Like Water for Chocolate Essay Assignment
You will work alone to write a formal literary analysis of Like Water for Chocolate using onespecific critical lens.
Using the notes you have taken while reading the book, the Socratic seminar discussion points, and the questions and discussions that formed within your small groups, clearly define the critical lens used and develop your interpretation with textual evidence. Use the following prompts as your guide and make sure to examine at least two of the following literary elements in your interpretation: characterization, language, setting, conflict, or theme.
Formalist prompts:
a. Food and its preparation is a central organizing metaphor in Like Water for Chocolate. Discuss the symbolic significance of cooking as it is developed over the course of the novel and explain how the working out of this conceit reinforces the theme of the novel.
b. One of the many unique aspects of Like Water for Chocolate is the structure of the novel. Each chapter is presented as a monthly installment, named for a month. Each of these monthly installments opens with a traditional recipe that emphasizes the centrality of Mexican culture to the text. Explore and assess the benefits and potential disadvantages of Esquivel having written the novel using this particular format. If you feel that this structure strengthens the novel’s appeal and the story itself, then explain why. If you feel that the structure is somehow confusing or distracting, explain why.
Psychologicalprompt:
Tradition is an indispensable force in the functioning of any human society. Without tradition, we would have to invent a meaning for each new situation. What is the role of tradition in the interactions of the De la Garza family and in the novel as a whole? In Like Water for Chocolate is tradition a net force for self-actualization of the individual or a form of repression of the individual?
Feminist prompt:
Like Water for Chocolate is a novel that is densely populated with women, and each woman represents a distinct version of femininity. Some women are clever and rebellious, others are doting and domestic, and others simply fit no describable mold. Select two or more characters and write a character analysis that supports your belief that Like Water for Chocolate is or is not a feminist novel. In order to defend your belief, you will need to define what a feminist novel is; you may wish to do so by incorporating critical source material or by offering your own thoughtful definition.
Archetypal prompt:
There are repeated magical incidents and dream-world or fairy tale-like descriptions of events in Like Water for Chocolate. How does the frequent resort to magical realism, work (or not work) to get to the heart of human experience and help the reader to understand and explore the universal experiences of humans portrayed in the book?
Your thesis must be approved by me BEFORE you begin your essay.
I’m attaching the rubric I will be using to grade your essays. READ IT and make sure you have met/exceeded all criteria.
Rubric was taken from WinthropUniversity’s Professor Josephine Koster.