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The House on Mango Street. Cultural Context. “I knew then that I had to have a house. A real house. One I could point to…” (Cisneros 5). The House on Mango Street.
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The House on Mango Street Cultural Context “I knew then that I had to have a house. A real house. One I could point to…” (Cisneros 5).
The House on Mango Street • “Told in a series of vignettes stunning for their eloquence, The House on Mango Street is Sandra Cisneros's greatly admired novel of a young girl growing up in the Latino section of Chicago…Sometimes heartbreaking, sometimes deeply joyous, The House on Mango Street tells the story of Esperanza Cordero, whose neighborhood is one of harsh realities and harsh beauty. Esperanza doesn't want to belong -- not to her rundown neighborhood, and not to the low expectations the world has for her. Esperanza's story is that of a young girl coming into her power, and inventing for herself what she will become” (“Major Works”).
Real-life connection • Much like her heroine in The House on Mango Street, Cisneros grew up in poverty dreaming of a day when she could have a home to truly call her own. But even after achieving artistic success and financial independence, Cisneros’ goals were still hampered by society. • “Cisneros now does have a house of her own--a bright purple house, no less, in San Antonio. In July of 1998, The New York Times featured an article describing the furor raised by her neighbors--belonging to the the King William neighborhood association--who declared that the color is ‘historically incorrect.’ Arguing that purple is indeed historically correct--that it is a pre-Columbian color celebrating pride in Mexican heritage,” Cisneros tried and failed to defend her color choice. She was allowed, instead, to paint her home a more “traditional” pink (Juffer).
real-life connection • Though stifled by societal norms, Cisneros has found a way to live in harmony within cultural confines, “My house is no longer violet because the sun faded it from violet to blue after a few years. We painted it Mexican-pink so it can fade into pink, then built my office in the backyard and painted it Mexican-marigold. The colors make me happy” (“About Sandra Cisneros”). • Though she has reached her own personal goals, Cisneros still reaches out to those in need of assistance and inspiration, “Much as the writer Esperanza promises to return to Mango Street at the end of that novel, Cisneros has continually returned to her community, showing the powerful connection between art, politics, and everyday life” (Juffer). Through teaching and activism, Sandra Cisneros makes Esperanza’s closing words ring true, “I have gone away to come back. For the ones I left behind. For the ones who cannot out” (Cisneros 110).
Prosetry – Blurring Genre LInes • Neither prose or poetry, The House on Mango explores instead the linguistic borderlands in between, “Cisneros' narrative style rejects traditional short story forms in favor of collage, often a mosaic of interrelated pieces, blending the sounds of poetry with oral story telling techniques. Her ingenious use of language includes the rhythm, sound, and syntax of Spanish, its sensibilities, emotional relationships to the natural world and inanimate objects, and its use of tender diminutives. She also uses the poetry of urban street slang, children's rhymes, and song creating her own innovative literary style at once musical, spontaneous, primal, and direct” (Thomas). • According to the author, “The language of Mango Street is based on speech. It's very much an anti-academic voice--a child's voice, a girl's voice, a spoken voice, the voice of an American-Mexican. It's in this rebellious realm of antipoetics that I tried to create a poetic text with the most unofficial language I could find. I did it neither ingenuously nor naturally. It was as clear to me as if I were tossing a Molotov” (Thomas).
Major Resources “About Sandra Cisneros." Sandra Cisneros. 08 Oct. 2009. Web. 17 Nov 2009. http://www.sandracisneros.com. Cisneros, Sandra. The House on Mango Street. New York: Random House, 1984. Print. Juffer, Jane. "Sandra Cisneros: Biographical Note.” Modern American Poet. University of Illinois, Web. 17 Nov 2009. http://www.english.illinois.edu. "Major Works." Sandra Cisneros. 08 Oct. 2009. Web. 17 Nov 2009. http://www.sandracisneros.com. Thomas, Carol. "Cisneros, Sandra." Contemporary Women Poets. Ed. Pamela L. Shelton. St. James Press, 1998. 63-64. Rpt. in Poetry for Students. Ed. David A. Galens. Vol. 19. Detroit: Gale, 2004. Literature Resource Center. Web. 8 Nov. 2010.
