The House of Mango Street Comprehension

What does Esperanza mean when she says, "I think diseases have no eyes"?

She believes that diseases chose people randomly, "with a dizzy finger".

What can Esperanza's mother not do?

She doesn't know how to take a subway to go downtown

Sometimes Cisneros rhymes the phrases in her sentence like stanzas in a poem might rhyme. Find a sentence in this chapter which illustrates these rhyming phrases. Do you notice any rhythmic pattern or personification used to create images in this chapter?

"...today pointed up because the world was full of clouds, the kind like pillows." Cisneros prefers to use ordinary objects that Esperanza would see any day instead of ones from far fantasies to depict in her writing

salamander

amphibian, like a lizard but with brightly colored skin

Assume Sally's dreams in the chapter Sally are really Esperanza's dreams. What does Esperanza want more than anything else?

She wants to be free. She doesn't want to feel like she's chained down by people judging her every move, waiting for a mistake to happen. She just wants to be loved for being herself

After whom was Esperanza named?

She's named after her great-grandmother

Why do the women at work laugh at Esperanza?

She's new to the job and probably just anxious about everything

Why do Esperanza and her friends admire Marin?

She's older, she knows a lot, and she isn't affected by anything, she's her own person.

In what kind of house would she like to live in?

A white house with trees around it and their own backyard with growing grass without a fence all to themselves

What evidence is there in the story that Esperanza is beginning to notice boys and that they're beginning to notice her?

After Esperanza danced with her uncle, "the boy who is a man" watched her dance all night

What's the impact of Aunt Lupe's illness on her husband and children?

Her husband who lost his wife to an illness felt like he lost his wife entirely. Her kids lost their childhood to ironing shirts indtead of being kids

Who is Esperanza talking about in the following passage: "...but I have decided not to grow up tame like the others who lay their necks on the the threshold waiting for the ball and chain..."(Beautiful and Cruel)

When Esperanza grows up, she doesn't want to be prim and perfect waiting for a man. She wants to be independent

nimbus

rain cloud

What does Esperanza mean at the end of the chapter when she says, "I don't know which way she'll go. There is nothing I can do."?

Minerva is kind of unpredictable to Esperanza because she can't make her mind. One day she'll be kicking her husband who's never home ou, the next day she'll be letting him back in

At one point in the chapter Sally, it's confusing as to whether the author is writing about Sally or about Esperanza. What's a sentence in this chapter that's about Sally but is also Esperanza's dream?

"Do you wish would one day keep walking and take you far away from Mango Street, far away and maybe your feet would stop in front of a house, nice one with flowers and big windows and steps for you to climb by two upstairs to where a room is waiting for you."

Approximately, how old is Esperanza at this point in the story? (Linoleum Roses)

13

Cisneros presents many examples of women's lives on Mango Street. What do you think Esperanza learns about a woman's life from Rosa Vargas?

A leader has to keep a group together without falling apart themselves. If the leader falls, so will the group

Why does Esperanza's papa "wake up tired in the dark"? How does Esperanza feel about her father?

A part of Esperanza's father got lost when his father passed away. She mourns with him by putting herself in his shoes

How much time has passed since the beginning of the book?

A year

Why does the sister with the marble hands tell Esperanza that she must "remember to come back for the others"?

Even though she'll eventually leave Mango Street, she has to come back so she won;t forget her past

Why does Sally's father prevent her from leaving their home after school?

If Sally didn't come straight home from school, her father may think that she got ideas about running away or has already run away

Why do you think Esperanza describes her house as "clean as paper before the poem"?

It's something she can refer to easily, writing is a really importat part of her life that impacts her the most in the end

Who is Marin?

Louie's girl cousin

Where is Esperanza in this last chapter?

Mango Street (She came back)

Why does Alicia think it;s important for Esperanza to think of Mango Street as her home and return to it someday?

No matter what, she's lived on Mango Street and it's now a part of her, she was to come back to Mango Street

Why does she describe herself as a girl who "didn't want to belong"?

She never felt like The House on Mango Street was her dream house

Why do you think Alicia is afraid of "four-legged fur. And fathers"?

She's afraid of being sucked up into the same life her mother had and the same life her father is rooting for

Why does Esperanza think Nenny belongs to a world, she, Rachel, and Lucy don't belong to anymore?

She's different from everyone else and she can't hear Esperanza calling out her name

Why do you think the following passage from the first chapter is repeated in the last chapter? "We didn't always live on Mango Street. Before that we lived on Loomis on the 3rd floor, and before that we lived on Keeler."

She's ending to say where she started

What's Alicia doing to escape Mango Street?

