ipl-logo

Traditions In Like Water For Chocolate

1185 Words5 Pages

Why Tradition is Horrible Have you ever wondered why so many people go along with traditions even if they work against them or someone they love? Yeah me too, a good example of this would be in the book Like Water for Chocolate by Laura Esquivel. In it the main character Tita isn’t allowed to marry the man she loves because as the youngest daughter she has to take care of her mother until she dies. This is just wrong, she obviously loves this man yet her mother is insistent upon the fact that she can’t be with him. Even though it hurts her daughter Mama Elena still follows this tradition. There are many other strange traditions throughout this book, for example the marital sheet, yet none that so directly hurt someone as this. In this essay …show more content…

Tita is the one most hurt by this tradition yet also the one who hurts others the most because of it. Some examples of this include the quail with rose leaves that made Gertrudis so sexually frustrated she went to work at a brothel and was disowned by Elena (55) or when the cake she bakes causes everyone at the wedding to sob for so long they puke (39). Yet even though all of these are caused by this horrific tradition Elena still refuses to put an end to it. Tita is just trying to do her best for much of the book despite her conditions. While she is eventually pushed to a breaking point she seems to do nothing that would make Elena hate her to such an extent other than just existing. A phrase that is repeated throughout the book is “No crying” because Tita cried a lot when she was around onions. However the way Elena uses it is more of an accusatory tone or a warning rather than a supporting one. I believe Tita got the ridiculously short end of the stick and did remarkably well for how she was …show more content…

Elena also got the short end of the stick yet she seems to be directing her frustration from that towards Tita. There are many similarities between Elena and Tita, for example they both had forbidden lovers(137), however the main difference is that Elena is bitter. She’s already resigned to living without the one she loved so she see’s no real point in living other than her daughters. This may be the reason she wants to keep Tita around, the tradition may just be a cover for the fact that Elena knows she’ll have no reason to live without someone she loves around. Therefore she uses this tradition as a way of keeping at least one person in her life close to her. It doesn’t change the fact that this tradition is horrible but it does shine a new light on it. Elena is portrayed as the villain, an evil woman who seems to live only to torture Tita both mentally and physically. Yet maybe she’s not, maybe she’s just a scared old woman who’s already had two people she loved leave her and can’t bear to see any more go. Mama Elena definitely isn’t a good person, but she’s not a bad person either. If it weren’t for the fact that this tradition was enabling her selfish desires she most likely would have let Tita do what she wanted, as she did with Tita’s sisters. I guess it doesn’t really matter though, what she went through doesn’t totally justify her actions and it doesn’t change the fact that the tradition is wrong. Elena didn’t do

Show More
Related

Sociological Imagination Is A Personal Family Issue

1000 Words | 4 Pages

Introduction There are many different types of cultures in society around the world, all with their own individual accepted ways of behaviour, some cultures might be familiar and others might seem strange to us. Cultures have their own set of norms to control acceptable behaviour. If we as fellow human beings all took the initiative to understand each other’s cultures, it might not seem that strange to us anymore and it is possible that we could help others in a way that is acceptable to the society in which we live in. The aim of this essay is to discuss, using a view based on the sociological imagination, whether a unique personal family issue can be related to an issue in society.

Read More

Like Water For Chocolate Mama Elena Character Traits

799 Words | 4 Pages

In the novel Like Water for Chocolate by Laura Esquivel, she created a cast of characters containing strong females that give dedication and great honor throughout their lives. Though each character has a different type of strength, it proves how strong a female can be inside without even knowing it. Tita shows her strength by breaking family traditions and affecting others with her actions. Nacha who is partially deaf can read what other people say and she raises a child who isn't hers. Mama Elena has a real strength by using her authority as head of the family and abusing said authority.

Read More

Head Cook At Wedding And Funerals Summary

345 Words | 2 Pages

A difference in self-identity often causes conflict between individuals. Head cook at weddings and Funerals by Vi Plotnikoff demonstrates how differences in beliefs, values, future plans and different opinions can cause conflict between a family, community or individuals. Beliefs and values often differ between people, just as Marusa and Aunt Florence. Murusa is considered a perfect girl, she came from a profoundly traditional Doukhobor family. Marisa 's mother, Aunt Florence was a fairly traditional as well as having strong ties to the Doukhobor community.

Read More

Analysis Of Mama Elena In Esquivel's Like Water For Chocolate

1864 Words | 8 Pages

The phrase “mother knows best” refers to maternal instinct and wisdom. It is often used to describe how mothers are the most knowledgeable when it comes to their children’s needs. This cliche is frequently used by mothers who try to guide their children on the path towards success, especially when the child protests. Tita’s mother, Mama Elena, embraces this expression fully, and always pushes Tita towards what she believes is the road to achievement. Mama Elena is perhaps one of the best portrayals of “tough love” in a character in literature.

Read More

Like Water For Chocolate Magical Realism

1163 Words | 5 Pages

Food is a prominent symbol that appears constantly throughout Like Water for Chocolate by Laura Esquivel. It is used as a mean for Tita’s emotions to be transferred to others. Each chapter is introduced with a recipe. Food is also used in the conveyance of the De la Garza family history, many important events occur in and around the kitchen. It is also used as a vessel for magical realism.

