The Houseon Mango Street
...or a candle, our wishes never seemed to be answered. We have all felt that bitter disappointment on Christmas morning when we finally realized that we were never going to be able to have what we want. This is the same exact feelings that the characters in Cisneros' The House on Mango Street. Unlike us, the disappointment for these characters last throughout their childhood. Esperanza, Rachel, Nenny, Sally, and Lucy are among the kids growing up on Mango Street. They all long for friendship, love, and a better life, but all these kids face are the harsh reality of the "real world." In the society that Esperanza and her friends live in, love takes a back seat when it comes to relationships.
"Someday, I will have a best friend all my own. One I can tell my secrets to. One who will understand my jokes without my having to explain them." These are the longing words of Esperanza. Growing up on Mango Street, Esperanza finds herself in a community that she feels she doesn't belong to. With all her heart, she longs for a true friend that she can tell her dreams to and will understand her for it. These wishes seem easy enough to grant, but Esperanza soon finds out that there is more to friendship. "If you give me five dollars, I will be your friend forever." Esperanza discovers that she can not have anything for nothing. Rachel and Lucy sure enough become her friends, but only after she helped them pay for the bike. Esperanza never does truly find a real friend who shares the same goal as she does because all the friends she has have more problems than her. For instance, Sally was a friend for whom Esperanza cared for. When Esperanza was raped, Sally was not there to help her and when Esperanza tried to prevent Sally from making a mistake, Sally told her to leave. All Esperanza wanted was a friendship that would help her escape her life, but all she ended up with were...
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