Black, white, and orange illustration of Esperanza standing in front of a building or structure

The House on Mango Street

by Sandra Cisneros

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My Name Summary

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The narrator finally reveals her name, which is Esperanza, meaning hope. It was the name of her great-grandmother, whom she never knew but who is said to have been a wild woman because she refused to marry. Then the narrator’s great-grandfather carried off the original Esperanza, who never forgave him. For the rest of her life, she sat by a window, looking out. The narrator has inherited her name but hopes to avoid sharing her fate. She would like to choose a new name, which better reflects her personality, like “Zeze the X.”

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