How does the configuration of Esperanza's character construct the

representation of Chicano Feminism

in The House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros?
 INTRODUCTION

Sandra Cisneros is the writer of The House on Mango Street, a famous book
published in 1984. Throughout the narrative plot of the novel, various themes
are developed, however the topic that most captured my attention was the
representation of Chicano feminism.

Chicano feminism is one of the feminist movements that has been

characterized by emphasizing the inequalities suffered by "women of color" that
can't be compared to white American women. In this sense, a group of Chicana
writers began to stand out in the 1980s, faced with the situation of feeling
identified as a woman in a group that has suffered abuse from their own ethnic
group and from the dominant Anglo-American society. Sandra Cisneros is one
of these Chicano writers, and reflects in her novel The House on Mango Street
through the female voice of the narrator and protagonist, the reality of many
women of Mango Street. Esperanza, who throughout the narrative plot
experiences exorbitant situations, undergoes an evolution to become a mature
woman, moving away from the female role models of her neighborhood and
evidencing her feminist perspective. For that reason, I decided to focus my
research in the representation of Chicano feminism through the configuration of
the main character, Esperanza Cordero. Therefore, I've seen feasible to ask the
following research question: How does the configuration of Esperanza's
character construct the representation of Chicano Feminism in The House on
Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros?

In that regard, I divided my extended essay into three chapters: In the first one I
will analyze the sociocultural context of the author. In the second one, I’ll
analyze the representation of Chicano feminism in the configuration of
Esperanza's character, evidencing female models in Chicano society and the
shocking situations experienced by the protagonist. In the third chapter, I’ll
analyze the female role model that Esperanza chooses to become a mature
woman, criticizing the traditional patriarchal system. Finally, I’ll present my
conclusions based on the arguments presented.
CHAPTER 1: The Chicano Feminist movement and Sandra Cisneros
literature
1. The Chicano Feminism
The feminist social movement in the sixties was important for American
women, the issue of the traditional role association evolved through the
emergence of feminism. Women were able to be on the same level as men,
however it was a big problem for “women of color”, their desire couldn’t be
compared with that of white and middle-class women because they suffered
double discrimination.
“Chicano'' is a word that refers to a group of people with Mexican ancestry, it
allows them to identify culturally and politically in Anglo-American society.
The Chicano movement surged as a consequence of discrimination and
structural inequalities. It was formed by Mexican-Americans and their aim
was to change this injustice, to improve the education and the political
autonomy of Chicano society. An ideology of this movement was “the ideal
Chicana”, where women were presented as patient and attentive to keep
the family together, their role basically consisted of supporting her husband
and teaching her children. Women began to question their traditional roles
in the family on account of changes in families’ structure, as a result of their
participation in the Chicano movement. For that reason, it was necessary to
create “The Chicano Feminism”. According to the sociologist García (1989)
“Chicana feminism struggled to gain equal status in the male-dominated
nationalist movements and also in American society.” (p.220)
2. The Chicano Feminism on Sandra Cisneros literature

