The House on Mango Street

by Sandra Cisneros

Ninth Grade Summer Reading Study Guide

Literary Elements

  1. Who is the narrator of the story? What is this point of view called?
  2. What is the setting of the story?
  3. Who is the authorof the story? Read "About the Author" found at the end of your text.What does the author have in common with the main character? Consulthttp://www.sandracisneros.com/ for further information.

Literary Terms

Define the following literary terms and give two examples of each from the book.

  1. alliteration
  2. metaphor
  3. simile
  4. personification
  5. hyperbole
  6. onomatopoeia

Reading Check and Literary Analysis

Answer the following questions in complete sentences.

  1. How does the author describe the house on Mango Street?
  2. Why is "hair" important? How does hair relate to Esperanza's family?
  3. How does Esperanza feel about her name? Why?
  4. What happens to Angel Vargas? Why?
  5. Who is Darius? Why does he look at the clouds?
  6. Who are the "outsiders" of Esperanza's neighborhood?
  7. Whatare "chanclas"? (You may need to do some investigation- try theInternet, a Spanish-English dictionary, or asking people you know forassistance.) Explain their significance in the story.
  8. Why does Esperanza's Papa cry? How does it affect Esperanza? What comes to your mind after reading this story.
  9. Who is Rafaela? Of what does she dream?
  10. Who does Esperanza describe as "black and blue"? Why?
  11. Why does Esperanza want a house of her own?
  12. How does Esperanza change over the course of the story? Give examples from the book to support your answer.
  13. How does Mango Street compare to your street? Describe the similarities and the differences.
  14. Cisneros dedicates her book "A Las Mujeres" [To The Women]. Why might she do this? How is this inscription connected to the book and the stories Cisneros tells?
  15. The book is divided into short chapters, each with their own story, called vignettes(VIN-YETS). Choose a vignette and write a similar vignette that relatesto you, your neighbors, your street, or your life. Try to incorporatesome of the elements Cisneros uses, such as metaphors, similes andother descriptive and figurative language.