House On Mango Street Essays (994 words) - Chicano Literature

House On Mango Street As a young girl, Esperanza is a young girl who looks at life from experience of living in poverty, where many do not question their experience. She is a shy, but very bright girl. She dreams of the perfect home, with beautiful flowers and a room for everyone. When she moves to the house of Mango Street, reality is so different than the dream. In this story, hope (Esperanza) sustains tragedy. The house she dreamed of was another on. It was one of her own. One where she did not have to share a bedroom with everyone. That included her mother, father and two siblings. The run down tiny house has "bricks crumbling in places". The one she dreamed of had a great big yard, trees and 'grass growing without a fence'. She did not want to abandon where she came from, but she knew she wanted to be free of everything that life on Mango Street brought. "They will not know I have gone away to come back. For the ones I have left behind". She is committed to her roots on Mango Street. We witness Esperanza blossoming from a innocent, shy girl to one who witnesses much, but all of this makes her strong and clear about her desires for her life. What she sees is the male domination (machismo), violence and rape. The violence in the home was ordinary to those that lived there and Esperanza knew this. It didn't make Sally stronger. Sally is abused by her father "He never hit me hard", as her mom tends to her wounds. Sally eventually leaves home and gets married at a young age. She ends being abused, instead by the fist, by mind control. Her new husband treats her like a prisoner in her home. "She sits at become afraid to go outside". The leave home, she would need permission. She evolves from a victim of child abuse to a slave-like wife. Esperanza sees this despair throughout her story. In "My Name, "She looked out the window her whole life, they way so many women sit, with their sadness on an elbow". Abuse to Rafaela, again subtle because she does not go out, in fear of husband. Poverty on Loomis, Keeler and Paulina; poverty is a way of life. The impact is for all generations, the parents who cannot get out, the children that see it and the little ones who cannot know any better. The opportunities are limited in the barrio. Esperanza was embarrassed when she pointed to her house "there". "There?", as if there was no place for a girl to live. But survival is instinctive and there is a certain amount of barrio pride "Those who don't know any better come into our neighborhood scared. They think we are dangerous. They think we will attack them with shiny knives. They are stupid people who are lost and got here by mistake." The victim of being called a "rice sandwich". Hurt by the sister superior as she points to a row of ugly houses reminding Esperanza of the sin of being poor. Machismo is something seen in the domestic situations throughout Hispanic people. The violence, the subservience that is expected and the men believe the women are second and are second class citizens. There role is to be domestic housekeepers and to birth children. Alicia makes tortillas for her father. When Esperanza is raped, she is again taught of the power of (some) men. But throughout her growth Esperanza gets very clear that she will not live as those around she sees. She wants independence. She knew getting out would help her achieve her dreams. She was motivated but everything she experiences. She learns about trust when Sally told her the circus would be fun, only to be raped. Her shyness (eating alone in the company lunchroom), and about being gullible. In Cathy Queen of hearts, Cathy says, "father will have to fly France and find her cousin and inherit the house." She believes that everything will be good. But she feels incredibly stupid for not for not knowing better. But she does learn. When she learns that the box, is a music box. She is ashamed for not knowing. Despite all this, she knows enough to know that a better life is the live she will create. She sees herself as scrawny and unattractive. "Skinny necks and pointed elbows like mine... don't belong here, but are here". But the metaphor for the tress, she will grow despite

