In the novel The House on Mango Street, by Sandra Cisneros, a young girl named Esperanza Cordero explains her life living in the slums of Chicago during the 1960’s. Living in a rundown home on Mango Street, Esperanza constantly complains she hates where she lives and wishes she could live in a large mountain atop a lush, green hill like a princess. Forced to live in her ghetto area, Esperanza grows accustomed to her surroundings and is subjected to the influence of her neighborhood friends. The women, in particular, influenced Esperanza the most, since they were the crowd she regularly hung out with. After getting to know other women, Esperanza gained insight as to their “grown-up ways of life and realized the true sadness they lived in. She noticed how marriage can negatively affect some women, and how the women were burdened with responsibility as they grew older. After observing those women, Esperanza feared turning out like them when she grew up. Interacting with the other women on Mango Street showed Esperanza the light, as to the painful truth of adult life. Thanks to the women, Esperanza feared growing up and having to deal with the daunting realities of marriage and responsibility.

            In the poor, urban neighborhood of Mango Street, women had to marry when given the chance. Without an adequate breadwinner, a woman could not hope of living in a house for long. Many of the women on Mango Street were married, which made Esperanza believe she too will grow up and have a husband to support her. She was apprehensive of getting married, however, after the effects it had on the other women in her neighborhood. For example, Esperanza’s friend Rafaela lived in a small, adequate home with her supporting husband. Instead of feeling content with having financial support, Rafaela felt depressed because of her marriage. She stayed in her marriage solely for the money, but longed to get away from him, for he never allowed her to leave the house, even while he was at work. Rafaela’s husband made her feel “trapped” a feeling which provided no hope for happiness. Esperanza noticed her dilemma, and was filled with dread at losing her freedom at the hands of marriage. Another example of a restrictive marriage was the one a lady named Mamacita had. Mamacita was an immigrant from a Latin country, and longed to return to the place she called “home.” Her husband, also a Latin immigrant, knew little English when he arrived, but denied Mamacita’s requests to go back. The husband was determined to start a fresh life in America with his wife, and did what he could to fit in with the native culture. He also forced his wife to accept their new life, preventing her from speaking Spanish and making her learn English. Mamacita hated moving to the new country; she felt alienated from society and stubbornly repelled all efforts to get “whitewashed.” The whole time she stayed in America with her husband, Mamacita only grew more melancholy. Esperanza realized that once you get married, you no longer run your own life; but your husband does. He is the ultimate breadwinner, so he must assume all the power because without him, the wife would not last—or so Esperanza thought. After viewing these two women, she grew apprehensive of the day she too will marry. Esperanza described marriage as a silver string; marriage was something that provided wealth (silver), but at the cost of one’s freedom (string).

            Living in a poor neighborhood, like Mango Street, wasn’t easy, during the 1960’s. Everyone in a family was encumbered with responsibility in order to maintain a household, even children once they became old enough to start working. As women grew up, they were taught how to behave like a normal lady, doing chores around the house and tending to their family’s necessities, such as meals. Esperanza knew of responsibility, and how it will gradually grow as she matured. For the women on Mango Street, the daunting concept of responsibility burdened their lives and made growing up seem much more uninviting. One of Esperanza’s friends, Alisha, was yoked the responsibility of being the primary caregiver for her family, and packing their school lunches. At such a young age, Alisha was already overwhelmed with accountability and acted as a fully-fledged mother. Esperanza saw this, and thought it would be to have such a job. Also, Esperanza noticed how hard her own parents worked to support her and her siblings. The ever-present notion of responsibility threatened Esperanza’s childish nature, and instilled the fear of growing up in Esperanza’s convictions.

            The women on Mango Street influenced Esperanza’s thoughts, showing her the true ugliness of adult life and all the disdain that came with it. She figured that life needed to be enjoyed as a child, not wasted as an adult. Esperanza privately wished that she could stay young and keep her childish nature her whole life — to have no problems; to have freedom; to have happiness. The women on Mango Street guide Esperanza  toward the conviction of fearing adulthood and embracing her youth, through their words and, more often, through the painful examples of their everyday lives.