Sandra Cisneros was born in 1954 in Chicago, she was the only daughter of
seven children in a family. Her family traveled frequently between Chicago
and Mexico and they often settled in a different house. This was reflected in
the constant moving of Esperanza's family in The House of Mango Street.
Since Cisneros was a child, she loved books and grew up surrounded by
them; they allowed her to express herself through poetry and other genres.
She is part of a group of Chicana writers who stood out in the eighties, and
she focussed her books on the Chicana women’s conflict.
The Chicana identity is evident on The House on Mango Street in the way
Cisneros uses the language to communicate her ideas through Esperanza’s
narration, evidencing her ethnic background. The use of “Spanglish” is a
characteristic of the Chicano English variety, and according to Betz (2012):
In language contact situations, what is generally known as “Spanglish” is varied.
Sometimes it is used as an expression of that context and sometimes to
express “orgullo,” or pride, in the particular variety, whereby it is neither
dominated by “Mexican” identity, nor by a “US” identity. (p.18)
Thus, Cisneros used this narration style to spotlight her dual ethnic
background, it allowed her to identify as a “Chicana”. However, Esperanza,
the main character and the narrator of the book, clings to English because
it's the dominant ethnic group. Cisneros shows us through Esperanza´s
 perspective, a pure childhood view, her desire to be a successful writer and
independent woman, hence she expresses her displeasure for her latino
culture when she sticks to English.
Throughout the book, Cisneros constructs the Chicana identity through
sexism as an ideology, according to ÇETİN, KOÇSOY (2020) “As sexism is
defined as an ideology, which advocates male supremacist values, women
are identified as naturally dependent, childish, neurotic and always in need
of authority, while men are identified as naturally stronger, more logical and
rational”(pp.131-132) It evidences issues like the culture of silent, women's
dependence of men and women´s resentment.
CHAPTER 2: The representation of Chicano Feminism in the configuration
of Esperanza's character
Esperanza has been identified as a Homodiegetic-Witness narrator since she’s
part of the story and intervenes in the events, also narrates in the first person
assuming the role of spectator when looking from outside the facts.
2.1 Esperanza's name
We’re going to start the configuration of our protagonist through an analysis of
the chapter titled “My Name”. In this chapter, Esperanza introduces the meaning
of her name, at first, in English, “my name means hope” (Cisneros, 1984, p.10)
and second, in Spanish, “It means sadness, it means waiting. It is like the
number nine” (Cisneros, 1984, p.10). It could be considered irrelevant when we
concentrate our analysis in the representation of feminism, but it’s important to
identify the dual ethnic background of the protagonist. It allows us to identify her
as a Chicana, evidencing the meaning of her name from the perspective of
Mexican culture and contrasting it with the meaning in English. Above all,
Esperanza introduces her great-grandmother from whom she inherited her
name. In her great-grandmother´s world, women were considered as objects,
which men could sell, buy and steal, most of them forced to marry and serve a
man at home, and forcing them to stay. Esperanza shows us how her
great-grandmother was caught, “my great-grandfather threw a sack over her
head and carried her off. Just like that, as if she were a fancy chandelier”
(Cisneros, 1984, p.11) Most women in this culture lose their desire to be
something in life, building themselves as passive beings who preserve purity.
The window as a metaphor represents the life of women who are forced to stay
at home subjugated by a man, feeling resentment towards them for cursing their
lives. Furthermore, Esperanza uses a serious tone to claim that she didn’t
inherit her great-grandmother’s place by the window “I have inherited her name,
but I don't want to inherit her place by the window.” (Cisneros, 1984, p.11) This
tone allows us to evidence her desire to not be dominated by a man, building an
opposite stance against gender oppression.
2.2 Women´s beauty and body: Sexual harassment and
traditional role association
Sexual harassment is one of the problems that women suffer as a consequence
of the unfair world on the part of dominant Chicano male. When they want to
feel more beautiful wearing high heels or short and tight dresses, they are
exposed to out-of-context male comments that affect their integrity. As we can
evidence on the chapter titled “Marin”, the female character about whom is
narrated in the chapter, she’s described by Esperanza as older and knows a lot
of things about being a woman, but above all she stands out because of her
beauty and the short dresses she wears, consequently boys who pass by her
make offensive comments about her beauty “I am in love with those two green
apples you call eyes, give them to me why don't you.” (Cisneros, 1984, p.27)
However, Marin reacts differently to this type of situation, where she doesn’t
give importance to the comments received, ignoring them and showing her as
brave, “And Marin just looks at them without even blinking and is not afraid.”
(Cisneros, 1984, p.27) The way Marin reacts to this situation allows Esperanza
to take that example of bravery when she feels sexually harassed for her
beauty, evidencing a way to defend herself as a woman against inappropriate
male thoughts towards her beauty and body.