Shia-Sunni Paper Essays

Shia-Sunni Paper Essays Shia-Sunni Paper Essay Shia-Sunni Paper Essay Shi’a-Sunni relations during and after the reign of Saddam Hussein SOC 300-Sociology of Developing Countries April 24, 2011 Discuss the effects of Saddam Hussein’s government on Shi’a-Sunni relations in Iraq. The Sunni, Shi’a conflict in Iraq (and other parts of the Muslim world) started long before the reign of Saddam Hussein in Iraq, but when Saddam became Prime Minister of the country the conflict between the two religious sects was taken to a new level. As soon as Hussein gained full power, under his control, began years and years of persecution of the Shi’a Muslims in the country. With Saddams newly gained power, he had the full support of the Sunni’s, supporting his long standing hatred of the Shi’a. He then set out to show the nation who was ultimately in control and to rid the nation of any opposition. Shi’ites were persecuted under the Ba’ath party rule. Many Shi’a religious traditions were banned throughout the country, such as the Shi’a Ashoura religious festival, stating â€Å"the last thing he wanted was that many Shi’as together† (www. associatedcontent. com). It is said that every Shia clerical family of note in Iraq had tales of torture and murder to recount. (www. wikipedia. rg) from the years 1979- 1983. Under Saddam’s regime, 48 Shi’a clerics were executed, in Iraq. During his reign, Saddam mercilessly persecuted, tortured and executed several Shi’a leaders and followers alike (www. associatedcontent. com). After the United States beat Iraq in the Gulf War (1990-1991) th e persecution intensified (Handleman, 2011). Saddam believed that the United States under George W. Bush called the Iraqi people to overthrow Hussein and that the United States would support any uprising of the people to overthrow him. This primarily meant the Shi’a in the southern part of the country and the Kurds in the northern part. When U. S. assistance failed to materialize, Shi’a towns all throughout the south were leveled and thousands of Shi’a people massacred. What effect did Saddam’s fall from power have on relations between these two religious communities? After the relentless persecution and torture of the Shi’ites under Saddam’s rule, the Shi’a reveled in his fall from power in 2003. America took down Saddam’s ever ruling Ba’ath party and at the time had the support of the Shi’ites. They favored a peaceful negotiation with the occupying authorities, meanwhile anticipating the new country they would eventually rule. Within a year after Saddam’s fall from power, the Sunni’s were almost waging a full scale war against the Shi’ites. They were using primarily roadside bombs and suicide bombings, directed at major sites throughout crowded Shi’a neighborhoods. This was the start of the Sunni insurgency, 2003. As it stands, this is some of the worst Shi’a-Sunni strife that has ever occurred, since the U. S. invasion of Iraq, it has built up steadily since then and to present, this Sunni-Shi’a revenge cycle, where suicide bombings are often used by the Sunni, the Shi’a favors death squads. On the Shi’a side the militia dominated government death squads were reportedly torturing to death, or executing â€Å"hundreds of Sunni’s† every month in Baghdad alone (www. wikipedia. org). According the BBC, from 2005 to present, the commandos of the Ministry of Interior are controlled by the Badr Organization, the military wing of The Supreme Islamic Iraqi Council (SIIC) and are almost exclusively Shi’a Muslims and have been implicated in killing thousands of Sunni citizens (www. wikipedia. org). What do you feel is likely to happen to Shi’a-Sunni relations after the U. S. and allied troops withdrew from Iraq? When the U. S. completely withdraws from Iraq the Shi’a-Sunni relations, as they stand currently, will continue to deteriorate. The U. S. supported Shi’ites are in place, politically now, but once the U. S. withdraws more civil unrest will rage between the two sects and although the Shi’ite Muslims (around 65% of the population) outnumber the Sunni Muslims (around 32% of the population), I believe it will be a war of who has the strongest backers (for arms, supplies,etc), being other Muslim nations, Al Qaeda, etc. The country will continue to grow more and more unstable and the unrest will continue to escalate. Ultimately who ends up in control, is anyone’s guess. The nation of Iraq could ultimately end up with another leader like Saddam Hussein, or worse. The current Prime Minister al-Maliki is trying to create a stable government based on sectarian aspirations but his level of success as a ruler will ultimately determine whether Iraq is even capable of having a peaceful future (Handleman 2011). References Handleman, Howard (2011). The Challenge of Third World Development (pp. 109-113). Upper Saddle River, New Jersey: Prentice Hall http://en. wikipedia. org/wiki/Saddam_hussein http://en. wikipedia. org/wiki/Shi%27a%E2%80%93Sunni_relations reference. com/browse/sunni newstatesman. com/world-affairs/2007/02/sunni-shia-iraq-iran-arab associatedcontent. com/article/2543561/the_shiasunni_conflict_in_iraq_pg1html? cat=37