Read More

Sexism In The Crucible

1063 Words | 5 Pages

It is also important because it displays that Tituba only says this because it is what they want to hear, what they expect to hear. These beliefs are also apparent in the easy conviction of many good women during the witch trials. Take for example Rebecca Nurse, who at the beginning of the play has such a great reputation that people in the next town over have “heard of your [her] great charities” (37) but is later implicated in “the marvelous and supernatural murder of Goody Putnam’s babies” (71). This shows the underlying sexism because the town accepts Rebecca's inculpation, even though she was one of the most respected members of the community. She was, despite her reputation, still weak and prone to evil simply because of her sex.

Read More

In Praise Of My Young Husband Analysis

1112 Words | 5 Pages

In order to be accepted in the current social society, you must follow a certain set of norms throughout life. Social norms are the unwritten rules on behavior that are expected and established opinions on what is appropriate and what is not. People who do not follow these instilled norms may be casted aside, judged, or suffer a consequence. Society’s expectations have dictated what normal human behavior is that people conform to as a way of life. These norms, however, are not set in stone, so they may be challenged.

Read More

Like Water For Chocolate Changes

1037 Words | 5 Pages

Life isn 't written down. It is created and then depends on you. What you want to become, what or who you will change to. Life is full of surprises. They may be good, but they may be bad.

Read More

Essay On Buñuel's Adaptation Of Tristana

1920 Words | 8 Pages

In any criticism of a work of art, particularly with reference to literary and cinematic arts, form and function are inseparable. Changes in form have a direct impact on the content of any piece and the same can be said the other way around. Eco 's analysis that with change of expression becomes inevitable changes to content stands to reason when examining Buñuel 's adaptation of Tristana. Coming out in 1970, 78 years after Galdos ' original text, the film is set in very different times, with different themes and is used to convey a different message.

Read More

How Did The Mexican Culture Change In Like Water For Chocolate

849 Words | 4 Pages

Like Water for Chocolate Mexican culture has undergone tremendous changes within the years this is including family views on their daughters and marriage. Like Water for Chocolate took place during the time of the Mexican Civil War during the time period of 1910-1917. During this time the country was going through an enormous amount of depression forcing families of poor and uneducated to become the hardest hit. Tita being the youngest of her two older sisters is faced with adversity dealing with their mother. Tita’s unwillingness to obey her mother causes tension within the entire family.

Read More

Tita Like Water For Chocolate Summary

343 Words | 2 Pages

Based on how life use to be in Mexico. A young girl named Tita lives in the city of Mexico she was the youngest daughter in her family. While Tita mother in the kitchen table chopping onion she was pregnant with her .Also , Tita cried in her mother womb when onion were chopped and that when she want to labor in the kitchen table .She was born in torrential storm of tears . Tita father died of a heart attack right after she was born by hearing that he has been cuckolded.

Read More

Like Water For Chocolate Symbolism

979 Words | 4 Pages

Each year, millions of people go to relationship counselors to work out the negative emotions in their relationships. Laura Esquivel explores this negativity in her book Like Water for Chocolate. The novel follows Tita, a woman whose life is riddled with complex relationships, both romantic and familial. Tita struggles to maintain healthy connections with her mother Elena and sister Rosaura. Pedro, who is both Tita’s lover and Rosaura’s husband, is the cause of much of the strain in these relationships.

Read More

Gender Inequality In The Joy Luck Club

2021 Words | 9 Pages

Cultural differences are prevalent in both of Amy Tan’s novels, The Joy Luck Club and The Kitchen God’s Wife. The mother’s face gender inequality based upon living in a patriarchal society in China, where they are oppressed with silence by their dominating husbands. Nevertheless, their daughters live in American, where they have an opportunity of freedom, have not faced constrainment in their lifestyles as their mother’s have. The independent girls have their own authority and mindset, being raised in western societies. Therefore, it is quite difficult for the mother’s and daughter’s to have a sense mutual understanding.

Read More

Cultural Norms In The Lottery By Shirley Jackson

302 Words | 2 Pages

Cultural rituals, close mindedness, unwillingness to change or speak out and do what is right in the face of one’s beliefs or cultural norms. In the short story “The Lottery” by Shirley Jackson, the characters are faced with a custom that has been handed down from generation to generation, some question the current significance, while others blindly accept the outcome. Shirley Jackson, begins her story with show and narrative, it is a normal day, just like any other in the town, children playing and filling their pockets with stones, but for what? Both children and adults are slowly assembling at the town square yet, from the beginning you can feel a sense of hesitation though it is non-verbally communicated.

Read More

Changes To Tradition In 'Marriage Is A Private Affair'

711 Words | 3 Pages

"Marriage is a Private Affair" was a short story that featured a young man by the name of Nnaemeka who changed tradition by marrying someone outside his tribe. By doing so he was met by the resistance of his father and the community. However over the course of the story, the changes began to be accepted by the community and ultimately his father. The theme of this short story is that changes to tradition will surely face resistance, however, these will take some time to be accepted.

Read More

More about Traditions In Like Water For Chocolate

Related Topics

Open Document