Hispanic Heritage

Sandra Cisneros

Born 1954
Poet, Writer

"It was not until this moment when I separated myself, when I considered myself truly distinct, that my writing acquired a voice."

In her poetry and stories, Mexican American author Sandra Cisneros writes about Mexican and Mexican American women who find strength to rise above the poor conditions of their lives. These types of characters have not been presented so clearly in writing before. Cisneros is determined to introduce them to American readers, and so far her efforts have been successful. A reviewer for the Washington Post Book World described Cisneros as "a writer of power and eloquence and great lyrical beauty."

Cisneros' ability to write about these strong characters comes from her childhood experiences. Born in Chicago, Illinois, in 1954, she grew up in poverty. As the only girl in a family of seven children, Cisneros spent a lot of time by herself. Because her family moved often, she was not able to form lasting friendships. "The moving back and forth, the new school, were very upsetting to me as a child," she explained to Jim Sagel in Publishers Weekly. "They caused me to be very introverted and shy. I do not remember making friends easily." Instead, Cisneros became a quiet, careful observer of the people and events around her, and recorded her feelings through secret writings at home.

Shyness Masks her Talent

Because she was too shy to volunteer or speak up in class, Cisneros often received poor grades while attending Catholic schools in Chicago. Her Mexican American mother and her Mexican father, however, both knew the importance of education. Her mother made sure all the children in the family had library cards, and her father made sure they all studied so they wouldn't have to work as hard for a living as he did. "My father's hands are thick and yellow," Cisneros wrote in Glamour magazine, "stubbed by a history of hammer and nails and twine and coils and springs. 'Use this' my father said, tapping his head,'not this' showing us those hands."

Although Cisneros learned to study hard, she was still too shy to share her creative writings at school. She felt many of her early teachers were not interested in her experiences. Finally, in the tenth grade, Cisneros was encouraged by one of her teachers to read her works to the class. She was also encouraged to work on the school's literary magazine and eventually became its editor.

Dreams of Being a Writer

After high school, Cisneros attended Loyola University in Chicago to study English. Her father thought she might find a good husband if she went to college. What Cisneros discovered instead was the desire to be a writer. After graduating from college, encouraged by another teacher who recognized her writing talent, Cisneros enrolled in the poetry section of the Iowa Writer's Workshop, a highly respected graduate school for aspiring writers.

Cisneros's old fears about sharing her writings with others soon came back. Many of Cisneros's classmates had come from more privileged backgrounds than she had, and she felt she could not compete with them. As she explained in an interview in Authors and Artists for Young Adults, "It didn't take me long to learn — after a few days of being there — that nobody cared to hear what I had to say and no one listened to me even when I did speak. I became very frightened and terrified that first year."

Realizes the Importance of her Heritage

She soon realized, however, that her experiences as a Mexican American and as a woman were very different, but just as important as anything her classmates wrote about. "It was not until this moment when I separated myself, when I considered myself truly distinct, that my writing acquired a voice," she explained to Sagel. Out of this insight came her first book, The House on Mango Street.

Published in 1984, the book is composed of a series of connected short passages or stories told by Esperanza Cordero, a Mexican American girl growing up in a Chicago barrio. Much like Cisneros when she was young, Esperanza wants to leave her poor neighborhood to seek a better life for herself. As Esperanza tells her stories, readers come to understand how people live their lives in her neighborhood. Although Esperanza gains enough strength by the end of the book to leave her house on Mango Street, she is reminded by one of the other characters that she must never forget who she is and where she came from: "You will always be Esperanza. You will always be Mango Street. You can't erase what you know. You can't forget who you are."

The House on Mango Street

The House on Mango Street was a successful book. Many schools, from junior high schools through colleges, have used it in their classes. The book's success, however, didn't provide an easy life for Cisneros. After graduating from Iowa with a masters degree in creative writing, she worked as a part-time teacher. In 1986, she moved to Texas after receiving a fellowship (a financial award) to help her finish writing My Wicked, Wicked Ways, a book of poetry. After this volume was published in 1987, Cisneros's money ran out, and she could not find a job. She wanted to stay in Texas and even tried to start a private writing program. She passed out fliers in supermarkets to get interested people to join, but the program failed. Sad and broke, Cisneros had to leave Texas to take a teaching job at California State University in Chico, California.

Signs Major Publishing Contract

While in California, Cisneros received another grant of money to help her write a book of fiction. This new award from the National Endowment for the Arts revitalized Cisneros and inspired her to write Women Hollering Creek and Other Stories. Random House offered to publish the book in 1991, making Cisneros the first Chicana (Mexican American woman) to receive a major publishing contract for a work about Chicanas. The book, a series of short stories about strong Mexican American women living along the Texas-Mexico border, received praise from critics across the nation.

In 1994 another large publishing company issued Loose Woman, Cisneros's second collection of poetry. The main theme behind many of the poems in the book was love and its many powerful forms. A reviewer for Publishers Weekly wrote that the book again presents "a powerful, fiercely independent woman of Mexican heritage, though this time the innocence has long been lost." And at the beginning of 1995, Random House issued a Spanish-language translation of The House on Mango Street, La casa en Mango Street. Cisneros also published a children's picture book in 1994, Hairs/Pelitos, which presents diversity, individuality, and family bonds to readers ages 4-8.

The writer was in the news in Texas for two years over the color of her house. Cisneros lives in a historic district of San Antonio, so when she painted her house a very brilliant purple in 1997, the city board objected. For two years the dispute went on, until the paint faded to a shade of lavender, which the city deemed "historically appropriate."

Cisneros feels it is important for people of all races in America to understand the lives of Mexican Americans, especially Mexican American women. And Cisneros feels it is her duty to write about them. As she stated in Authors and Artists for Young Adults, "I feel very honored to give them a form in my writings and to be able to have this material to write about is a blessing."

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