Emma

This Bildungsroman The House On Mango Street By:​Sandra
follows the eventful Cisneros
life of Esperanza Male Perspectives by: ​Emma Hoff
Cordero
life as she grows up
through a series of
vignettes about her
family, friends,
dreams, encounters,
etc…

 

Contents

1.) The House On Mango Street
2.) Hairs

3.) Boys And Girls
4.) Gil's Furniture Bought and sold

5.) Meme Ortiz
6.) Louie & His Cousin & His Other Cousin

7.) Marin
8.) There Was An Old Woman She Had So Many Children She

Didn’t Know What To Do
9.) Alicia Who Sees Mice
10.) Darius & The Clouds
11.) The Family Of Little Feet

12.) Chanclas
13.) The First Job
14.) Papa Who Wakes Up Tired In The Dark
15.) Geraldo No Last Name
16.) Edna’s Ruthie
17.) The Earl Of Tennessee

18.) Sire
19.) No Speak English
20.) Rafaela Who Drinks Coconut & Papaya Juice On Tuesdays

21.) Sally
22.) Minerva Writes Poems

23.) Bums In The Attic
24.) What Sally Said
25.) The Monkey Garden

26.) Red Clowns
27.) Linoleum Roses

 

(1)T​he House On Mango Street
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. Each
time it seemed there’d be one more of us. By the time we got to Mango Street
we were six. Mama, Papa, Nenny, Kiki, Esperanza and I. We had to leave the
house on Loomis because the water pipes broke. The house on Mango street

was far and on the other side of town.It was small and red and not what I
expected it to be. In the back, we have a small car and the door is hard for the
girls to open. In the house, everyone has to share a bedroom. I have to share a

room with Kiki. We had some real experiences with our previous places and
one day, we will get a house better than the one On Mango street.

(2)H​ airs
Everybody in our family has different hair. Papa’s hair is like a broom all up in
the air. Esperanza’s hair is lazy and never obeys those girl ties and bands. My
hair is thick and straight and unlike everyone else, I don’t comb it. Kiki’s hair is
like fur. Animal fur. Mom’s hair is curly because she puts rollers in it. When she is
holding me, her her hair smells like bread. It's not that big of a deal but it smells

good.

(3)​Boys And Girls
The girls and boys live in separate worlds. The girls in their universe and we in

ours. For instance, we boys can always talk to Esperanza and Nenny but we
cannot be seen talking to ours. Kiki and I are best friends. Nenny is young and
can’t be seen talking to the Vargas's and Esperanza is a loner. She is different.

(4)G​il’s Furniture Bought & Sold
I own a small junk store. It’s ain’t the best but it’s a source of income. A
family bought a refrigerator from me one time. I got’s lots of things like tv’s
couches and tables. One time 2 little girls were in my store and one of them
asked me about the music box. I started it up for her and I guessed she liked it.
She asked me how much it was. No way was I going to sell it so I shut it and

told her that it wasn’t for sell.

 

(5)M​ eme Ortiz
According to the other kids, my family and I moved into a house that
previously belonged to a girl named Cathy and her family. Everyone calls
me Meme except my mother. She calls me Juan. I have 2 dogs. My father
built the house we moved into. It's wooden. Outside we have run-water
steps. They are all slanted so water will run off of it. In the back yard is
mostly dirt but there is a huge tree with fat arms and mighty family of
squirrels. This was the tree that we choose to have the first annual Tarzan

jumping contest. I won but I broke both of my arms.

(6)​Louie & His Cousin & His Other Cousin
One time, I stole this big yellow cadillac. it was awesome. It had roll
up windows and everything. When I got it, I said to myself “I have to show
this to my cousin Louie” so I drove to his new house. I heard kids in the
Alley so I drove there and saw a girl playing volleyball. I then honked the
horn and Louie, his sisters and someone else came toward the cadillac.
Everyone looked inside the car and asked me where I got it from. Like I

was going to answer that so I told them they could get in.
It wa crowded in the back the older kids had to hold Louies little
sisters on their lap. I drove up the up the alley and around the block six
times but boy were those kids getting on my nerves. They kept messing
with the window and playing with the radio. That’s probably because they
hadn’t seen anything like it but I did not want them to mess the car up.
The seventh time we drove around the blocks, I heard sirens and
knew the police were after me. I immediately stopped the car and told the
kids to get out. I didn’t want them to be involved in the mess I had gotten
myself into. Once they got out, I floored the accelerator. I did not want to
get arrested. I tried to make a left-turn but I crashed into a lampost. I’m a
idiot. The police arrested me and as I was leaving, I saw all the kids waving

at me. “Byebye” I thought to myself

 

(7)​Marin
My girlfriend is up North. She is staying with her cousin Louie. I always send her love
letters. It makes me seem romantic. She say that she babysits. I think her eyes are

very pretty. When she comes back, we are going to get married.

