The House on Mango Street Society and Class Quotes Page 1
Citations follow this format: (Chapter.Paragraph)
| Quote #1 Out back is a small garage for the car we don't own yet and a small yard that looks smaller between the two buildings on either side. […] The house has only one washroom. Everybody has to share a bedroom – Mama and Papa, Carlos and Kiki, me and Nenny. (1.5) |
The description of the Cordero family's new home contains clues about their economic status – the smallness of the house, not really big enough for a family of six, tells us that the family is poor.
| Quote #2 You live there? The way she said it made me feel like nothing. There. I lived there. I nodded. (1.10) |
Esperanza feels judged by the nun from her school. It's all in the intonation – the way she says the word "there" tells Esperanza that there's something wrong with her home.
| Quote #3 That's when we move away. Got to. Then as if she forgot I just moved in, she says the neighborhood is getting bad. (5.3) |
Cathy's statement about the deteriorating quality of the neighborhood feels like an insult to Esperanza, who's just moved in. But something about Cathy's explanation seems false – is her family really leaving for the reasons she claims? Or is she just being pretentious?
