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Similes In The House On Mango Street

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The House on Mango Street Analysis Sandra Cisneros’ The House on Mango Street, is a book of poetry, about the coming of age of a young Latina girl named Esperanza told from Esperanza’s point of view. Esperanza is an observant and descriptive. These traits make her an excellent narrator because of her ability to breathe life into the story. Throughout the book, Esperanza deals with her Latin heritage, her family, growing up and other teenage topics. But what makes The House on Mango Street stand out from other books is its intimate details. Cisneros’ use of effectively depicting Esperanza’s raw vulnerability and Esperanza’s observative nature makes the reader come to feel very connected to her. In the first chapter of the book, Esperanza shares a story of when she used to live in a flat on Loomis street. When a nun from her school …show more content…

When talking about her lack of suitable best friends, Esperanza says, “Someday I will have a best friend all my own. One I can tell my secrets to. One who will understand my jokes without my having to explain them. Until then I am a red balloon, a balloon tied to an anchor” (Cisneros 12). By describing herself as a “red balloon”, Esperanza invokes images of an object that is free and light. When she adds the red balloon is “tied to an anchor”, the balloon is no longer free. It is now restricted to the limitations of the anchor, much like how Esperanza's lack of a suitable best friend restricts her dreams of having one. Unfortunately, The House on Mango Street is a thin book with only seventy pages and short chapters that consist of two pages or less. Cisneros’ greatest accomplishment is efficiently writing a book that completes its purpose with minimal words. Cisneros gives each line significance that gives it the emotional heaviness of a thicker book and by the end of the book, readers become attached to the world she has

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