(8)​There Was An Old Woman She Had So Many Children
She Didn’t Know What To Do

The crazy kids in my neighborhood are the Vargas's. Poor mother who gave birth to
such evil spawn. Those Vargas kids respect no one. Always causing their mom

trouble, breaking things and messing with what does not belong to them. One day,
they were playing on my roof and I told them to get down. Did they listen?
(9)​Alicia Who Sees Mice

My daughter of scarred of mice but I tell her to close her eyes so that they’ll go
away. Her responsibility is to now wake up early to catch he tortilla star. She has to
take over the roles of her mom because she is the woman in the house. She’s going
to college. i think she should drop-out and take care of us men. Oh well. Who am I to

stop her. Thats right. Her father

(10)​Darius & The Clouds
I really do not like school. I dislike it. I prefer to run after girls with firecrackers or
dirty sticks. I think it is funny the way they scream. One day, we were looking at

clouds and I pointed to a big one saying that it was God. I think everyone was
amazed that I said something wise. I’m smarter than I act.

(​11)​The Family Of Little Feet
I love standing in front of the tavern watching people cross the street. You can say I
am a bum but I just like to stand on the street One day, a pretty little girl asked me if
I liked her shoes. I responded yes but I needed to see her shoes better so I asked her
to come closer. I continued on to ask her, her name. She said Rachel. I thought she
was crazy. Talking to a drunk like me but who can blame her. She’s young and dizzy.

I told her that she was prettier than a yellow taxi cab. In my head i laughed. How
pretty was a yellow taxicab anyway. One of the older kids senses the danger and
says that they got to go. I then tell the little girl named Rachel with the lemon shoes
on that if she kisses me, I would give her a dollar. Then they start running away and I

yell because I was mad. Pointless! Like I was even going to get a kiss.

 

(12)C​hanclas
The baptism is over and I have to go pick up Esperanza and her mom. When
we are at precious blood church we dance. My sister dances but then gets sick
because she ate too many tamales. I say that it's too much of me that got her
sick. I then ask Esperanza to dance but she refuse so I pull her arm ands tell her

that she is the prettiest girl at the party. I dance with her and everyone
watches. It is beautiful. Then we bow. It was a great performance.

(13)T​he first Job
One day, I went into Peter Pan Photo finishers on North Broadway and saw a
girl sitting in the coatroom so I went and said hello to her. She was wearing a
navy blue dress but still looked young. I said we could be friends and she talked

about how she had just started the job and how she liked it. She was very
pretty so I told her it was my birthday and asked her to give me a birthday kiss.

Then I grabbed her face and kissed her hard on the mouth.
(14)P​apa Who Wakes Up TIRED IN THE DARK
I think Esperanza is old enough for me to tell her. The time has come. In the
morning, I walk into her room, sit on her bed, and say to her “your Abuelito is
dead” and then I cry right in front of her. She hugs me and holds me in her

hands. What a daughter

(15)G​eraldo No last Name
I​’m Geraldo an I’m in darkness now but I use to go to amazing parties. One
time, I went to a dance and met this pretty, young girl. We chatted for a while. I
told her where I work. I remembered the place. Green pants and Saturday
shirts. So neon. We danced and when I went outside, I was hit by a car and it
sped away. I can’t remember anything but I did see the pretty girl in the
ambulance. I think she came to the ER with me. She was very beautiful and

kind. Man, I miss those days.

(16)​Edna’s Ruthie
I own a store. It's a grocery store. There's this crazy girl. Everytime she came in
my store, she ran around like a deranged person. Like a kid. She doesn’t come
in anymore. Her friends always tell her to wait outside. What's strange is she’s

an adult and she hangs out with kids. I think she is quite weird. Her friends
always buy andy for her. To be honest, I think that is very childish. For an adult

to be eating candy. It's bad for blood sugar and teeth.

 

(17)T​he Earl Of Tennessee
I’m Earl and the government is conspiring against me. The only time I leave my
apartment is to go to work. If the government finds me, they will try to kill me. I
tell myself, make sure to keep your blinds closed and don’t be too conspicuous.

