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Chapter 6
Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in The House on Mango Street, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Language and Names
Gender and Sexuality
Foreigness and Society
Identity and Autonomy
Dreams and Beauty
Summary
Analysis
Esperanza says that even though she and Nenny don’t look very much alike (like Rachel and Lucy do), they still have a lot in common as sisters. They both laugh suddenly and loudly like “dishes breaking.” One day Esperanza sees a house that reminds her of Mexico, though she can’t explain why. Rachel and Lucy laugh at her, but Nenny immediately understands what Esperanza means.
This chapter following the previous shows that while Esperanza has found friends (as she longed for), in some ways Nenny still understands her best. Esperanza cannot share everything with Rachel and Lucy, and she must still create her own identity and grow up mostly alone.
Themes
