Why does cisneros think

As her first novel, the coming-of-age classic The House on Mango Street , celebrates its 25th anniversary, however, the year-old Mexican American writer reflects on a time in her twenties when success was anything but certain.

She need not have worried. The novel, winner of a Before Columbus Foundation American Book Award in , proved an authentic vehicle for exploring themes of culture and tradition and the lives and roles of Hispanic women growing up in the States. It is required reading in many U. Many of the stories in House are based on the lives of her own students, the women to whom Cisneros dedicated the book. In this exclusive interview, Cisneros discusses the pivotal role her novel played in the acceptance of Latino culture, her years as an academic migrant, and how her views have evolved in the 25 years since its publication.

What do you think when you hear House described as a coming-of-age classic? You could read one or you could read the whole thing. I was very much influenced by experimental fiction, specifically Dreamtigers by Jorge Luis Borges. I wrote it so that it would be approachable for all people, whether they were educated or not, and whether they were children or adults.

My idea was to write it in a way that it would not make anyone feel intimidated, but welcome. I had in mind a book that would be understood and appreciated by all readers, whether a working-class person, a child, poet, literature student, writer, or bus driver.

So I came from that angle of being inclusive. What kind of impact did the novel have when it was first published 25 years ago? It got picked up early on by teachers and librarians who were advocates for it.

Since then the audience has expanded to include many kinds of readers, not just women and Latinos. Did its publication play a role in the acceptance of Latino culture in the United States? I think it did. Many people have said it was how they came to know about Latino life.

The most intimate relationship they have with the Latino community is reading this book. Where were you in your life when you wrote The House on Mango Street? A graduate student, high school teacher, counselor, and a person who wanted an NEA fellowship, in that order. I started it while studying poetry in the Iowa MFA program and trying to write about something only I knew about that my classmates could not be an authority on.

Her coming of age book, The House on Mango Street is a huge hit, however she is a very controversial author. Some people think she is too poetic, while some think she is poetic enough. The House on Mango Street contains many small poems and references to poems, which emphasize the importance of language to Esperanza and her neighbors.

These references and poems include a poem Esperanza writes, jump-roping chants, and simple, internal rhymes within paragraphs of the text. Answer Expert Verified. Sandra Cisneros inspiration for becoming a writer stems from her early child hood growing up in a multi cultural family and dealing with the sense of not belonging to either. The family dynamics of her being the only girl with six brothers created a feeling of isolation. Her cultural diversity became a model for her writing in which she shared her experiences living in the Puerto Rican neighborhood of Chicago.

She tried to depict the lives of the people she could relate to. She began writing late in life, but that allowed for her works to be highly influenced by her childhood and experience in writing poetry.

Now Cisneros is inspiring a new generation. Just before Christmas , she received letters and poems from Kimberly Coggin's English classes at Houston's Alief Taylor High School—prompting her to visit the school. The students had read her poem "Loose Woman" and wrote their own poetry in response. One of the students, Cynthia Rivera, 16, wrote: "You've inspired me to speak my mind through writing.

After reading your poem, I knew my voice could finally be heard. In an e-mail that she wrote to Coggin, Cisneros said that the letters and poems "were medicine for my soul. They come at an especially poignant time because my mother has recently died. Your students remind me why I write and, more importantly, for whom. Cisneros's face beams as she approaches Casa Azul, a blue-trimmed house across the street from her own.

The foundation's roots reach back to , when Cisneros first gathered 15 socially engaged Latino artists in her kitchen. From that small meeting has grown an annual weeklong workshop with more than participants. While these gatherings emphasize a sense of community, Casa Azul also is a place where writers can find solitude.

One such author is Erasmo Guerra, 39, a "Macondista" who recently spent three months as the writer-in-residence. The time allowed him to work on his essay collection. Cisneros steps around her hybrid car that sits in the driveway. Argus, her late mother's dog, hobbles along. Her home and the detached yellow office next door are her writer's refugio. I like that my house gives me privacy," she says. What ceremonies and values set it apart? What value does it ascribe to women? Drawing on independent research, present a different—or a more detailed—view of this culture.

How might The House on Mango Street be different if the narrator were a boy? How is the book similar to or different from other books you may have read that feature young narrators, for example, Catcher in the Rye , Ellen Foster , or The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn?

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