Sexual harassment is also evidenced in the chapter titled “The Family of Little
Feet” Rachel, Lucy and Esperanza received a pair of shoes each one, however
who stood out among them was Rachel, who received a pair of lemon shoes
and learned to walk with high heels. In the first instance, beauty becomes a
problem for our female character, the men focus their gazes on the beauty of
the female body, “Lucy, Rachel, me tee-tottering like so. Down to the corner
where the men can't take their eyes off us. We must be Christmas” (Cisneros,
1984, p.40) In the second instance, it exposes them in the worst case to receive
inappropriate promises in exchange for sexual favors. Esperanza introduces us
to Mr. Benny, who anticipates the danger that wearing high shoes can bring, he
resorts to exaggeration to imply the negative consequences of a woman's
beauty to which the three young women are exposed to “Them are dangerous,
he says. You girls too young to be wearing shoes like that. Take them shoes off
before I call the cops, but we just run.” (Cisneros, 1984, p.41) And as expected,
Rachel was asked by a bum man about her little lemon shoes but he had a
wicked interest in Rachel, this is evident in his strange behavior when asking for
Rachel to come closer to the point of asking for a kiss in exchange for a dollar
“If I give you a dollar will you kiss me? How about a dollar. I give you a dollar,
and he looks in his pocket for wrinkled money.” (Cisneros, 1984, pp.41-42) This
can make us understand that Rachel’s ignorance leads her to think about the
dollar without realizing that she’s a victim of sexual harassment. Everything
discussed above allows Esperanza to realize the negative consequences of a
woman's beauty seen from a childish perspective where ignorance settles. For
the Chicana women this represents a symbol of oppression, when their beauty
becomes problematic, losing the desire to feel beautiful knowing they’re the
target of men. This disinterest is reflected in the tiredness that our female
character adopts. “We are tired of being beautiful.” (Cisneros, 1984, p.42) In
that sense, Rachel, Lucy and Esperanza lose their interest in shoes that
connote beauty.
The gender stereotypes on Chicano culture establish the traditional woman role
association in the society. Women are seen as housewives in the family, they
are mainly engaged in cooking, washing clothes, cleaning the house and
looking after their children and husband. As we can see from the chapter titled
“Alicia who sees Mice”. Esperanza introduces us to Alicia who is young, smart
and studies at university, however the role she fulfills within her family lies on
housework “And anyway, a woman's place is sleeping so she can wake up early
with the tortilla star, the one that appears early just in time to rise and catch the
hind legs hide behind the sink” (Cisneros, 1984, p.31) The narrator alludes to a
realistic tone to show the role women play in the family, within this tone lies the
lament of a woman, who feels indignant at inheriting the duties of keeping the
house clean and tidying up. In other words, after losing her mother, Alicia takes
over her responsibilities “whose mama died, is sorry there is no one older to rise
and make the lunchbox tortillas. Alicia, who inherited her mama's rolling pin and
sleepiness” (Cisneros, 1984, p.31) The rolling pin symbolizes the work women
do in the kitchen to prepare tortillas, while sleepiness represents the effort that
Alicia makes. On one hand, dedicating herself to university studies and, on the
other, feeling responsible for getting up early to do housework. This effort in
Alicia's studies is due to the fact that she doesn't want to spend most of her life
in a factory or "behind a roller pin" (Cisneros, 1984, p.32), which refers
metaphorically to housework, specifically to cooking. In this sense, we can
understand that studying is the escape from the roles that women are assigned
as a consequence of their gender, which in turn makes evident their opposite
position against the ideals of the association of female roles towards
housework. This allows our protagonist to realize the reality to which women are
destined as a consequence of their gender, which will be evidenced in the
following argument.
As previously analyzed, women are assigned by their gender to housework. In
addition to this, they assume that the female body has been designed to do
these household chores. Furthermore, gender stereotypes are ingrained in
Chicano culture. As we can observe in the chapter titled “Hips”, in an
atmosphere of fun, while Esperanza, Nenny, Lucy and Rachel are jumping rope,
Esperanza’s incipient sexuality expands as they have a discussion about the
development of their hips. Gender stereotypes are evidenced in the female
character’s thoughts when referring to hips and women's bodies. So through
their ignorant perspectives they present their ideas according to what they
observe in their society. “They're good for holding a baby when you're cooking,
Rachel says, turning the jump rope a little quicker. She has no imagination.”
(Cisneros, 1984, p.49) From a childish and ignorant perspective, Rachel
evidences the relation of the female traditional roles with women’s body nature.
This makes us understand that the function of hips lies in facilitating housework
for women, seen from the point of view of a child. However, our protagonist
makes her position evident when she mentions “She has no imagination” thus
opposing the idea suggested by Rachel. Women's bodies are criticized and
compared to men. Gender stereotypes criticize the development of the female
