House on Mango Street

A detailed Summary of House on Mango Street


The House on Mango Street, by Sandra Cisneros, is a book that covers many bases that take place in the lives of many. It is about a young girl, Esperanza, growing up in a poverty stricken neighborhood. The book is filled with many different themes that people experience every day.

A major theme that the book deals with is coming of age. Growing up. Esperanza, the main character, grew up in a very low class. She has moved many times, and lived in the most run down places. In one instance, she recounts a tale of being asked to identify her house when a nun from her school passed by and interrupted her play. The mortification she felt from having to point to the apartment over a "laundromat" with peeling paint and barred windows and admit she lived there scarred her. And it was not helped any when the nun rudly replied, "You live there?" Esperanza has been made to be bitter of her surroundings and ashamed of her place in life. Esperanza also deals with all the problems that children face. Like feelings of being rejected and being an outcast. Her status of waiting for a best friend as being "a red balloon tied to an anchor." She is isolated, alone, visibly different, and raised high for all to see. Esperanza longs to escape. She


Another theme is Social Class Differences. Esperanza has gotten the lower end of the stick in life, and she knows it. She hates it, too. She hates all the houses that he's lived in. The hates the lack of privacy she has. And she hates the fact that people in higher classes look down on her so much. A lot of the book revloves around her need to have a place of her own free from the constraints she finds both inside and outside her present domicile.

The House on Mango Street, as it has been shown, contains many different themes. There's Coming of Age, Social Class Differences, Gender Supression, and Family Traditions. There are many other themes, but the major reoccuring ones are covered here. These themes are things that still take place today, regardless of the fact that this book was written over 15 years ago. And if everybody plays their part, maybe these themes will slowly start to dissolve away and the world will be a better place for all of us.

needs a true friend to come and set her free.

Another theme is Family Issues. Esperanza has many family members. In the chapter, "Hairs", Esperanza describes the hair of all her family members. Their hair can play as a metaphor for their personality.. For instance, Nenny's slippery hair seems to match her wistful and dreamy dis

Some common words found in the essay are:
Growing Esperanza, Gender Suppression, Mama Esperanza, Indeed Mama, Nenny Esperanza's, Differences Esperanza, Sandra Cisneros, Family Traditions, Hairs Esperanza, Nenny Nenny, brothers sisters, house mango street, mama's hair, coming age, little sister, gender suppression, sisters esperanza, esperanza describes, longs escape, brothers sisters esperanza, class differences, social class differences, social class,

Approximate Word count = 869
Approximate Pages = 3 (250 words per page double spaced)

Category: English

join now Save Paper

Related Essays

  • House on Mango Street 2 The House on Mango Street Essay 1 In Sandra Cisnerosamp39s The House on Mango Street a tragic yet somewhat common situation was represented. ... 612 words
  • The House on Mango Street In the book The House on Mango Street, author Sandra Cisneros presents a series of vignettes that involve a young girl, named Esperanza, growing up in the ... 1006 words
  • The House on Mango Street The novel The House on Mango Street, by Sandra Cisneros, is a compilation of several rich and fascinating stories. These stories ... 970 words
  • House on Mango Street ... When she moves to the house of Mango Street, reality is so different than the dream. In this story, hope Esperanza sustains tragedy. ... 1118 words
  • House On Mango Street ... because they do not realize it.ampquot Sandra Cisnieros depicts women as slaves in society who are ruled by an iron fist of males in The House on Mango Street. ... 468 words
  • The House on Mango Street Final Draft of The House on Mango Street Throughout the world there are many children who grow up in extreme poverty and under disgraceful economical conditions ... 1014 words

Professional Essays

  • The House on Mango Street The House on Mango Street Introduction The slim volume of short stories by Sandra Cisneros entitled The House on Mango Street are narrated by a young Hispanic ... 1023 words
  • The House on Mango Street ampamp My First Kill The two stories ampquotThe House on Mango Streetampquot by Sandra Cisneros and ampquotMy First Killampquot by Art Coelho are each personal narratives, written in the firstperson and ... 1687 words
  • The Transition to Adulthood in Literature ... Sandra Cisneros, in The House on Mango Street, John Updike in ampquotA ampamp Pampquot, and Amy Tan in ampquotTwo Kindsampquot each write about that moment in a personamp39s life when he or ... 851 words
  • SelfEvaluative Essay ... on my own development and understanding: Graham Greenes 2004 The Quiet American Sandra Cisneros 1984 The House on Mango Street and, Giuseppe Verdis ... 781 words
  • Gender roles in literature ... of earlier periods ampquotSnow Whiteampquot and The Adventures of Tom Sawyer are significantly different from those portrayed more recently The House on Mango Street. ... 2648 words
  • Sandra Cisneros Sandra Cisneros, in her novel The House on Mango Street, portrays the American Dream as alive and well, although in a new and feminist form. ... 1474 words


Saved Paper

Save your papers so you can locate them quickly!

Newest Essays

Testimonials

  • "Thank You So Much!!! You have saved me once again!!!"
    Jack M.
  • "With so many papers to chose from, I was able to get ideas to help me with all of my classes. Thank You!"
    Brian P.
  • "I've used this site for the last 3 years to help me come up with ideas for my papers."
    Sara J.
  • "I use this site every week to help me write my own papers!"
    Rachel W.
  • "I love this site!!!"
    Marie N.
Home Join Now Support
Acceptable Use Policy About us FAQ
All papers are for research and reference purposes only!
© 2002-2009 DirectEssays.com. All Rights Reserved.