House on

mango street

Sandra cisneros

Type of Work: vignette

Study Guide

Character List

Esperanza-

Rachel and Lucy-

Sally–

Nenny–

Marin–

Papa–

Mama–

Alicia–

Themes :

Themes are the fundamental and often universal ideas explored in a literary work.

The Power of Language

The Struggle for Self-Definition

Women’s Unfulfilled Responsibilities to Each Other

Motifs

Motifs are recurring structures, contrasts, or literary devices that can help to develop and inform the text’s major themes.

Names

Falling

Women by Windows

Symbols:

Symbols are objects, characters, figures, or colors used to represent abstract ideas or concepts.

Shoes

Trees

Poetry

HOUSE ON MANGO STREETFOCUS QUESTIONS Group One pp. 3-28

“The House on Mango Street”

1. What is the dream house that Esperanza describes on page 4, and what does it show about her?

“Hairs”

1. In what ways does Esperanza’s mother influence her?

“Boys and Girls”

1. Why is Esperanza a “red balloon” and who or what is the “anchor”?

“My Name”

1. Why does she say her name means “sadness” and “waiting” when, in Spanish, it means “hope”?

“Cathy, Queen of Cats”

1. Why will Cathy be a friend “only till next Tuesday”?

“Our Good Day”

1. Why does Rachel say she will be Esperanza’s friend for five dollars, and why does Esperanza agree?

“Laughter”

1. Why does the house “feel right” to Esperanza?

“Gil’s Furniture bought & Sold”

1. What is the significance of the music box if it isn’t for sale?

“Meme Ortiz”

1. What does Esperanza think of Cathy’s old house?

“Louis, His Cousin & His Other Cousin”

1. What does Esperanza think of Marin?

2. Why do the neighborhood children all wave at Louie’s cousin as the police drive by with him in the back seat?

“Marin”

1. Why must she stay in front of the house?

2. In what way is Marin older than the other girls?

“Those Who Don’t”

1. How do outsiders perceive Esperanza’s neighborhood?

2. Why aren’t Esperanza and the others afraid?

HOUSE ON MANGO STREET FOCUS QUESTIONS Group Two pp. 29-57

“There Was an Old Woman”

1. Why does Angel fall “like a sugar donut”?

“Alicia Who Sees Mice”

1. Why is Alicia “afraid of nothing except four-legged fur. And fathers”?

“Darius and the Clouds”

1. What is the significance of the sky, the butterflies, and the flowers?

2. Why does Esperanza think Darius is being wise this time?

“And Some More”

1. Why does Nenny give the clouds names?

2. Why does Rachel say to Nenny that he mother is ugly?

“The Family of Little Feet”

1. How do the shoes influence how others see the girls?

2. In what ways are high heels an emblem of growing up?

“A Rice Sandwich”

1. The canteen is the school cafeteria. Why does Esperanza want to eat lunch there instead of going home?

“Chanclas”

1. Why is Esperanza ashamed of her feet?

2. How does she react to dancing with her uncle?

“Hips”

1. What does Esperanza think of having hips?

2. What do the following say about hips as she skips rope: Rachel, Lucy, Esperanza?

3. What does Nenny say as she skips rope?

4. Why does Esperanza reflect that Nenny “is in a world we don’t belong to anymore”?

“The First Job”

1. What fears does Esperanza have at her first job?

“Papa Who Wakes Up Tired in the Dark”

1. What is Esperanza’s reaction to her father crying?

HOUSE ON MANGO STREET FOCUS QUESTIONS Group Three pp. 58-83

“Born Bad”

1. Why does Esperanza feel guilty for picking Aunt Lupe for the game that the girls play?

“Elenita, Cards, Palm Water”

1. Elenita reads Esperanza’s Tarot Cards. Why does Esperanza want her to do this?

2. What does “a home in the heart” mean?

“Geraldo, No Last Name”

1. What attracts Marin to the dances?

2. Why does Marin stay at the hospital with Geraldo?

“Edna’s Ruthie”

1. What is the importance of Esperanza’s reciting The Walrus and the Carpenter to Ruthie?

“The Earl of Tennessee”

1. Why does Esperanza call him the Earl of Tennessee?

2. What can we tell about Earl by the end of the chapter?

“Sire”

1. Why does Esperanza notice Sire and his friends, and how does she react to them?

“Four Skinny Trees”

1. In what ways is Esperanza like the trees?

2. Why are the trees angry?

“No Speak English”

1. Why does Esperanza notice the satin high heels that Mamacita brings?

2. Why does Mamacita not belong?

“Rafaela Who Drinks Coconut & Papaya Juice on Tuesdays”

1. What similarity do Rafaela and Esperanza’s great-grandmother share?

2. Why does Rafaela dream that her hair is like Rapunzel’s?

“Sally”

1. Why is it trouble to be as beautiful as Sally?

HOUSE ON MANGO STREET FOCUS QUESTIONS Group Four pp. 84-end

“Minerva Writes Poems”

1. Why is Minerva always sad?

“Bums in the Attic”

1. What kind of house does Esperanza wish for?

“Beautiful and Cruel”

1. Why does Esperanza think she is an ugly daughter?

“A Smart Cookie”

1. What does her mother want for Esperanza?

“What Sally Said”

1. What does Sally say is the reason for her bruises? What is the truth?

“The MonkeyGarden”

1. How does the garden change?

2. Why do the children go there?

“Red Clowns”

1. Why does Esperanza say that Sally lied to her?

2. What was Esperanza expecting from the kiss?

“Linoleum Roses”

1. What has Sally gained by getting married?

2. In what ways is Sally’s husband like her father?

“The Three Sisters”

1. What power do the sisters have?

“Alicia and I Talking on Edna’s Steps”

1. Why does Esperanza say “I don’t belong”?

“A House of My Own”

1. What is the importance of the items Esperanza wants for her house?

“Mango Says Goodbye Sometimes”

1. How does Esperanza both belong and not belong to the red house?

2. Why is Esperanza “too strong” for Mango Street to keep her there forever?

Vocabulary

House on Mango Street is full of powerful vocabulary. Define the following vocabulary, give the part of speech, and a synonym for each.

  1. Rosettes (6):
  1. Chandelier (11):
  1. Inherited (11):
  1. Raggedy (12):
  1. Lopsided (22):
  1. Cumulus (36):
  1. Salamander (40):
  1. Canteen (43):
  1. Spartan (44):
  1. Anemic (44):
  1. Boulevard (45):
  1. Merengue (51):
  1. Crumples (56):
  1. Pillar (63):
  1. Cumbias (65):
  1. Ferocious (74):
  1. Hollyhocks (77):
  1. Papaya (80):
  1. Twangy (94):
  1. Hibiscus (95):

Suggested Essay Topics-Please choose one (1)

1. What is the purpose of the internal rhymes that appear in many vignettes? Provide a detailed reading of a section’s rhyming words, explaining how the rhymes contribute to the meaning of that section as a whole.

2. How do race and gender come into conflict in The House on Mango Street? Does one triumph as the more important concern, or do both issues receive equal consideration?

3. How are sex and violence linked in this novel? Why does Esperanza both seek and try to avoid sexual experiences?

4. In what ways does writing set Esperanza apart from her neighborhood? In what ways does it help her integrate into her neighborhood?

5. Why do you think Cisneros chooses not to try to represent dialect, slang, or accents? Is her language ever particularly “Chicano” or “Latino”?