She's going to the university

Why is the significance of the title of this chapter? (Linoleum Roses)

The roses are meant to represent woman but Esperanza believes this the worst way to do it

How are Guadalajara and Mango Street alike?

There are both places to come back to

How does she manage to escape from Mango Street?

Through her writing

What do you think Esperanza wishes for? (The 3 Sisters)

To leave Mango Street

What are the signs or superstitions the death of the baby?

When a dog cries or when a yellow bird flies through an open window

What do the linoleum roses represent?

Women

How does the Oriental man betray her trust?

By kissing her hard on the mouth

What is Esperanza hoping for? (Elenita, Cards, Palm, Water)

A new life away from Mango Street

abuelito

grandfather

Why do you think Esperanza seems to be surprised the girls "have legs"?

Any other day Rachel and Lucy seemed just like Esperanza, but now looking at their legs, a new wave of maturity passes Esperanza and lands on the girls because they "have legs", indicating that they never really showed their legs

Why is Marin unable to leave her house?

Her own family lives in Puerto Rico

What can you infer about Angel Vargas' fate his name?

Angel is always falling from high up places, and possibly the sky

Why do you think Esperanza might be particularly moved by Minerva's sad life?

At the end of every day, Esperanza knows she can find Minerva crying and praying. But she also knows that at the end of every day, Minerva's writing poems. And through all the chaos of her day, poetry is what sets Minerva free

Compare the reaction of Tito's mother to his kissing a girl with the reaction of Sally's father when he catches her talking to a boy. What's your opinion about the behavior of these two parents?

Neither of the reactions from the two parents were normal or fair. Tito's mother didn't seem like she cared at all that what her son was doing was wrong, while Sally's father completely overreacted and could have handled the situation calmer and differently

What are Esperanza's mother's talents?

She can speak two languages, sing an opera, and fix a television

Support or refute the following statement with incidents from this chapter: Geraldo is the stereotype of an illegal whose life is of no importance.

Support: In Chicago during the 1960s, Geraldo didn't seem like someone people would take the time to care about. When he was at the hospital, no one came in to try and keep him alive except for a lonely intern. Plus, he left his family in Puerto Rico and was never heard from again

Does her new home live up her expectations? Why not?

The actual house doesn't live to her expectations because she wasn't at all happy or proud of her new house, she was just ashamed

In the beginning of this chapter the girls are talking about the many different names for snow and clouds. What do you think Cisneros is saying about names in this chapter?

The names are the names of people that may live near the House on Mango Street. That may be what Cisneros is naming while Nenny, Rachel, Lucy, and Esperanza are naming clouds

If feet are a symbol for growing up, what do the brown-and-white school shoes mean in this chapter? (Chancles)

The school shoes represent how Esperanza still feels a little bit immature. Everything about her outfit says maturity until you get to her feet

What is the meaning of the following passage? What are the trees saying? "Sometimes I hear them laughing late, beer cans and cats and the trees talking to themselves: wait, wait, wait."

The trees show a symbol of stability to abstinence

The last line of the chapter reads, "And then we began to dream the dreams." What kind of dreams do Esperanza and her friends have after Aunt Lupe's death?

Their conscience was bothered by all the guilt they had for imitating their aunt

Why do the neighbors "give up" on the Vargas children?

They're tired of complaining and feeling sorry Ms. Vargas and it's become the new normal

What does the sentence "All brown all around, we are safe" mean?

As a race, Mexican-Americans aren't dangerous, it's certain people from their race that may reflect someone how "dangerous" a community may be

Why do you think Aunt Lupe says to Esperanza, "You just remember to keep writing Esperanza. You must keep writing. It will keep you free."?

Aunt Lupe used writing to keep her free when her disease was just starting out. Noe that she's passing away, she's saving her best adive for Esperanza in hope that it will free her just like it freed herslef

What makes Rachel and Lucy better friends than Cathy?

Cathy doesn't stick up for Esperanza, she leaves her behind because she has no faith in her, unlike Lucy and Rachel.

Why are the conversations between the girls sometimes difficult to understand? (And Some More)

Cisneros is writing the conversation down the same way Esperanza would in a diary

What does Elenita predict for Esperanza's future?

Elentia sees "a home in the heart"

Esperanza tries to convince her mother to let her eat lunch at school by saying "You see me less and less and like me better." Her mother writes in the note to the nun, "As you can see she is very skinny. I hope to God she does not faint." What do these two statements suggest about the similarity between Esperanza's personality and her mother's personality?

Esperanza and her mother both thought to exaggerate the situation to get their way

What evidence is there in this story that Esperanza is ashamed of her house?

