Brooke's Take: Post 2

So far, I can't seem to put this book down. I think that the vigniettes and the characters in this book are portrayed in a very realistic light-  they are given from the perspective of Esperanza, a teenage Hispanic girl living in a run-down mainly-hispanic community - and many of them are either heart-warming or depressing. I feel badly for Esperanza, and although I can't imagine what her life must truly be like since I am lucky enough to never have had to walk in her shoes, I feel very sympathetic towards her and I wish that there was something that I can do to help her.

 I think the saddest part of her story is the fact that she is so un-phased by all of the crime, poverty and prejudice that she witnesses in her neighborhood on a day to day basis. This is evident in the vigniette titled "Louie, His Cousin & His Other Cousin." In this story, Esperanza tells a story about how a friend of hers, Louie, has a cousin who shows up with a fancy Cadillac one day, which has apparently come from no where. They drive around in it until Louie's cousin hears sirens, kicking everyone out of the car and speeding off, "flooring the car into a yellow blur" (24.) Sadly, the cousin crashes and is then arrested for stealing the car. Although this is a sad scene, I think the saddest part is Esperanza's reaction at the end. When describing the arrest, Esperanza says, "They put handcuffs on him and put him in the backseat of the cop car, and we all waved as they drove away" (25.) To me, the waving indicates that these teens did not see anything out of the ordinary with this scenario, like they are saying "Okay bye, see you later!" It depresses me that a girl this young could be so used to witnessing crime that this arrest of her friend's cousin doesn't even seem to bother her in the least. It is just another story told in a matter-of-fact fashion; it is just another day in her world.

Another vigniette that I found extremely depressing was "Those Who Don't." This is only a short, three paragraph vigniette but it is very telling of her life in this neighborhood. In the beginning, Esperanza says, "Those who don't know any better come into our neighborhood scared. They think we're dangerous. They think we will attack them with shiny knives. They are stupid people who are lost and got here by mistake" (28.) To me, this is so sad. I have been in those neighborhoods, where "outsiders" automatically lock their car doors and roll up the windows because they think they will be attacked because they are driving down the street. I love that Esperanza refers to these people as "stupid" because to me, this shows the ignorance of this type of person. Esperanza is no more likely to attack someone than you or me, but because she lives in a run-down neighborhood and is a Latina, she is constantly being judged, which I find unfair. I think the most profound part of this vigniette, though is when at the end she writes, "All brown all around, we are safe. But watch us drive into a neighborhood of another color and our knees go up shakity-shake and our car windows get rolled up tight and our eyes look straight. Yeah. That is how it goes and goes" (28.)  This part seems so wise, and troubling to me. I think this is the very root of the problem- the basis of racism and prejudice. In our own neighborhoods and with our own "people" we feel safe, but as soon as we enter into a realm unfamiliar to us, we immediately judge and label others, even those that are constantly being judged themselves.

The music video that I chose to go along with this section of the book was "Ghetto" by Akon. This might sound stereotypical, but the video itself has some really compelling images and the lyrics are powerful: describing life in a run-down ghetto, like in the section of town that Esperanza lives in. What I especially like about this particular video is that it shows a variety of different ghettos, including ghettos with different races and ethnic groups living in them. I think this would be a good choice to pair with this book because when watching it, students can visually see the type of place that Esperanza lives. I also think that seeing these images could really help to spark discussion among other students about that type of life-style and can help students to put themselves in Esperanza's shoes, especially if their own life experience does not include living in this type of area. I think it is important for students to empathize with Esperana about her living situation because so much of her life is dependent around the fact that she lives in this area (I mean, the book is called The House on Mango Street for goodness sake!!)

In addition to learning about Esperanza's neighborhood and her home-life, I am starting to see some other themes emerge as well. Family seems to be a large part of this book so far, and I think that this theme will be one we will see more of. Also, the idea of female maturity, or becoming a woman also seems to be a theme. I think we will also see more of this as the book progresses and Esperanza continues to live and grow. I am honestly enjoying this book and am excited to see what will come next!