Themes
Individual desires vs. community obligations
What is Community and Responsibility?
This character shows that beauty can lead to danger.
Who is Sally?
You must keep writing. It will keep you free.
Who is Aunt Lupe?
Means uneven or unbalanced.
What is lopsided?
What is anemic?
Learning from observing others.
What is coming of age?
This character cannot speak English and feels isolated.
Who is Mamacita?
You must go to school. Study hard.
Who is Esperanza’s mother?
To inform someone officially.
What is notify?
The dress had neat folds all around.
What is pleated?
Socioeconomic barriers to education and advancement
What is Social Class and Inequality?
This character is trapped because of her beauty.
Who is Rafaela?
When you leave you must remember to come back.
Who are the Three Sisters?
A fierce or violent storm.
What is ferocious?
He became rich after years of work.
What is fortune?
Different models of womanhood represented by various characters.
What is Gender and Sexuality?
This character could have been “somebody” but didn’t reach her potential. Now, she acts like a child.
Who is Ruthie?
I could have been somebody, you know?
Who is Esperanza’s mother?
Walking slowly with heavy steps.
What is trudge?
The market was full of small shops and people.
What is bazaar?
Esperanza wants to find her own voice as a young woman and a writer.
What is identity and self-discovery?
This person balances school and family responsibilities.
Who is Alicia?
Wait a while before you get married
Who is Alicia?
The entrance of a doorway OR the beginning of something.
What is threshold?
She stepped into the doorway of her new life.
What is threshold?