Esperanza points to a house that's not even hers because she just wanted to eat in the canteen like everyone else. Not to be questioned on where she lives

How does Esperanza feel about this prediction? (Elenita, Cards, Palm, Water)

Esperanza's disappointed with her fortune because she was expecting more and she didn't know what "a home in the heart" meant

What advice does Esperanza's mother give to her daughter?

Esperanza's mother advises her daughter to go to school and study hard

Why does Esperanza's mother quit school?

Esperanza's mother quits school because she didn't have nice clothes

What are the superstitions or cures attributed to Elenita's power?

For a headache - rub a cold across your face; forgetting an old romance - tie a chicken foot with a red string, spin it over your head 3 times, then burn it; getting rid of bad spirits - sleep next to a hold candle for seven days, then on the eighth day, spit

What makes Esperanza trust the Oriental man?

He was only to actually talk to Esperanza and he let her sit with him in the lunchroom

Why is a white Southerner like Earl living on Mango Street?

He's trying to find work as a jukebox repairman in Chicago

Many critics consider The House on Mango Street a feminist novel. How does the following passage support this idea? "I have begun my own quiet war. Simple. Sure. I am one who leaves the table like a man, without putting back the chair or picking up the plate."

It explains that unlike most women Esperanza knows, she'll be an authority figure who's independent all her own

What is the following passage saying about Lois' maturity level compared to Esperanza's? "...She was barefoot, and I saw her barefoot baby toenails all painted pale pale pink...her bones are long like ladies' bones...But she doesn't know how to tie her shoes. I do."

Lois isn't as mature as Esperanza. Even though she's mostly grown up, her bare pale pink toe-nailed feet say otherwise

What does the following passage from the novel suggest about Marin's fate? What are her chances of finding someone to rescue her from her life on Mango Street? "Marin, under streetlight, dancing by herself, is singing the same song somewhere. I know. Is waiting for a car to stop , a star to fall, someone to chane her life."

Marin's fate is pretty slim. She and her boyfriend want to run off to get married but they're countries apart. Not to mention that being Mexican-American in Chicago in the 1960s doesn't seem like a great place to get rescued from since residents are slowing away because "the neighborhood's getting bad".

Why do you suppose "no one complains" when Lucy's mother throws away the shoes?

Maybe it wasn't meant to be. The girls just wanted their day in the sun because they knew that moment wouldn't last forever

This first job is Esperanza's first opportunity to experience the world away from Mago Street. What does her first job teach her about men and women in general?

Most men and women like to stay independent and keep to themselves

What do the four trees teach Esperanza?

No matter what, always keep keeping. If the four skinny trees who don't belong here who were only put here to be planted, can keep keeping, so can Esperanza

Based off what you have learned about life on Mango Street, do you think Sally father is justified in worrying about Sally's virtue?

No, because he's worried about her virtue but meanwhile where is his own

What do you think Esperanza learns about life when she finally gets to eat her rice sandwich in the canteen?

Not all expectations are the same as the reality

Who are the members of Esperanza's family?

Papa, Mama, Nenny, Kiki, Carlos, and Esperanza

Why do you think Esperanza likes Ruthie?

Ruthie doesn't act like most adults on Mango Street. Instead of going to work,doing the chores, or caring for kids, sh's outside playing with Esperanza and her friends

Why do you suppose Esperanza feels "angry inside" when Sally agrees to kiss the boys to get her keys back?

She doesn't know what to do, she just knows what Sally's doing isn't right

How does Esperanza feel about her ability to attract Sire's attention?

She feels scared. Esperanza hasn't been able to attract any boy's attention. Not to mention that she always finds him staring at her

What makes Esperanza feel so terrible she wants to be dead? (The Monkey Garden)

She felt like she wasn't needed

What happens to Esperanza at the carnival?

She gets sexually assaulted

How does Marin plan to change her situation?

She plans to save up enough money selling Avon to travel back home.

Why do you think Esperanza goes to Elenita, the witch woman, to hear her fortune?

She wants to know if she'll ever get away from Mango Street

What evidence is there in this chapter that Ruthie may be mentally handicapped?

She wears one blue sock and one green because she forgot, she's the only grown-up Esperanza knows who likes to play, and they go shopping and they take her with them, she never comes inside the stores and if she does, she keeps looking around like a wild animal in house first time

Why is Esperanza happy to tell her guest that she has "bums" in the attic? What's she saying about her life on Mango Street?

She's happy to let others how that she understands what it's like to live without a home, and she doesn't wish it for anyone else

Support or refute the following statement: The description of the mice is a metaphor for a woman's life on Mango Street.

Support: Alicia doesn't want to end up like her mother while her father thinks otherwise

Support or refute the following statement: Cisneros believes people of all races feel fear and prejudice and fit into the category of "Those Who Don't."

