Three Quotations

Three Quotations:

"Never marry. Not any man"

In the story, Clemencia says this after taking her mom's advice to "never marry a Mexican". Her mother told her to marry an "Americanized person". Clemencia however, believed that all men cheat. There were two options, to get cheated on, or to get cheated with. Clemencia didn't choose any and didn't marry. She chose the mistress-role and had affairs with married white men to prove that all men cheat on their woman.

"Never marry a Mexican, my ma said once and always."

In the beginning of the story, Clemencia tells her daughter "not to marry a Mexican". Clemencia takes the advice but changes it up alittle. Instead of marrying an "Americanized person", she doesn't marry at all. Clemencia believed that all men cheated so she never married. 

"I'm amphibious. I'm a person who doesn't belong to any class."

In the story, Clemencia says this. She is trying to tell the reader that she doesn't need to be classified. In the story, Clemencia takes her mom's advice and "not marry a Mexican". Clemencia had two choices, one, to get cheated on, or two, to get cheated with. She believed that all men cheated. So her decision was to not marry at all. Instead she took the mistress-role.

One Theme & Symbol

One Theme & Symbol:

In the story "Never Marry a Mexican" there are many themes and symbols.

One symbol in the story is America. In the story, Clemencia's mother tells Clemencia to marry an "Americanized person" because she wants the best for her daughter and doesn't want her to go down the same road as her. Clemenica's mother was born in America but married a Mexican. In the story, Clemencia's father, was raised with into a very proud Mexican family. His mother was ridiculed on Clemencia's mother American ways. 

One Theme in the story is relationships. In the story it explains how relationships are and what happens. In the beginning of the story, Clemencia's mother explains her relationship with her husband to her daughter hoping she doesn't take the same road as she does. During the story, Clemencia's mother tells her to marry an "Americanized person, someone who offers freedom". Clemencia does takes her mother however, she marries no one. She says " never marry. Not any man." Later on in the story, she says that she believes that all men cheat. Clemencia in the story has affairs with married white men  to prove that all men cheat on their women. 

Analysis of Major Characters

Analysis of Major Characters:

Clemencia is a "amphibious person who doesn't belong to any class". In the story, Clemencia is listening to her mother about her past experiences. Her mother tells her "not to marry a Mexican". Through her mother experiences, she wants better for her daughter, so she tells Clemencia to marry an "Americanized person, someone who would offer her freedom". Clemencia however does takes her mother's advice but twists it around. Clemencia in the story says "never marry. Not any man.". During the story, Clemencia states that "all men cheat on their woman". She proves that by sleeping with married men. 

Clemencia's Mother is poor yet gorgeous. In the story, Clemencia's mother tells Clemencia "not to marry a Mexican". Through her past experiences with her husband, she wants better for her daughter. Clemencia's mother tells her this because she wants her daughter to have more freedom. She tells her to marry an "Americanized person". As the story went on, Clemencia takes her mother's advice but changes it into her own perspective, instead of marry an "Americanized person", she marries no one and takes the mistress-role and sleeps with married white men.

Character List

Character List:

Clemencia is a young woman who believes that all men cheat. She takes her mother's advice and to not marry a Mexican. Clemencia takes the mistress-role in the story and slept with other men to prove that men do cheat on their woman.

Clemencia's Mother is the person who told her daughter, Clemencia to not marry a Mexican. During the story, Clemencia's mother explains her past experiences and gives Clemencia advice. Clemencia's mother experiences from her past has made her want better for her daughter however, Clemencia became what her mother speaks of instead.

 

Clemencia's Father is a humble man. Clemencia's father came from a middle class family, and he was born in Mexico. He came from a proud Mexican family but his mother ridiculed American ways. 

Drew is the person that Clemencia is having an affair with in the story. Clemencia falls in love with Drew but he is married and his wife is pregnant.

Plot Overview

Plot Overview:

In Sandra's Cisneros book "Woman Hollering Creek and Other Stories" she has written a lot of little stories about relationships. One of the stories in this book is "Never Marry a Mexican".

 In this story, Clemencia is the narrator. Clemencia is the daughter in this short story and she talks to her mother about her love life. In the beginning of the story, Clemencia's mother tells her that she should "never marry a Mexican", but means to tell her not to marry a man who grew up in Mexico. Her Mother, through her experiences, she wishes her daughter to marry someone more Americanized. Someone who would offer her daughter freedom regards to the "woman's place" in a marriage and home.

 However, this statement taunts Clemencia and haunts her throughout her life. Clemencia rejects Latino men and sleeps with married white men. By rejecting Latinos, she is taking her mother's advice. By taking her mother's advice, Clemencia puts herself where she will not have an opportunity to marry. Therefore by taking her mother's advice, Clemncia is becoming the person her mother speaks of, someone unworthy for marriages.

Clemencia starts to believe that all men cheat which meant she only had two options. One, to either become the one who gets cheated on, or two, the one who he cheats with. Clemencia however, chose none. She didn't want the "cheated on" position so therefore she chooses the mistress role. Clemencia's mother advice becomes a prediction that Clemencia is not worthy of marriage because she is Mexican. Clemencia takes her mother's advice and sets herself up for rejection by sleeping with that are least likely to marry her. This all results to Clemencia now saying "she'll never marry. Not any man.".

Clemencia says "marriage has failed me...Not a man exists who hasn't disappointed me, whom I could trust to love the I've loved". Clemencia proves to herself that all men cheat on their women, by sleeping with women's husbands. Towards the middle of the story, Clemencia is jealous of her lover's relationship. During the story, Clemencia calls Drew's wife "stupid" and a "dumb bitch" because she did not question a late-night phone call for her husband from an unknown woman. Clemencia towards the end of the story explains the affection she feels from Drew and she says " he said I was beautiful, and when he said it...I was". Clemencia claims to love Drew in the end, however she uses sex with him as a way to show power and to get revenge against individuals.

Context

Context:

Sandra Cisneros was born on December 20, 1954 in Chicago, Illinois. She is a Mexican-American writer of many short stories. She is the only daughter of seven children. During Sandra's childhood, she was very lonely and didn't really have much. Sandra's two famous books are "The House on Mango Street" which was published in 1984 and "Woman Hollering Creek and Other Stories" which was publised in 1991. Sandra writes about her childhood and people in her community. Sandra won the American Book Award and the Clay McDaniel Fellowship Award.

Today many people know Sandra for her books. One of them are "Woman Hollering Creek and Other Stories". In this book, Sandra reflects on her experiences by American influences while being family bound to her Mexican heritage. Most of the stories in this book are about relationships with men and other women in their lives. Sandra mainly writes about feminine things because she experiences most of them.