I will hopefully see you on Wed. Thanks for all of your great work- keep it up.
Monday, May 11, 2015
Class Tuesday
Today you will be reading and analyzing each chapter from "The Earl of Tennesee" to "Sally." I would like you to analyze each vignette just as we have been doing all along: think about the tone and mood of each chapter, what feelings are you left with? How are characters portrayed and developed? What themes are explored? What types of figurative language does Cisneros use to bring each vignette to life? You should also include your thoughts, feelings, and opinions about each vignette.
I will hopefully see you on Wed. Thanks for all of your great work- keep it up.
I will hopefully see you on Wed. Thanks for all of your great work- keep it up.
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Gavin McElhone
ReplyDeleteThe House on Mango Street – Analysis
Pages 70-83
The Earl of Tennessee
The Earl of Tennessee shows that Esperanza is not fully mature and still thinks like a child. She believes that the red head woman who wears tight pink pants with green glasses is Earl’s wife. However, she is there for sexual relations because she is a prostitute. This shows that Esperanza is still an innocent child.
Sire
In Sire, Esperanza talks about the “punk,” as her parents would say, that lives across the street. Esperanza says that she sees him looking at her but she is intimidated by him and does not want to look him in the eyes. However, when the next time that she walked by him and his friends, she turned around and looked through as if he were glass. He then bumped into a parked car and Esperanza left. This shows that Esperanza is standing up to her fears, even if it is little things like eye contact.
Four Skinny Trees
In this vignette, Esperanza compares herself to the four trees on her street. Esperanza says that the trees are the last thing that people look at and are droopy with a skinny neck and pointy elbows like herself. Esperanza personifies the trees and it seems as if she is just like them. She also says that they do not belong there, which may mean that Esperanza belongs in Mexico where she was born. Esperanza may also feel like she is unimportant to society and is “there.”
No Speak English
In the vignette “No Speak English,” Esperanza describes a heavier set lady, named Mamacita who is very homesick and does not want to learn the language of English or adapt to their society and culture. The children on the block believe that she does not ever come outside is because she is overweight, but Esperanza notices that all she wants to do is to go home “She sits all day by the window and plays the Spanish radio show and sings all the homesick songs about her country in a voice that sounds like a seagull.” (page 77) Esperanza may relate to Mamacita a little bit because Esperanza does too miss home.
Rafaela Who drinks Coconut & Papaya Juice on Tuesdays
In this vignette, a beautiful woman named Rafaela is kept in her apartment because her husband does not want her to realize how beautiful she actually is and then run off with someone else. Rafaela is getting pissed off and wants to be free from her husband and find someone who would treat her better. Since, she cannot leave the apartment, she asks kids to run down to the store and either get her coconut or papaya juice.
Sally
In this vignette, Cisneros uses great imagery. It talks about religion and cultures. Esperanza mentions that in Sally’s fathers, flaunted beauty and dancing is not allowed. The father had sisters and they were not the most behaved children and gave his family a bad reputation, which limited Sally to some activities. Sally goes to Esperanza’s school and Esperanza looks up to her. Sally wishes she could just leave and do all of the things that her father had told her not to do. Esperanza wants to become new best friends with Sally and it seems that they would be great friends.