Literature

"You Bring Out the Mexican in Me"

Sandra Cisneros' poem "You Bring Out the Mexican in Me" is from a larger collection of poems in her 1995 book titled Loose Women. The poem is written in second person and addresses the author's charismatic lover. It is filled with words and imagery that shine light on Sandra's Chicana descent. The lexicon in the poem is chosen in such a careful and brilliant manner to showcase the speaker's admiration and pride in her culture. The words demonstrate passion, strength, but also a sense of vulnerability as she supplicates for her lover's acceptance.

"Old Maids"

Also from her 1995 book Loose Women, Cisneros addresses the topic of marriage in this seemingly autobiographical piece. She writes about the pressure and disappointment that surrounds her decision to not marry. The speaker of the poem writes about the judgement-filled questions that are asked by the women in her family. "The aunts, they've given up on us. No longer nudge-- you're next. Instead-- What happened in your childhood? What left you all mean teens? Who hurt you honey?" While the speaker implies a feeling of annoyance with the questioning of her family members, she also makes it clear that she is content with her current status as she has studied marriages for too long and alludes to their often unhappy and disappointing nature.

"Loose Woman"

The speaker in the poem acknowledges that individuals in the community view her as an outcast and anomaly to the general beliefs and assumptions about Mexican women. She is called names such as a "macha, hell on wheels, viva-la-vulva, fire and brimstone, man-hating, devastating, boogey-woman lesbian." She goes on to say that this description isn't necessarily true, but she appreciates the compliment. Not only does Cisneros acknowledge the manner in which she is viewed, she wholeheartedly and proudly, with a bit of sarcasm, embraces her fiery nature and sends a warning. "By all accounts I am a danger to society. I'm Pancha Villa. I break laws, upset the natural order, upset the Pope, and make fathers cry. I'm la desperada, most-wanted public enemy. My happy picture grinning from the wall."

"A House of My Own"

This poem is from Cisneros' 1984 novel The House on Mango Street. The main character, Esperanza, writes about her wish to have a house that only belongs to her. A house that is "not a man's house", or "daddy's." There would be "Nobody to shake a stick at. Nobody's garbage to pick up after." Her home is a symbol of her desire for independence and a life without the oppressing effects of living in a patriarchal society.

Linguistic Features

Cisneros uses a variety of linguistic features in her writing to more accurately portray her multifaceted identity. This study will focus on three linguistic features which include code-switching, word choice, and the use of metaphors.

Codeswitching

Codeswitching is the practice of alternating between two or more languages or varieties in conversation. In Language and Ethnicity, Carmen Fought explains that codeswitching can be seen as another form of indexing multiple identities (Fought, Language and Ethnicity, 25). Through her experiences with bilingual individuals, Fought has found that when the main discourse of a conversation is English, there tends to be little switching to Spanish. She found that the younger population of fluent bilinguals do not seem to codeswitch as often as the older speakers who grew up in the politically charged climate of the 1960's and 1970's in which issues of civil rights for Mexican-Americans were a central focus (Fought, Chicano English in Context, 159).

Sandra Cisneros codeswitches as she challenges the stereotypical view of what it means to be a Mexican woman.

"Mujer muy mujer" - Sandra Cisneros on the Mexican Woman from ALOUDla on Vimeo.

Word Choice

Cisneros carefully selects the words she uses in her writing not only to convey her message, but also in a manner that intentially marks her identity as a second generation Latina woman. This is especially evident in "You Bring Out the Mexican in Me," in which she highlights major historical events for both the United States and Mexico. Cisneros' use of words provides insight into her individual experience as a woman of Mexican descent growing up in the United States. Fishman explains that "Language gives meaning to an ethnic group because it connects the present with the past through its oral traditions, literary forms, music, history, and customs. In essence, it is frequently language which gives an ethnic group its distinctiveness." (Fishman, 116).

Similes and Metaphors

A simile is a figure of speech involving the comparison of one thing with another thing of a different kind, used to make a description more emphatic or vivid. Similarly, a metaphor is the expression of an understanding of one concept in terms of another concept, where there is some similarity or correlation between the two. Cisneros uses these literary devices in a way that connects her to popular notions of her latina identity, but also in a way that redefines and challenges the stereotypical views of what it means to be a Latina woman.