Support: all races all have something they fear from one another because all races have been threating towards each other throughout history

Support or refute the following statement with incidents from the chapter: The Monkey garden is a metaphor for Esperanza's childhood.

Support: the monkey garden had many aspects resembling Esperanza's childhood, like how things disappear in the garden like certain parts of Esperanza's childhood

Support or refute the following statement: Esperanza believes God is looking down at the people on Mango Street and supports their hopes and dreams for the future.

Support: to Darius, God resembles something pure and full of hope, like a cloud, instead of something dark and frightening

Support or refute the following statement: Feet are a symbol for growing up in this chapter.

Support: when the girls put on their new shoes, they started to feel like they were growing up. Rachel even taught them how to walk in high heels

What's the significance of Esperanza's first adult dance occurring at a baptism?

The baptism is where she met her first boy

A clown is defined as a person who constantly plays the fool, a trickster, and a buffoon. Using the definition what do you think the red clowns might represent in this story?

The boy that assaulted her

Why do you think Esperanza feels "ashamed" when she tries to stop the boys from kissing Sally?

The boys and Sally tried to pin the blame on Esperanza to make her feel like she's crazy

What do you think is the significance of Mamacita's small pink shoes?

The pink shoes acted like a window of Mamacita's life back home. Everything was pink, her walls, her house, everything

Why is Mamacita upset when the baby starts speaking English? What is Cisneros saying about Mexican children in this chapter? (No Speak English)

They don't feel the baby is part of their cultural background since it's speaking English

How were her previous homes different?

They don't have to pay rent, share their yard with anyone else downstairs, they don't have to be careful not to make too much noise, and there's no landlord to deal with

Why don't the girls realize their imitations of Aunt Lupe are wrong?

They never thought it was wrong because they didn't think that it mattered since it was just part of a silly game. They didn't even mean to imitate Aunt Lupe, she was just someone who came up in the game

What do the Mexican people do to honor their dead?

They take a black-and-white photo of the tomb of whoever has died with a white vase filled with spear-shaped flowers next to it

What evidence is there in this chapter that Rachel and Lucy are learning to be prejudiced against people with dark skin

They were teasing Esperanza instead of being upfront. The tension was getting hotter from Esperanza getting angrier and the insults getting more and more specific

Cisneros is well known for her unusual style of writing. Besides the poetic structure of the sentences, what is unusual about her style of writing in this chapter?

When Cisneros writes, she's literally putting herself in Esperanza's shoes and actively depicting the whole conversation through Esperanza's eyes.

cumulus

cloud forms, type of cloud

esta muerto

he is dead

frijoles

kidney beans

What motivates the grocer to threaten the girls with the police if they don't take off their high heels?

He thinks the girls stole the shoes because they seemed too mature for the girls

What indications are there in this chapter that Esperanza is still very young and naive? (The Earl of Tennessee)

She and friends used to sit on flower boxes but now they sit on the steps near Earl's apartment and she and her sister Nenny listen for when Earl comes home at night

Why does Sally go home with her abusive father?

She doesn't feel like she can escape since she's his daughter

What does Esperanza's namesake story tell about the status of women in Mexican society?

Women in Mexican society weren't supposed to be wild and out and about they supposed to be at home, by the window

What do you think the sky represents in the following sentence? "You can fall asleep and wake up drunk on sky."

an alcohol that in the moment and in the aftermath feels good to wake up from, unlike a hangover from normal alcohol

How old do you think Esperanza is at this point on the story (Hips)?

at least 13

What evidence is there that she wants to look more like a woman?

she's always talking about the hips she doesn't have, she even sang abotu hips while skipping rope

Where did the narrator live before she moved to The House of Mango Street?

Loomis on the 3rd floor, before that it was Keeler, and before Keeler, it was Paulina

Many critics believe this novel expresses many feminist views. From the perspective of a feminist, what's wrong with Marin's dream described in the following passage? "...she's going to get a real job downtown because that's where the best jobs are, since you always get to look beautiful and get to wear nice clothes and can meet someone in the subway who might marry you..."

Marin's "dream" is rooted from the feeling that she needs a man to come into her life to sweep her off her feet

What does Esperanza learn from Rafaela about the life of a young married woman on Mango Street?

Married women on Mango Street have an extremely limited life. They can't go anywhere, not to the store or to the bar, because when she gets married off to a man, they want to keep their wives to themselves and out of the world's view before it's too late

Why does Esperanza say Sally lies to her? (Red Clowns)

Sally left and she never came back like she promised

Why is Cathy's family about to move?

They said "the neighborhood is getting bad" but really they don't feel safe around Mexican-Americans (Esperanza's family)

How does Esperanza make friends with Lucy and Rachel?

They were trying to pile money together to get a bike for a boy named Tito