Just to protect myself from government agents, I got two little black dogs.
They’re small but very fierce. They’re always beside me just to ensure my

safety. I am a repairman. I am great at fixing things, more specifically,
jukeboxes. I fell in love with a beautiful girl. I did some background checks to
ensure she was not part of the government and now, she is by my side. Since
the government is watching me, I want to keep her as safe as I can so we stay
discreet and if I am outside with her, I grab her tightly by the arm and rush
inside. Just so no one sees us. We never stay in the same place for a long time.

I just take these precautions to keep us safe.

(​18)​Sire
There’s this girl that always crosses the street, she looks so much like the girl I
saw in my dreams. She is somewhat pretty and had flat hair. I think it is very

strange. In my dream, she saved my life. Should I talk to her. Maybe I am
hallucinating. This girl always looks straight ahead when she is crossing the
street. The first time she looked at me was when I rode my bike past her. It was
a long stare. It was like slow-motion. I didn’t know what to do and I sort of
panicked inside. I bumped into a car. It wa embarrassing. She then walked
away really fast. It’s not like I like her, I just find her fascinating. Interesting. I’m
not the best kid but I treat my friends right. My friends. My girlfirend is Lois. She
is a dumb blonde. She does not know how to tie her own shoe. I like her. She is
pretty and smells good. I always take her into the alley. Whiles we were walking
to me, the girl approached us and asked me a bunch of questions really fast. I

did not really understand what she said.

(19)N​ o Speak English
I remember living in a pink house, then it was gone. We moved to an
apartment and mamacita always cried. She was hardly happy. Then the first
time i sang in english, I think it was to a soda commercial, it broke her heart. I
didn’t understand why she was crying. Why didn’t she want me to sing?

 

(​20)​Rafaela Who Drinks Coconut & Papaya Juice On Tuesdays
My wife ehh. She is young and very beautiful. So beautiful, I’m afraid she might run
away from ugly me. That's why I lock her indoors. I don’t want her to run away. How
that would break my heart. She’s a daydreamer always dreaming and looking pretty.

​(​21)​Sally
My daughter is very beautiful but this beautiful is evil. Because of our religion, this
beauty is trouble. I don't’ allow her to dance. I remember my sisters and I don’t want
Sally to turn out like them. When I think of my sister, I discipline her so she won’t
become like them. How very bad that would be. I make her wear black so she does
not get attention. Attention will be bad for her. I lover her very much which is why I

am a strict father.

(​22)M​ inerva Writes Poems
Minerva can get on my nerves. When she does, I get angry and do things I wish not to
do. The I leave the house in guilt. I love Minerva. She is young and beautiful but I just
can’t control my anger. I cry because of the things I have done to her. I have broken
her heart many time but she is forgiving. I come back and tell her I am sorry and she

lets me back in. The I hit her again and leave. I'm pathetic.

(​23)B​ums In The Attic
I work in a house on the hills. Esperanza says she wants a house just like it. When
Esperanza was young, she used to come to the house in the hills on sunday but now
she doesn’t. She never does anymore. I sometimes think she is embarrassed of us.

She’s getting older now. I miss her younger days.

​(24)W​ hat Sally Said
I hit my daughter so she will not become like my sisters. When I hear her cry, it
comforts me to know she will be obedient. Se will be a good girl. One time, she asked
me to stay with her friend. I let e but then got scared that she would run away just
like my sister so I go and get her. I tell her I am sorry for hitting her. She forgives me
and comes home with me but when I saw her talking to a boy, I got really mad. I hit
her with the belt. I hit her hard to show my grief. She was going to become like my

sisters. I told her that she was not my daughter and cried in my hands.

 

(​25)​The Monkey Garden
The monkey garden is a great hangout spot. I always talk to my friends and the

beautiful Sally. One time we were teasing her and took her keys. Boy did she
look mad. One of my friends said that she would have to give him a kiss in

order to get the keys back. Sally and my friend went behind the old blue pickup
truck to kiss. Her crazy friend Esperanza came trying to get her but we told her

to go home. Hmmm. Childish was what she was being.

​(26)R​ed Clowns
One time, I saw this spanish girl. She was very pretty. I grabbed her by the
arms and told her that I loved her. I kissed her and didn’t let hr as she called or
a girl named Sally. I think Sally was her friend. She was clearly upset but she

was beautiful. I told her that I loved her.
(​27)L​inoleum Roses

I am just a marshmallow salesman but I married a beautiful woman named
Sally. She has beautiful eyes and black hair. She is happy unless I get mad. One

time, I broke the door where my foot went through. I don’t let her talk on the
telephone or go outside. I don’t like her friends and I don’t like anyone visiting

her. She is mine and mine only.