The Windows of Truth

      I think the symbolic significance of Windows in "The House of Mango Street" is that the only place where a woman or girl can see the outside world is trapped in their house looking out the window. Women that were wild and wanted to do something else were locked up in a house, and all they could do to see the outside world was look out the window. The only difference between a prison and a room are the windows. This is exemplified when Cisnero states, " On the corner there is music from the bar, and Rafaela wishes she could go there and dance before she gets old." (p79) Rafaela is trapped in that house looking out the window because she was too pretty and her husband didn't want anyone looking at her. Other women like Sally have the same problem, her beauty creates conflicts for herself.
      Another possible meaning of the windows is that since the women want something and were strong, they look out the window and imagine it so that maybe one day it would be real. Esperanza's grandmother, was a wild woman and was very strong. "She didn't want to get married (p11), Mamacita wanted to go back to her home and didn't want to speak English (p76-78), Rafaela wanted to dance, and Sally wanted to stay pretty." (Cisnero). By wanting these things, men start to get mad and end up locking the women and girls in their rooms. The windows are the only place where they can use their imagination. Sitting in a room all day gets pretty boring, so what else is there to do, but look out a window and daydream.
      The window also the only possible place where these women and girls might be able to escape one day. Rafaela dreams of Rapunzel and says, " Rafaela leans out the window and leans on her elbow and dreams her hair is like Rapunzel's." (Cisnero, p79). She does that because she hopes that maybe one day she will be saved from that prison.
      I've noticed that the how the women are treated in the book are similar to how they are treated today. They are expected to stay home while the man goes out to work, or meets up with his buddies, but when the woman goes outside and wants to do something, the man gets mad. It's like the men treat the women like property. This is like the sexism that is exemplified everyday. Some women are underpaid, and other are looked upon as sluts or hoes by the way they dress. It's very degrading. I think that Cisnero incourperates the windows because its the the only thing that separates a room from a prison.