Review: "The House on Mango Street" by Sandra Cisneros
Throughout the novel, Esperanza feels as though she does not belong to Mango Street. Through her interactions with the other women in her neighbourhood, she understands that they are treated unfairly. She notices how women like her great-grandmother, Minerva, Sally and Rafaela are made to stay inside all alone and suffer with their violent husbands or fathers. In addition, she even undergoes her own mistreatment, especially when she was assaulted. For these reasons, Esperanza does not want to live on Mango Street, nor does she want to be from there. However, she is unable to physically leave. Towards the end of the book, she finds a way of mentally escaping, that is, by writing. At the very end she states, “I put it down on paper…and Mango says goodbye sometimes…she sets me free.” (Cisneros 110) In addition, with the help of Alicia and the three sisters, Esperanza realizes that she does belong to Mango Street after all. She is forced to think about the rest of the women in her community and understands that for changes to occur, she must help as opposed to expecting the mayor to “make it better.” (Cisneros 107) Also, one of the sisters reminds Esperanza that when she leaves, she “must remember to come back…for the ones who cannot leave as easily.” (Cisneros 105) With the realization that Esperanza herself must initiate the changes in Mango Street, she finally vows to return to help “the ones [she] left behind…the ones who cannot [get] out.” (Cisneros 110) In short, the final line of the novel aims to show how Esperanza finally accepts herself as a part of Mango Street and with a positive mind, she vows to come back to help the ones like her, who wish to leave.
