In the poem “You bring out the Mexican in me” by Sandra Cisneros, she begins to create a close relation with the reader by addressing the nameless lover as “you”. As Cisneros begins to utilize amplification by repeating “you” in every stanza; she makes an emphasis of the importance that the nameless lover has over her. To begin, by reading the title “You bring out the Mexican in me,” it can be interpreted that the deep emotions of passion that are perhaps hidden, are inevitably brought out to the light by the nameless lover. In the first stanza the word in italics “lagrimas” written in Spanish, translation in English for “tears,” makes the emphasis on the emotional aspect of crying for love. The Spanish language being intertwined with English …show more content…
At the same time, by comparing herself to Dolores Del Rio, the author expresses that the nameless lover has the power to evoke the beautiful/elegant actress that is hidden inside of her. As well as being able to evoke “the Mexican spitfire,” this describes her as a temperamental woman. Cisneros speaks with such a proud tone of being Mexican, which places the expression of love in her culture in a pedestal. When stating “the eagle and serpent in me,” is the representation of the symbols in the Mexican flag, which speaks for Cisneros’s patriotism. In the same manner, “the mariachi trumpets” and the expression “berrinchuda, bien-cabrona,” as to say “being bad-tempered,” the author expresses the importance of the traditional music in her life, as well as accepting her flaws with her temper. In the last line of the second stanza the repetition of “Yes, you do. Yes, you do” the commas make an emphasis on the acceptance from the author’s part, and by finishing with “you do,” points directly to the reader and the nameless lover to whom she’s directing herself to. At the same time, Cisneros’s imposes the responsibility that the lover has, for bringing out every emotion of her character, susceptibility of her inner self, and the volcano that hid behind “the core of a heart …show more content…
Perhaps, because she believes that in Spanish they have a deeper meaning than just the superficial dictionary definition. Although, Cisneros expresses her to be a “lust goddess without guilt,” a person with a “nasty obsession,” and even “evil,” she has torn down the walls that kept hidden all these bad aspects of her and without seeming to want to change these aspects, the author opens herself. When Cisneros states “I could kill in the name of you and think it worth it,” she utilizes hyperbole by exaggerating the acts that she thinks of herself doing, in name of the nameless lover.
In the sixth stanza, when Cisneros states “terrorize rivals, female and male, who loiter and look at you, languid in you light. Oh,” by finishing with the word “oh, “and a comma; it gives the thought that the author is contemplating the idea that she will execute an act of this sort, if a person of any gender even looks at the nameless lover. This kind of love can be interpreted as being possessive, also because Cisneros earlier expressed “I claim you all mine,” as demanding for the nameless lover to be only of her possession. In several instances, the harsh tone of words that she utilizes such as “murderess,” “holocaust of desire,” and “I want to defile you and raise hell,” these expression of outrageous violent
There is only one person in our lives who loved and protected us from the moment that we born, our mothers. Thinking about that important person, Willie Perdomo wrote the poem “Unemployed Mami” in 2002 as part of the book Postcards of El Barrio (Poetry Foundation 2015). In “Unemployed Mami” and Postcard of El Barrio the author explores the culture, traditions and even the patriarchy that characterizes Puerto Ricans. Moreover, Perdomo shares the life of a son and the life of his beloved unemployed mother, in a time where women stayed at home without having a job, living from what their husbands earn. In order to enjoy and appreciate the content of this poems it is important to discuss what it means, where it takes place and what it tells about Perdomo’s life.
From this it describes that women aren’t always true to their lovers. The relationship between Catullus and Lesbia began as a two way love but suddenly turns into a give and take relationship. Even though Catullus truly loves her Lesbia doesn’t return those feeling of love to him. In one of the poems even though Catullus give her love and other thing she only speaks ill of him.
Throughout “The Mexican in Fact, Fiction, and Folkore” examines the term “Mexican” as it is applied in Southwest literature and argues the Anglo society has made a conscious effort to misrepresent Mexicans (Rios 60). He states the people of Mexican descent are viewed as un-American because they are perceived as filthy, lazy, and dumb. Ricatelli adds to the conversation of Mexican stereotypes by examining the literary expressions of Chicanas and Mexicanas in the literature of both the United States and Mexico. In “The Sexual Stereotypes of The Chicana in Literature” Ricatelli explains how in Yankee literature, the Chicana is referred to as the “fat breeder, who is a baby factory” meanwhile the Mexican is described as an “amoral, lusty hot tamale” (Ricatelli 51). He makes note of these stereotypes in order to highlight the ethnocentric and nativist points of view that dominated Anglo literature.
In the essay "Children of Mexico," the author, Richard Rodriguez, achieves the effect of relaying his bittersweet feeling regarding how Mexicans stubbornly hold on to their past and heritage by not only relaying many personal experiences and images, but also by using an effective blend of formal and informal tone and a diction that provides a bittersweet tone. Among the variety of ways this is done, one is through repetitive reference to fog. The word is used many times in the essay, especially in segments relating to Mexican-Americans returning to Mexico for the winter. One of the more potent uses reads as follows: "The fog closes in, condenses, and drips day and night from the bare limbs of trees.
