Imprisoned on Mango Street Essay - 695 Words

Imprisoned on Mango Street â€Å"I am tired of looking at what we can’t have.† This particular quote explains that Esperanza desperately longs to leave Mango Street behind, but she also feels that she may be trapped forever. Esperanza is coming to realize she may never get out of Mango Street. Esperanza feels as though she is trapped many times. Three areas where Esperanza realizes just how trapped she is are a treasure in a furniture shop that they cannot have, Esperanza’s family making lies about when they will leave, and the past experiences of Esperanza’s family members. To begin, Esperanza first realizes how trapped she is in Mango Street in one of her routine visits to â€Å"Gil’s Furniture Bought Sold.† Esperanza and Nenny discover a†¦show more content†¦Before the family had moved onto Mango Street, they had moved every year. Esperanza’s parents had always told stories about how they will move into a house that is unlike the others. Esperanza knows she is stuck on Mango Street, and that there is little chance that she may leave someday because of the number of times that she is denied something, such as in the furniture store. Esperanza feels ashamed and unprivileged with her home. Her family, on the other hand, tries to escape Mango Street as often as possible and visit rich homes nearby, the homes that they see in their dreams. Esperanza has become more ashamed of her home because of the way the nun that walked by one day reacted to her house, and by the way everyone around her wants to move away. She does not enjoy looking at what she cannot have. All she can do is watch her father tell stories of the house they will have one day as he holds a lottery ticket between his fingers. Finally, many of Esperanza’s family have been trapped in places they do not belong or want to be in. Esperanza’s mother had a chance to get out. Instead, she dropped out of school. Esperanza’s mother did this because she was ashamed of herself. All she wanted were material things. Her mother was very intelligent when she left school. Esperanza, along with her great-grandmother, was born in the Chinese year of the horse. Being born female in this year brings bad luck. This surely gave bad luck to her great-grandmother who sat by theShow MoreRelatedThe House on Mango Street and Esperanza’s Relationship with It537 Words   |  3 PagesThroughout the course of Mango Street, Esperanza’s relationship towards her house change. As time passes her feelings about the house itself change and the emotional impact of the house of her changes as well. Esperanza’s house on Mango Street symbolizes her Mexican culture. For so long she has wanted to leave it. She envisions a different type of life than what she is used to - moving from house to house. â€Å"this house is going to be different / my life is going to be different†. 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