The stories begin during the characters youthful days, venture off as their development as adolescents surface, and further adjust, once their teenage skin sheds and their adulthood begins. Throughout these years, Allende's female characters Clara, Blanca, and Alba allow their lives to take its course with its share of ups and downs. Esquivel uses similar means in the introduction and maturity of her exemplary characters Tita and Gertrudis. The similarity between these influential women is simple and precise - their independence. Although conceived as an "elegant, discreet, and charming lady," Clara is anything but. Throughout her marriage with Esteban, she diverges herself fro

Throughout the course of the novels The House of the Spirits and Like Water for Chocolate, self-actualization is achieved through the female character's development of independence, nonconformity, and courage. Once the antagonist is distinguished, these shrewd women are able to overcome many predicaments, thus establishing their feminism. At the close of the novels, due to their courage, these feminists prove that they are capable living undomesticated lives regardless of how painful or demanding their journey is. Without compromising their standards, Clara, Blanca, Alba, Tita, and Gertrudis, are exemplary figures that finally find true happiness, while demonstrating how unconventionality can lead to a path of self-discovery.

"Soon Clara was afraid of nothing" (Allende 74). Although mentioned early in the novel, Allende allows Clara to maintain this characteristic. Her courage guides her in becoming an independent and nonconforming woman. Whether it is communicating with ghosts, seeking the head of her dead mother, or facing up to the man whom everyone fears, Clara dignifies herself as an angelic, influential feminist. Blanca's bravery relates to her long-lasting affaire d'amour. Realizing that she and Pedro cannot wed, she continues to meet with him in sporadic rendezvous', knowing that severe consequences lie ahead if she were revealed. It is only until later that she and Pedro move to Canada together. Alba too involves herself in a love bind, yet it is not that which allows for her maturity. Like Tita, Alba places aside what she has been

Garcia. In doing so, she goes against her father's will and creates a state of turbulence for the family and her lover. Alba acquires Clara's spiritual beliefs and practices. Although she is not gifted with Clara's clairvoyance, she still enjoys hearing stories about her resilient Uncle Marcos, the magician. Once Clara passes away, "Alba was the family's break with the past, and link to the future" (Alle

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Approximate Word count = 1322
Approximate Pages = 5 (250 words per page double spaced)