Look at the front cover of The House on Mango Street, read the first line of the book, think about the title. What do you think this book will be about? Take some guesses and see where they lead you…
Baker- The front cover of this book really has a lot to say. Firstly, the words "Mango Street" are out of line with the rest of the text which makes me feel as if it doesn't belong there. Maybe this has to do with how the character feels about being on Mango Street. Secondly, the women on the front cover all have their eyes and mouths shut. To me this image indicates that these women have no voice or power. They look like they belong to some ethnic minority which could have to do with them feeling like they have no voice. They are also holding up some type of death shroud. This could be symbolic but I'm not certain.
"In English, my name means hope". This is thought provoking. Why would this person say such a line? I think it has something to do with the possibility that she does not agree with this meaning. Has she lost hope? Is she in conflict with her culture and the meaning of her name? Something is going on with her not feeling that this name fits in her own culture. The fact that "Mango Street" is off center in the title makes me think that she doesn't feel she belongs there and her name doesn't fit because she doesn't have hope.
From this I think the book might be about a girl from an ethnic minority struggling to make meaning of her life and discovering who she is as a person. There will be struggles along the way that may have to do with violence or poverty. The overarching theme has to deal with having faith or maintaining hope in dark times.
Alex, I think you make some really interesting points in your post, specifically when you talk about the way that the women's mouths and eyes are shut, possibly signifying that they have no voice or power. I hadn't thought of that originally. These women really do look sorrowful to me, though, and I felt that it gave a good indication that the main characters are probably women and that these women will have some hard obstacles to overcome.
On another note...
The title "The House on Mango Street" also made me believe that many of the trials and tribulations of the main character would be in relation to where she lives and also, who she lives with- her family, her neighborhood and the neighbors within it, the school district and perhaps the actual hosue itself.
This might be a bit of a leap, but since the author is Hispanic, the word "mango" seemed significant to me as well. According to Wikipedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mango), the mango is a fruit native to subtropical places, including many South American countries. Also, the English word "mango" is taken from the Portuguese word "manga" and the Portuguese language and culture highly affected South America after Columbus and his Portuguese fleet landed there in "India" and tried to dominate the area. Because of the mango's ties to South America and many hispanic countries, I always think of the Mango as a hispanic fruit (although this is not necessarily true.) Thus, this reference to the "mango" reminds me of the author's hispanic heritage and makes me think that this will be a large part of the book.
The dedication of this book was interesting to me. It reads simply "A las mujeres", meaning "To the women" in English. Again, this spanish reference reaffirms the importance of the author's hispanic heritage. Furthermore, this tells me that this story will be about a women, and probably the struggles that a hispanic woman has to go through.
The first line of the book also intruiged me. It reads "We didn't always live on Mango Street." To me, this signifies that living on Mango Street represents a particular time in this young girl's life. It also sounds metaphorical to me- like "Mango Street" does not just mean the actual street on which she lived, but a phase of her life. This phrase also evokes an odd emotional response in me: it sounds dark and ominous, like an excuse or something. The "We didn't always" reminds me of someone saying, "Well, I wasn't always an addict"or "I didn't always feel that way." It gives me the sense that this time on Mango Street was not the happiest part of the author's life.
-Jess- The version of the House on Mango Street that I purchased is the 25th anniversary edition and is completely different from the one that I have seen. It portrays a picture of a house with the title written inside it, along with a solitary window with a woman's face in it. From the cover alone, I get the sense that what happens inside this home is important or that this home represents something important because the title is written inside of it and it is the size of the entire cover of the book. Also, the picture of the woman on the cover may represent one of the characters in the book or the main character even. At the same time, the title makes me think that possible this home does not mean much in the story because it is simply called "The House on Mango Street" not "Our home on Mango Street", or "My Life on Mango Street". The word house is almost as cold as the words Mango Street. I tried to understand it through my point of view. I wouldn’t say "The House on Knox Street" to describe where I live. I would say "I live on Knox Street", or "My house on Knox Street". I get the feeling that the title is telling me that the main character is using the house more as a medium in which to illustrate her life. "We didn't always live on Mango Street." This first sentence to me sounds like the speaker is almost defending where she lives now. Something like: "You know, we didn't always used to live here." Or perhaps the tone could be taken as the speaker being frustrated with the constant moving or inability to stay in one place. I haven't read this book in a very long time and I am excited to read it again, interpret things differently, and discuss its value inside and outside the classroom.
