Circle In The House On Mango Street

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“A favorite theory of mine- to wit, that no occurrence is sole and solitary, but is merely a repetition of a thing which has happened before, and perhaps often” (Twain 64). Mark Twain’s quotation speaks about the universal human condition, the ways that generation after generation repeats itself in both positive and negative ways; just like a circle. The circle is also an important symbol in The House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros, representing ways that many characters are trapped in a cycle of violence and poverty, as well as the ways that the community can help break that cycle. The circle in The House on Mango Street revolves around many aspects but one in particular is violence. The violence that plagues Mango Street is undoubtedly a concern. A character that is a victim of violence is Sally. Sally is beaten by her father and comes to school almost everyday bruised “ At school she’d say she fell. Thats where all the blue places come from”(92). After she marries her husband, he beats her as well and the circle continues. Another character that experiences violence is Minerva. Minerva has a lot of drama in her life. She is described as “sad as a house on fire”(Cisneros 83). First, her husband leaves, …show more content…
Esperanza acknowledges the hardships in her neighborhood and comes to the realization that she can help. After talking to the three sisters and Alicia, Esperanza realizes that helping the neighborhood women will be hard and will take extensive effort. Escaping Mango Street is one of Esperanza’s goals and she realizes that she can achieve that goal with her writing skills “She lets me read her poems. I let her read mine” (84). Esperanza’s writing skills allow her to become self aware of her gift and her self-confidence “ You must keep writing. It will keep you free, and I said yes, but at that time I didn’t know what it meant”(61). Learning the full potential of oneself can open many doors and make
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