna "had resolved never again to belong to another than herself" (80), which means she would never again be the posession of a man, not even Robert. This reminded me of in To Kill a Mockingbird when that old lady wanted to die beholden to nothing so she slowly and painfully overcomes her morphine addiction. All Edna wanted was to be uncontrolled like a free bird, but society would not let her.
It was reassuring that Edna knew it was better for her to suffer while finding her new self than to live the rest of her life in a sort of daze. Like that famous quote: its better to have loved and lost than to never love at all, Edna might have endured a strenuous journey, but at least she tasted freedom. The time period when Leonce was away really allowed Edna to grow as a person. She became self-sufficient by selling her paintings and I guess the affair let her see what life could be like if she wasn't confined to her husband.
Mad props to K.Chopin for writing The Awakening. I could've done without some of the dinner parties, but if she hadn't written this novel maybe we wouldn't be able to wear jeans or join the army. WOMANS SUFFRAGE HOOOLLLLAAAA.





~~~***~~~ @ndrea xxxxx00000xxxxxx000000xxxxxx

Choppin is Boppin

The Awakening seems like a book that tells us more about the time period it was written than an interesting story. Because the novel was considered revolutionary at the time we can see what society thought of women when it was written. Right now I'm doing a project for history on the changing Victorian Woman so I can basically grasp what a shock The Awakening would be to readers in 1899. One thing I thought was interesting was how I learned in my history text book that women were finding their roles from the 1850's-1900 and the book proves that, "Mrs. Pontellier was beginning to realize her position in the universe as a human being" 13. I think this really shows what the time period was about for women and how they started to understand they might have more of a role than just wife and mother.
Although I have no experience with motherhood, if you're not cut out to be a mom I can see how it would be quite annoying to take care of two smelly brats. Mrs. Pontellier seems to have absolutely no connection with her children or her husband. When her husband suggests she should check up on their son because he thinks he has a fever, Edna is extremely reluctant to get out of bed. This shows how the mom was supposed to unquestionably take care of the children and how hard it is for Mrs. Pontellier to be a mother and a wife but nothing more. As Chopin describes, "her marriage was purely an accident resembling many other marriages which masquerade as the decrees of Fate" 18. Women of the time pretended they fell in love at first sight but this was all just an act because in reality many women did not marry the men they were in love with, but just those who found them suitable. I think Mrs. Pontellier knows she wants out of her typical life, but because everyone around her thinks her husband is amazing she is really lost and confused inside. It seems as if everything around her is perfect so Edna is left asking herself "why am I so unhappy???" If only her husband wasn't so conventional and a bit more open minded Mrs. Pontellier wouldn't feel so frustrated.
Mrs. Pontellier's relationship with Robert could just be an escape from her husband. At first it appears that she doesn't care much for him but this obviously changes. I'm just unsure if her admiration for him is true or if he's just there at the right time. Right now she's basically having a mental break down and heres this young, casual man who is apparently flirtatious and has frequent obesessions with women; he's basically the perfect fling to distract her from her marital problems.
Throughout this novel I think Chopin's main goal is to make a point about how women were forced into a role to be submissive and passivly walk through their life when they DO have true emotions and go deeper than just a pretty face. Chopin's voice is apparent in the novel: "but unthinkingly as we walk, move, sit, stand, go through the daily treadmill of life which has been portioned out to us" 31, here she is speaking directly about women, to women. She's showing them how they've all been given this pre-planned life that they CAN be dissatisfied with and ultimately change.
It's tough to get through this book because Edna's character is not exactly likeable. She comes off as a whiney and annoying, perhaps someone tied her corset too tight. (BTW Chopin obviously cared a lot about clothes and hair bc she always mentions in detail what the women are wearing!) I thought it was amusing when she swam a foot, felt like an olympian, then almost drowned. I wish I was there to point and laugh at her, but the literary importance of this was to show how once she feels at the height of her strength and independence she always gets knocked down by someone or society.
I hope there's more action in this book soon! But for now I'll just take a few cat naps between chapters =) leave yo comments at ur leisure


x0x0x0x0x0x0x0xx