When I first got my book in the mail, I was so excited. My cover has a teal background and the box shaped like a building that "houses" the title is a bright, bright orange. These colors remind me of the Spanish/Hispanic culture - bright and lively, with lots of life. But then, when I looked closer, the woman in the window of the building has her eyes closed, with a look of seriousness or maybe even sadness. This made me take a closer look at the building and the title.
First of all, the building on my cover is tall but narrow. It doesn't look like a house at all. It looks like a tenement house - kind of the shape on the ones that are in the Lower East Side of New York City where thousands upon thousands of immigrants lived when they came from all over Europe. I visited the Tenement Museum last year in New York, and I got to tour the inside. The tour guide told us that nearly thirty people would smush inside the "apartment" that was the size of the upstairs floor of my house (not very big). This automatic correlation between the building on the cover and the building I visited makes me think that the family in this "house" will be large. I also think that this "house" isn't quite a "house" at all - if this woman on the cover lives there, it certainly isn't a house like mine - maybe it's more like an apartment building.
I think it's very interesting that the building on Mango Street is a "house" and not a "home." Obviously this building does not serve as a place where the family has been able to build memories or really make it their own. Maybe something happens in the building or they have an experience that make them feel detached from it - a death or a loss of someone? The use of house and not home makes me feel like something is missing for the people that live there - that something's missing in their lives, and maybe this is why the woman on my cover is sad. I definitely foresee some struggles for the characters in the book based on the woman and based on the use of "house" in the title.
The first line - "We didn't always live on Mango Street" - struck me as totally unexpected. I thought that since the story is titled with this location, it would be extremely significant to the narrator. Not saying that it still can't be, but I would have thought that she'd been there for a length of time. Maybe this isn't The Home on Mango Street because her heart is somewhere else. If she lived elsewhere, it's quite possible that her parents made her move against her will, and she had already felt that she made her home in her previous house. The author's use of a first line that immediately signals the past makes me think that the story might focus on the past?
I can't wait to read - I'm so excited to find out why this building is so important! And to meet the people who live there, and know where they came from if they didn't always live there!
Jess- My title would be "The House on Oehman Boulevard." Everyone usually refers to my house as "the yellow one on the corner" though, so maybe that title would be more appropriate. I really like how you started to look at the title how it would relate to you. Smart thinking! -Han
Baker-
ReplyDeleteThe front cover of this book really has a lot to say. Firstly, the words "Mango Street" are out of line with the rest of the text which makes me feel as if it doesn't belong there. Maybe this has to do with how the character feels about being on Mango Street. Secondly, the women on the front cover all have their eyes and mouths shut. To me this image indicates that these women have no voice or power. They look like they belong to some ethnic minority which could have to do with them feeling like they have no voice. They are also holding up some type of death shroud. This could be symbolic but I'm not certain.
"In English, my name means hope". This is thought provoking. Why would this person say such a line? I think it has something to do with the possibility that she does not agree with this meaning. Has she lost hope? Is she in conflict with her culture and the meaning of her name? Something is going on with her not feeling that this name fits in her own culture. The fact that "Mango Street" is off center in the title makes me think that she doesn't feel she belongs there and her name doesn't fit because she doesn't have hope.
From this I think the book might be about a girl from an ethnic minority struggling to make meaning of her life and discovering who she is as a person. There will be struggles along the way that may have to do with violence or poverty. The overarching theme has to deal with having faith or maintaining hope in dark times.
Brooke's Take:
ReplyDeleteAlex,
I think you make some really interesting points in your post, specifically when you talk about the way that the women's mouths and eyes are shut, possibly signifying that they have no voice or power. I hadn't thought of that originally. These women really do look sorrowful to me, though, and I felt that it gave a good indication that the main characters are probably women and that these women will have some hard obstacles to overcome.
On another note...
The title "The House on Mango Street" also made me believe that many of the trials and tribulations of the main character would be in relation to where she lives and also, who she lives with- her family, her neighborhood and the neighbors within it, the school district and perhaps the actual hosue itself.
This might be a bit of a leap, but since the author is Hispanic, the word "mango" seemed significant to me as well. According to Wikipedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mango), the mango is a fruit native to subtropical places, including many South American countries. Also, the English word "mango" is taken from the Portuguese word "manga" and the Portuguese language and culture highly affected South America after Columbus and his Portuguese fleet landed there in "India" and tried to dominate the area. Because of the mango's ties to South America and many hispanic countries, I always think of the Mango as a hispanic fruit (although this is not necessarily true.) Thus, this reference to the "mango" reminds me of the author's hispanic heritage and makes me think that this will be a large part of the book.
