A House of Her Own:Analysis of the first chapter of “House on Mango street
...nfenced yard with trees. What the narrator sees is contrary to everything her parents said; her house is tiny, crumbling, and without a yard. The description of this ramshackle dwelling compels the narrator to reflect upon the shame of her life of poverty. She recounts a tale of being asked to identify her house when a nun from her school passed by and interrupted her play. The mortification she felt from having to point to the apartment over a "laundromat" with peeling paint and barred windows and admit she lived there marks a turning point for the narrator. She knows that one day, she must have a real house. This introduces an important textual theme: the narrator's desire to find a physical and emotional space of her own. The chapter ends with the narrator's denial that the house on Mango Street was the dream house, and her doubts in her parents' promises of a better home in the future. Her concluding sentence, "But I know how these things go," lets the reader know that, to the narrator, a house of her own must be forged independently. Thus, this novel is as much about finding a place as it is about finding ones self. Chapter One addresses themes of home, family, poverty, and self-identity. The narrator's need for a home is very much related to her economic situation, her dreams for and frustrations towards her family, and her need to have a place of her own free from the constraints she finds both inside and outside her present domicile. These themes are often bluntly revealed in the narrative itself and also through more subtle channels of language, symbolism, and metaphor. Cisneros' use of language and style in this chapter is more like poetic-prose than straight prose. The chapter is an extended monologue by the narrator interspersed with flashback and sensory imagery. The narrative style is quite relaxed, both in terms of language and chronology. In simple, everyday language, the narrator describes her house and relates connections in her mind in a stream of consciousness fashion. The lack of transitions, for example when the narrative jumps from describing her family's living arrangements in the new house to a bad childhood memory, may appear awkward, but that is their intention. This style reflects the disturbed thoughts and turbulent emotions the narrator is experiencing. However, not all the language in Chapter One is awkward or simple. The writing style is also very lyrical, boasting powerful descriptions and vivid dialogue. For example, the following description of the new house helps the reader understand the narrator's shame and understand the severity of her disappointment: "It's small and red with tight steps in front and the windows so small you'd think they were holding their breath. Bricks are crumbling in places, and the front door is so swollen you have to push hard to get in." Who else but a child would characterize windows as "holding their breath" or a front door as "swollen"? This personification of the house reveals how crucial the issue of a home is to the narrator. It is as if the house has an agency of its own and is blocking Esperanza's path to happiness in a place of her own. The poignancy of the dialogue is the result of the simple and straightforward language, making the rec...