House on Mango Street - Essay

The first reading for today was a passage from “The House on Mango Street”, The first part of the passage repeats the word “before” four times. I think the narrator is trying to show that her family hasn’t stayed in one house very long. The way that he/she says it shows that they are not fond of moving and considers it to be unstable. There is also hinting at problems at previous homes because the narrator is talking about the problems they won’t have not that they are living in the mango street house. He/she talks about things that she would consider luxuries in a living environment, but most of what she names is common in most homes. This makes me feel that this family is poor. This house was kind of their fresh start. His/her parents have told the children stories of someday owning a home and now their dream has come true. This isn’t exactly their dream home, but I think it’s a step up from the environment they have been living in. When someone said to the narrator, “You live there?” it made the author feel even worse about the house. Even though the house is better than jumping from apartment to apartment I think the narrator is still hoping for the dream house that their family wants and won’t be completely satisfied until they are living there.
The second reading was Toni Cade Bambara’s “The Lesson”.   The first sentence in the passage is saying that the narrator believes that he/she is superior to the other people in the neighborhood. To me this shows ignorance towards other people. This person could be a child or someone without an education. As the story grows on he/she refers to adults as “grown-ups” which most likely means the narrator is a child. When the author says “the only person on the block with no first name” I look at this as a sign of respect for this woman. This is a respectful way to address an adult and if everyone is only not saying her first name she must really have a positive impact on the people in this community. Something in the...