body, and this is evidenced in Nenny's idea “If you don't get them you may turn
into a man. Nenny says this and she believes it. She is this way because of her
age.” (Cisneros, 1984, pp.49-50) Nevertheless, our protagonist rejects her
sister’s idea and takes a contrary position, justifying her ignorance. In this
sense, Esperanza's opposing stance on female gender stereotypes shows her
rejection of the model ideas for how a woman should act and feel in Chicano
society. It is relevant to mention that this idea was built and influenced by
Alicia's thoughts which hold an opposition against the ideals of female roles and
this is complemented by the stereotypical models of the female body.
2.3. The culture of silence: Violence and Sexual abuse
The violence and sexual abuse against our female character is evidenced in
different ways in the book, however we’re going to concentrate our analysis in
the violence and sexual abuse that mute and minimize the voices of those who
have been condemned to silence. Chicano women assume their position of
feeling incapable of defending themselves against the callous nature of men.
For that reason, they define themselves through the cultural codes imposed by
patriarchy as submissive and silent. This way of evidencing violence and sexual
abuse minimizes the credibility of female victims who lose their voice of protest
due to the fear men’s temperament can generate. In the chapter titled “The First
Job”, Esperanza narrates how her aunt found her a job at a photo printing shop.
In a first plane, Esperanza describes her discomfort in her work environment,
hiding in the washroom and coat room at lunchtime. However, this discomfort is
reduced when an old oriental man wanted to be friends with her and he wanted
to go together to the lunchroom the next time. Esperanza discovers the
negative side that her sexuality can generate when the man asked her for a kiss
because it was his birthday. The situation turns violent when the old man kisses
Esperanza grabbing her face with both hands and he doesn't let her go. “I
thought I would because he was so old and just as I was about to put my lips on
his cheek, he grabs my face with both hands and kisses me hard on the mouth
and doesn't let go.” (Cisneros, 1984, p.55) Sexual violence is evident in this
section, a kiss turned into sexual assault for our protagonist. Esperanza realizes
her sexuality becomes problematic and her daily life experiences tend to be
violent and oppressive. Furthermore, she realizes that the Chicano woman is
powerless, unable to defend herself as a result of her low strength to break free
from sexually risky situations.
Violence against Chicano women is one of the factors that doesn't escape the
culture of silence. Women are characterized as vulnerable to be physically
harmed by the greatest oppressor of their freedom, men. Their inability to
defend themselves, their lack of autonomy and their dependence on men are
factors that determine a woman's vulnerability. In the chapter titled “What Sally
Said”, Sally claims her father hits her. Sally’s father is one of the most
oppressive male characters, he thinks she’s going to run away with a man and
shame her family like his sisters did. However, Sally is trying to escape her
abusive family life through sexual experimentation with other children. One day
Sally’s father catches her talking to a boy, Sally’s father becomes a beast,
completely forgetting that she was his daughter “And the next. Until the way
Sally tells it, he just went crazy, he just forgot he was her father between the
buckle and the belt.” (Cisneros, 1984, p.93) The buckle and the belt are
elements that identify Sally´s father as a violent person who exercises abuse at
home. Nevertheless, the main element that violence against Chicana women
involves are men's hands who exercise control and manipulation at home
through exaggerated physical damage. “You're not my daughter, you're not my
daughter. And then he broke into his hands.” (Cisneros, 1984, p.93). The
analysis focuses on how this manipulation influences Chicano women. Sally’s
demeanor was discreet, so she tried to hide all her injuries and bruises justifying
them through accidents. This denotes her submissive behavior, allowing herself
to be dominated by her father. In that sense, she loses her voice of protest and
assumes her inability to defend herself. Another situation that doesn't escape
from the analysis is the behavior assumed by Sally’s mother in the face of
violence and mistreatment by Sally’s father. As Sally said “her mama rubs lard
on all the places where it hurts.” (Cisneros,1984, p.92). This implies that her
mother accepted the father's violent behavior and the physical harm suffered by
Sally. Therefore, she’s configured as a submissive woman who is dominated by
the manipulation and control of Sally´s father at home.
Finally, sexual abuse is evident in the chapter titled “Red Clowns”, Esperanza
narrates how she is sexually abused in a carnival by a group of teenagers.
Showing her feeling of anger towards Sally, who kept her waiting and
abandoned at the carnival. “Why didn't you tell them to leave me alone? The
one who grabbed me by the arm, he wouldn't let me go. He said I love you,
Spanish girl, I love you, and pressed his sour mouth to mine.” (Cisneros, 1984,
p.100) Esperanza doesn't describe specifically what happened, because she
doesn't exactly remember the outrageous experience she lived, however her
tone makes evident her impotence and anger not only with Sally but also with
Chicano women who are oppressed by men, emphasizing the unpleasant
experiences women are exposed in a male-dominated society.

