Environments and Cookie Cutters
Cisneros tells the reader about Esperanza’s house before we even learn her name because the author is making a point about what shapes our identity. Esperanza is the main character in the story. As the story works its way to the end the reader sees Esperanza's identity change. In the beginning Esparansa’s house is described as being “small” (Cisneros, 11) and somewhat ugly. It is not difficult to see how she could consider the house to be a box or a restrictive environment. In the story she desires to break free from this box. We see from the stories of the other women in the novel that this fear is not unfounded. Many of the older women in the story are unable to escape their houses. It makes sense, why she …show more content…
A shelter or house is something we at least we have some degree of control over. Perhaps one of the reasons why we hear of her house before we even hear her name is because her house holds more relevance to her identity then her name. Or perhaps it is not that house literally. Maybe the house is a concept for her environment. Our environments make us who we are and thus shape every aspect of our identity. In the story, one of the things Esperanza says that is rather telling about her identity comes from page (Cisneros, 50) she toys with the idea of being “beautiful & cruel” Perhaps the reasoning for this is that she wants men to be attracted to her but, she wants to be cruel so that men do not try and hurt or take advantage of her. It was her life experience that, taught her to be this way. During her very first job she is put into a position where a man takes advantage of her. He kissing her without her consent and not “letting go” (Cisneros, 34) As suggested in class her first, job had nothing to do with work. Her first job was to learn her place in the patriarchy. In her workplace, that man saw her as an object. Him seeing her this was was a hurtful classification that contributed to her idealized identity of one day being “beautiful &
Cisneros tells the reader about Esperanza’s house before we even learn her name because the author is making a point about what shapes our identity. Esperanza is the main character in the story. As the story works its way to the end the reader sees Esperanza's identity change. In the beginning Esparansa’s house is described as being “small” (Cisneros, 11) and somewhat ugly. It is not difficult to see how she could consider the house to be a box or a restrictive environment. In the story she desires to break free from this box. We see from the stories of the other women in the novel that this fear is not unfounded. Many of the older women in the story are unable to escape their houses. It makes sense, why she …show more content…
A shelter or house is something we at least we have some degree of control over. Perhaps one of the reasons why we hear of her house before we even hear her name is because her house holds more relevance to her identity then her name. Or perhaps it is not that house literally. Maybe the house is a concept for her environment. Our environments make us who we are and thus shape every aspect of our identity. In the story, one of the things Esperanza says that is rather telling about her identity comes from page (Cisneros, 50) she toys with the idea of being “beautiful & cruel” Perhaps the reasoning for this is that she wants men to be attracted to her but, she wants to be cruel so that men do not try and hurt or take advantage of her. It was her life experience that, taught her to be this way. During her very first job she is put into a position where a man takes advantage of her. He kissing her without her consent and not “letting go” (Cisneros, 34) As suggested in class her first, job had nothing to do with work. Her first job was to learn her place in the patriarchy. In her workplace, that man saw her as an object. Him seeing her this was was a hurtful classification that contributed to her idealized identity of one day being “beautiful &