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.