Literary Elements
a central topic, subject, or message within a narrative
theme
Name one theme from the House on Mango Street
Some themes are:
Identity/belonging
Maturity
Women
Language
You live there? The way she said it made me feel like nothing. There. I lived there. I nodded.
What is the tone?
Ashamed, embarrassed
Works most of the time and is rarely home
Papa
True or False- Tone is the emotions the reader feels as they read
False- that is mood
But my mother’s hair, my mother’s hair, like little rosettes, like little candy circles all curly and pretty because she pinned it in pincurls all day, sweet to put your nose into when she is holding you, holding you and you feel safe, is the warm smell of bread before you bake it, is the smell when she makes room for you on her side of the bed still warm with her skin, and you sleep near her, the rain outside falling and Papa snoring. The snoring, the rain, and Mama’s hair that smells like bread.
What theme does this quote represent?
Safety
She looked out the window her whole life, the way so many women sit their sadness on an elbow. I wonder if she made the best with what she got or was she sorry because she couldn’t be all the things she wanted to be. Esperanza. I have inherited her name, but I don’t want to inherit her place by the window.
What does "place by the window" symbolize?
How a lot of women in their neighborhood are trapped and held back from being everything they can be. They are held back by expectations to sit home and lack of language.
The main character
Esperanza
How does Esperanza use symbolism in the following quote?:
Until then I am a red balloon, a balloon tied to an anchor.
Esperanza describes herself as a red balloon in “Boys and Girls” before she has made any friends in her new neighborhood. Until she has a best friend with whom she can share her secrets and who will understand her jokes, she believes she will be this red balloon. The image of the balloon suggests that she feels she is floating in anticipation of something and that she feels isolated. The color red suggests that she stands out in the neighborhood. Esperanza finds friends, Lucy and Rachel, soon after this section, but the feeling of being a balloon persists. She is still floating because she feels she does not fit in on Mango Street, and she is still isolated because she does not share her deepest secrets with her friends.
True of False-the theme is not stated directly. Instead, it is revealed to us through the characters’ experiences.
True
What was Esperanza embarrassed about in the first chapter?
Her home
Esperanza's little sister
Nenny
The name of the literary element that evokes certain feelings or vibes in readers through words and descriptions
Mood
We didn’t always live on Mango Street. Before that we lived on Loomis on the third floor, and before that we lived on Keeler. Before Keeler it was Paulina, and before that I can’t remember. But what I remember most is moving a lot.
This quote represents the theme of:
A) Identity and belonging
B) Women
C) Houses
A) Identity and belonging
Esperanza explaining how she has to look out for her little sister:
Someday I will have a best friend all my own. One I can tell my secrets to. One who will understand my jokes without my having to explain them. Until then, I am a red balloon. A balloon tied to an anchor.
What does Esperanza mean by "red balloon tied to an anchor" ?
The red balloon symbolizes her and the anchor symbolizes her sister who she needs to look out for
The sisters who live across the street.
Rachel and Lucy
What is the perspective or attitude that the author adopts with regards to a specific character, place or development?
Tone
How do women play a role in the theme of this story?
This story talks about women's place in society and their identity
In Chapter 17, "The Family of Little Feet," Mrs. Little Feet gives Lucy, Rachel, and Esperanza three pairs of her old high heels. The new shoes make the girls feel grown-up, and they begin attracting attention as they clack their way through the barrio. Things take a turn to scary when the girls attract unwanted attention and danger.
What do the shoes symbolize?
Womanhood, maturity, attractiveness
She is sometimes a source of comfort for Esperanza. All of her admirable attributes are lost on Esperanza because she has not escaped Mango Street to live somewhere nicer.
Mama