November 28th, 2012
The epic duo of Bless Me, Ultima and The House on Mango Street have really made for some incredible reads in the last couple of weeks. Our previous assigned readings had me a bit worried a month ago or so, but Brother Mack has proved himself a champion once again with the quick read that is, The House on Mango Street. What I am most enjoying about these books is the fact that they are written by adults through the eyes of a child well positioned in the path of growing up. I am fascinated by that perspective. Having completed childhood not so long ago (my mother would argue differently), I feel almost caught out in "no mans land." Stuck in between seasoned adulthood and childhood-like innocence. Allow me to use the following quote to explain:
"In the movies there is always one with red red lips who is beautiful and cruel. She is the one who drives the men crazy and laughs them all away. Her power is her own. She will not give it away. I have begun my own quiet war. Simple. Sure. I am one who leaves the table like a man, without putting back the chair or picking up the plate."
(Sandra Cisneros, The House on Mango Street, 89)
One of the outlying themes of The House on Mango Street is that of identity. In the case of Esperanza, she is a young, immigrant girl trying to make a comfortable world for herself in the bussle of a large city like Chicago. Who she is and who she will become are greatly influenced by both the place in which she lives and the many interesting people that surround her. It seems that Esperanza has an opinion on just about everyone that she has ever seen. Friends, neighbors, employers, co-workers, and even family members are constantly being identified, at least in the mind of Esperanza, for their outstanding physical, mental, or social characteristics. At times, that may be justified, however, constant comparison appears to be the preferred method of the young immigrant.
In the aforementioned quote, Esperanza expresses her desire to be unlike, in this case, the women that she has come to know as a young girl. She, in an attempt to find her place in her new world, wants to "leave the mold" and become something else. At this time, she is most drawn to the rebellious attitudes and lifestyles of Hollywoods famous actresses. She will no longer conform, but become her own woman. In her own words, this decision was perfectly "Simple" and "Sure."
Adolescence is an extremely confusing, yet important formative period for a youth in which experimentation often occurs. In my own opinion, middle schoolers are just the weirdest demographic of people on earth. If we could do away with that phase of life, I think we might all be a bit better off. While reading, however, The House on Mango Street and thinking about what it's like to decide what one will become, I thought about society's great outliers and how their formative years and desire for something, "fresh" and "rebellios" lead them to great things. With such a positive impact either made or being made, history and pop culture provide us with names such as Abraham Lincoln, Steve Jobs, and Mother Teresa. Their youtful rebellions or lack of conformity to the status quo led them to greatness whether that meant sneaking into a university library early to computer program or renouncing inherited wealth to lead a life of impoverished service, Esperanza's desire is both natural and necessary. Nontheless, on the flip side of things, it's easy to overindulge and negatively stray from the shining path - Macaulay Culkin, Jerry Rubin, Marilyn Manson, Dennis Rodman, etc. The list is endless.
With greatness and large-scale contribution hanging in the balance, is an adolescent questioning of one's own identity imperative to making a difference and becoming an outlier?
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