The dedication of this book was interesting to me. It reads simply "A las mujeres", meaning "To the women" in English. Again, this spanish reference reaffirms the importance of the author's hispanic heritage. Furthermore, this tells me that this story will be about a women, and probably the struggles that a hispanic woman has to go through.
The first line of the book also intruiged me. It reads "We didn't always live on Mango Street." To me, this signifies that living on Mango Street represents a particular time in this young girl's life. It also sounds metaphorical to me- like "Mango Street" does not just mean the actual street on which she lived, but a phase of her life. This phrase also evokes an odd emotional response in me: it sounds dark and ominous, like an excuse or something. The "We didn't always" reminds me of someone saying, "Well, I wasn't always an addict"or "I didn't always feel that way." It gives me the sense that this time on Mango Street was not the happiest part of the author's life.
-Jess-
ReplyDeleteThe version of the House on Mango Street that I purchased is the 25th anniversary edition and is completely different from the one that I have seen. It portrays a picture of a house with the title written inside it, along with a solitary window with a woman's face in it. From the cover alone, I get the sense that what happens inside this home is important or that this home represents something important because the title is written inside of it and it is the size of the entire cover of the book. Also, the picture of the woman on the cover may represent one of the characters in the book or the main character even. At the same time, the title makes me think that possible this home does not mean much in the story because it is simply called "The House on Mango Street" not "Our home on Mango Street", or "My Life on Mango Street". The word house is almost as cold as the words Mango Street. I tried to understand it through my point of view. I wouldn’t say "The House on Knox Street" to describe where I live. I would say "I live on Knox Street", or "My house on Knox Street". I get the feeling that the title is telling me that the main character is using the house more as a medium in which to illustrate her life. "We didn't always live on Mango Street." This first sentence to me sounds like the speaker is almost defending where she lives now. Something like: "You know, we didn't always used to live here." Or perhaps the tone could be taken as the speaker being frustrated with the constant moving or inability to stay in one place. I haven't read this book in a very long time and I am excited to read it again, interpret things differently, and discuss its value inside and outside the classroom.
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteHannie-
ReplyDeleteWhen I first got my book in the mail, I was so excited. My cover has a teal background and the box shaped like a building that "houses" the title is a bright, bright orange. These colors remind me of the Spanish/Hispanic culture - bright and lively, with lots of life. But then, when I looked closer, the woman in the window of the building has her eyes closed, with a look of seriousness or maybe even sadness. This made me take a closer look at the building and the title.
First of all, the building on my cover is tall but narrow. It doesn't look like a house at all. It looks like a tenement house - kind of the shape on the ones that are in the Lower East Side of New York City where thousands upon thousands of immigrants lived when they came from all over Europe. I visited the Tenement Museum last year in New York, and I got to tour the inside. The tour guide told us that nearly thirty people would smush inside the "apartment" that was the size of the upstairs floor of my house (not very big). This automatic correlation between the building on the cover and the building I visited makes me think that the family in this "house" will be large. I also think that this "house" isn't quite a "house" at all - if this woman on the cover lives there, it certainly isn't a house like mine - maybe it's more like an apartment building.
I think it's very interesting that the building on Mango Street is a "house" and not a "home." Obviously this building does not serve as a place where the family has been able to build memories or really make it their own. Maybe something happens in the building or they have an experience that make them feel detached from it - a death or a loss of someone? The use of house and not home makes me feel like something is missing for the people that live there - that something's missing in their lives, and maybe this is why the woman on my cover is sad. I definitely foresee some struggles for the characters in the book based on the woman and based on the use of "house" in the title.
The first line - "We didn't always live on Mango Street" - struck me as totally unexpected. I thought that since the story is titled with this location, it would be extremely significant to the narrator. Not saying that it still can't be, but I would have thought that she'd been there for a length of time. Maybe this isn't The Home on Mango Street because her heart is somewhere else. If she lived elsewhere, it's quite possible that her parents made her move against her will, and she had already felt that she made her home in her previous house. The author's use of a first line that immediately signals the past makes me think that the story might focus on the past?
I can't wait to read - I'm so excited to find out why this building is so important! And to meet the people who live there, and know where they came from if they didn't always live there!
Jess- My title would be "The House on Oehman Boulevard." Everyone usually refers to my house as "the yellow one on the corner" though, so maybe that title would be more appropriate. I really like how you started to look at the title how it would relate to you. Smart thinking!
ReplyDelete-Han