Vignettes in The House on Mango Street

 There are four vignettes I read in the book called The House on Mango Street. They are called My Name, No Speak English, Rafaela Who Drinks Coconut & Papaya Juice on Tuesdays, and Sally. All of these vignettes talk about specific people with lives they are not proud of. They talk about how windows are a place for each individual to sit by and look out of. It is a place for troubled people to watch the world go by and think about where they are in their life. For example, in My Name, Esperanza talks about her grandmother’ sorrow when she sees her sitting by the window. She says, “She [her grandmother] looked out the window her whole life, the way so many women sit their sadness on an elbow.” This quote explains what her grandmother did with her life (I think she was sad because her husband left her or something, it wasn’t so clear to me).

                No Speak English is about a depressed woman who misses her home in a different country. She barely speaks any English, and sits by the window just like Esperanza’s grandmother. “She sits all day by the window and plays the Spanish radio show and sings all the homesick songs about her country in a voice that sounds like a seagull.” This quote elucidates the lady’s feelings about the situation she is in. What she does during the day makes it obvious that she misses her home in whichever country she’s from. This lady, like Esperanza’s grandmother, is truly not satisfied with her life. As a result, “she sits all day by the window…” with nothing on her mind but the sweet unforgettable memories she shared in her real home.

                Rafaela Who Drinks Coconut & Papaya Juice on Tuesdays is about a wife who stays indoors all day because her husband doesn’t trust. Rafaela has no life because of her husband and sits by the window throughout her day. It says, “Rafaela leans out the window and leans on her elbow and dreams her hair is like Rapunzel’s. On the corner there is music from the bar, and Rafaela wishes she could go there and dance before she gets old.” This quote is very significant because it lets us understand what Rafaela really wants. She doesn’t want to wish for something she deserves, she just wants to get out there and take it. She has the option to overcome her situation, but she doesn’t believe she has the energy. She can either take it or leave it, leaving it just takes less effort.

                Sally is about a demoralized girl who feels lonely all the time. “And if you opened the little window latch and gave it a shove, the windows would swing open, all the sky would come in.” This is a little different than the other vignettes. It doesn’t mention anything about Sally ever sitting by the window. I think the quote is telling her to just put herself put out there. It sounds like the quote is trying to convince her that there is a beautiful world out there just for her, she just has to “open the windows” to experience the love reserved just for her.