Cultural Influence in the Shaping of Subjectivity in The House on Mango Street

Abstract

This paper examines how the character of Esperanza shapes her subjectivity through cultural negotiation and resistance. The focus is on the influence of cultural norms and expectations in shaping subjectivity. Sandra Cisneros’s The House on Mango Street is composed of vignettes narrated by a young girl, Esperanza. As a girl in Chicana culture, she tries to navigate and resist the expectations of cultural and societal norms. She tries to assert her identity and subjectivity through the narration, which expresses her aesthetic consciousness. The study analyses the cultural narrative and the influence of cultural norms in individuals’ lives using Stuart Hall’s Theory of Representation and Culture. The resistance and rejection of societal norms are examined through Julia Kristeva’s Theory of Abjection. Furthermore, this paper elaborates on the aesthetic consciousness of the author and the narrator by a close reading of the narrative.

Keywords: Cultural negotiation, abjection, aesthetic consciousness, spatial influence, cultural representation, subjectivity