CHAPTER 3: The Idealism of a mature woman

Esperanza tells us her experiences and anecdotes living on Mango Street, most
of her stories refer to the Chicano woman's lifestyle. So, each woman's lifestyle
symbolizes a path that Esperanza can take to be a mature woman. In the
chapter titled “Mango Says Goodbye Sometimes” Esperanza begins to develop
mature thoughts about her future, she discovers how literature narrates her life
and identifies her. She wishes to leave Mango Street to become stronger and
return for those who cannot escape “One day I will pack my bags of books and
paper. One day I will say goodbye to Mango. I am too strong for her to keep me
here forever. One day I will go away.” (Cisneros, 1984, p.110) Sandra Cisneros
reflects in Esperanza her desire to strengthen the female voice through literary
discourse, through which they can embrace their authority as speaking subjects
who criticize the traditional and oppressive patriarchal system. “I have gone
away to come back. For the ones I left behind. For the ones who cannot out.”
(Cisneros, 1984, p.110) Here, Esperanza refers to those women who have a
lifestyle influenced by male control.
 CONCLUSIONS
In view of all the aspects exposed above, my main aim is to demonstrate how
the configuration of Esperanza's character constructed the representation of
Chicano Feminism in The House on Mango Street.
In the first instance, I can conclude that Esperanza's configuration as a
homodiegetic-witness narrator reflects the feminist perspective of Sandra
Cisneros through a childish perspective. She narrates various situations in her
daily life in which Chicana women are a symbol of oppression and impotence. It
is evidenced by various female role models that are subject to controversial
topics during the social and cultural context of the author. Sexual harassment,
traditional role association, violence and sexual abuse are situations to which
Chicana women are exposed. In this sense, Esperanza shows her opposition to
the patriarchal system.
In the second instance, I can conclude that the shocking experiences lived by
the protagonist configures her as a powerless person, incapable of being able
to defend herself in situations that affect her sexuality. As previously analyzed,
Esperanza's rape and the forced kiss by the old oriental man were events that
allowed her to realize the impotence of Chicano women in a society dominated
by men.
In the third instance, I can conclude that Esperanza doesn't identify with one of
the models of women developed throughout the narrative plot. In this sense,
Sandra Cisneros's self-portrait is evidenced by her passion for literature and her
desire to combat the traditional patriarchal system.
Finally, the three ideas that were analyzed above allow us to argue how the
configuration of Esperanza's character constructed the representation of
Chicano Feminism, because each of these ideas sustains the construction of a
feminine archetype that differs from Chicano society, focusing on her position as
a woman in a society dominated by men and criticizing the construction of
gender relations.
In addition, I invite readers to inquire about Chicano feminism and the author's
contribution during the movement, also during the development of the extended
essay, other research questions arose that could be resolved through further
research, such as: To what extent does Alicia and Minerva's setting influence
the perspective and projections of female models in Esperanza to become a
mature woman? and Does Sandra Cisneros reflect the same feminist
perspective in the configuration of her main characters, who move away from
female models in The House on Mango Street as Woman Hollering Creek and
Other Stories?

BIBLIOGRAPHIC REFERENCES:
Cisneros, S. (1984). The House on Mango Street. (1st ed.). New York: Vintage
Books.
Garcia, A. (1989). The Development of Chicana Feminist Discourse,
1970-1980. Gender & Society - GENDER SOC. 3. 217-238.
10.1177/089124389003002004. Retrieved April 10, 2021 from:
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/249667784_The_Development_of_Chi
cana_Feminist_Discourse_1970-1980
Betz, R. (2012). Chicana "Belonging" in Sandra Cisneros' The House on Mango
Street. Retrieved April 15, 2021 from:
https://www.rmmla.org/assets/docs/Journal-Archives/2010-2019/summer2012-B
etz.pdf
Gülsüm Tuğçe ÇETİN. & F.gül KOÇSOY. (2020).The Constructed Chicana
Identity and Myth In The House On Mango Street.Littera Turca Journal of
Turkish Language and Literature. Retrieved April 15, 2021 from:
https://dergipark.org.tr/tr/download/article-file/1083497