One of the area of conflict that rose in the book involves the usage of the English language in relation of the family’s native language, Spanish. As a Mexican-American raised in the States the exhibition of the English language, whether the use of the tongue is fluent or not, cause a strain in the Mexican culture as the culture takes in consideration of their romance and richness of history in their native tongue (Rothman 204). Language represent the supporting backbone of a person as the progress in life as the ability to communicate without misunderstands, however a person can cause the loss connection to the past romance of the culture and art of cultivation that brings the language to lifes from their inabilities to comprehend the ability/asset to its fullest potential (Rothman 204). To fully understand the true meaning behind a spoken chain of words can be understood by the method of trying to first comprehend the cultivation of the word and the definition behind them. Cisneros embeds the use of Spanish in fragments depicting a sense of reality within a fictional novel, Caramelo, as well with the use of interchangeable dialogues with spanish phrase to express the illustration of Celaya’s family and the culture in which is translate in of importance of pride.
In the short story, “Mericans”, written by Sandra Cisneros, there are many underlying conflicts that surface throughout the story. The conflicts, in short, evolve around two very distinguished cultures. Furthermore, the clashing views regarding the two cultures cause a great amount of problems for many individuals in a society. The cultural differences can tremendously affect a society, as the clashing views can lead to a wide array of issues such as ethnocentrism, gender discrimination, stereotypes, as well as the health of many personal relationships. Cisneros begins to develop this conflict when the story’s narrator, Michele, describes the altar to La Divina Providencia in which the “awful grandmother” worships.
Through Antonio and Ultima, readers identify the creation of a culture that has been forge by war, discrimination, and common hardships. With Ultima being a powerful curandera, the story shows the importance of the female character within Mexican culture. Today, this is prevalent in many Mexican-American households, as the elderly women are held in the highest respect. Another aspect of Mexican-American Culture is masculinity, which is shown in Bless Me, Ultima when Antonio’s father says, “a man of the llano does not run from a fight” (Anaya, 1999, p.37). There are countless examples of Mexican-American masculinity in this novel, like when it mentions that Gabriel’s two eldest sons are fighting in WWII.
Cisneros also goes into detail about how her father viewed her when she says,” Being a only daughter for my father meant my destiny would lead me to become someone’s wife.” Cisneros highlights how her father felt about her as a
The mix of Spanish and English words throughout the
In the altar’s center is “a plaster image of the Virgin of Guadalupe, quarter-life size, its brown Indian face staring down on the woman” (Paredes 23). The implication of the stare is of criticism as the Virgin, symbolic of an ideal Mexican womanhood, looks down on Marcela, whose Anglo features starkly contrast with the Virgin’s, and whose actions are in opposition to the values that she represents. This carefully constructed scene is meaningful. Marcela’s lifeless body lies between the bed and the altar, and opposite to the altar is Marcela’s shrine dedicated to Hollywood movie stars. These are the visual images of the opposing forces that characterize the Mexican-American struggle for resistance against American cultural hegemony.
“Oranges,” “The Seventieth Year,” and “Avocado Lake,” showcase Soto’s ability to move a reader using an emotional story without the use of rhyme or rhythm. Through Soto’s poetry, he indicates the traits that define Mexican-American community
Cofer addresses the cultural barriers and challenges that Latinos experience through emotional appeal, anecdotal imagery, parallelism and the use of effective periodic sentences. In her article, Cofer assesses the difficult cultural hurdles of Latin Americans with emotional appeal. She provides insight on her cultural barriers by first conveying the way she had to dress and her struggle, as it shows in this piece of text, “That morning I had organized… which to base my decision” (Cofer 5). This poignancy works to stress an agonizing feeling of uncertainty and restraint towards the author.
Rodriguez would speak English in school because to him it was a “public language”, while Spanish was a “private language” (72). Rodriguez
Sandra Cisneros is a famous poet from the late twentieth century. Most of her work is popular due to her profound thinking. Her work was very unique and incorporated an extraordinary type of dreamy abstraction. Most observers of her work can agree on this. My Wicked Ways, proved her talent to be “extremely electrifying”, according to the The New York Times Book Review.
Octavio Paz, a Mexican poet and essayist, is one of the many philosophers with a written piece regarding his understanding of Lo Mexicano. Paz’s “Sons of La Malinche” was first published in the Labyrinth of Solitude in 1950 and is a rather grim interpretation of the Mexican character, however, it captures the crisis of identity that Mexico was burdened with after the conquest. Paz uses the Spanish term “chingar,” (when literally translated means “to screw, to violate”) and its associated phrases to understand the conquest and the effect