Characters
Cleofilas Enriqueta DeLeon Hernandez is a naive young Mexican woman, brimming with curiosity and dreams of a life filled with love and passion, inspired by her cherished books, song lyrics, and soap operas. When her father, Don Serafin, arranges her marriage to Juan Pedro Martinez Sanchez, a man from "el otro lado"—the other side of the border, she eagerly prepares her wedding dress, gathers flowers for her bouquet, and leaves with the "man she has waited her whole life for 'to find' passion in its purest crystalline essence," even if it means enduring the sweet pain often associated with love. Leaving behind her father and six brothers in Mexico, she journeys with Juan Pedro to begin a new life as his wife in a dilapidated house in a small, dusty Texas town. Across a stream called Woman Hollering Creek, Cleofilas quickly realizes she has exchanged her dull yet peaceful life with her family for a chaotic, lonely existence with an abusive husband. The life she envisioned, full of the passion she saw on television soap operas, becomes "sadder and sadder with each episode," though she clings to the belief that "when one finds, finally, the great love of one's life, [one] does whatever one can, must do, at whatever the cost."
Juan Pedro, an abusive and alcoholic husband, does not share his wife's dreams of an ideal marriage. His only goal was to marry his young Mexican bride swiftly and bring her back to his impoverished life in Seguin, Texas. There, he resumes his drinking and carousing with his crude friends at the local ice house. Shortly after their marriage, his true nature emerges—faithless, violent, and prone to bouts of remorse and shame that inevitably lead to further physical abuse. Juan Pedro despises the romance that fuels his wife's fantasies and loathes the music and soap operas she loves. Short, husky, and pockmarked from acne, he is also overweight from his excessive beer consumption. Reflecting the gender-role socialization of his upbringing, he demands that his wife prepare meals like his mother did and insists that Cleofilas cater to all his needs and those of his children without complaint.
Cleofilas, along with her infant son, finds herself confined by the banks of a creek with a mysterious name that no one can explain. She lives next to two widows, Dolores and Soledad. Dolores, whose name translates to "sorrow" in Spanish, resides to Cleofilas's right. Her home is filled with incense and candles as she mourns her late husband and two deceased sons. She tends to large sunflowers and fragrant roses to adorn their small graves in a nearby cemetery. Dolores constantly worries about Cleofilas and her baby becoming ill if they are out in the night air, fearing the ghostly presence of La Llorona, the mythical Weeping Woman who is said to have drowned her own children. Soledad, whose name means "alone" in Spanish, lives to Cleofilas's left in Seguin, Texas. Although she claims to be a widow, she rarely speaks of her husband. Local gossip speculates that he either died, ran off with another woman, or vanished one day without a trace. Soledad is one of the few people Cleofilas can visit, yet she offers no solace from the abuse Cleofilas endures. Cleofilas is frustrated with Soledad's inability to explain the origins of Woman Hollering Creek's name. Cleofilas herself is left to wonder whether the woman's holler was a cry of pain or anger. No one has an answer; no one remembers.
Pregnant with her second child and hiding her latest bruises, Cleofilas pleads with her husband...
(This entire section contains 742 words.)
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to take her to the clinic for a checkup. At the clinic, Dr. Graciela quickly discerns that Cleofilas is an abused woman who speaks no English and is completely isolated from her family. Recognizing her desperate need for help, Graciela contacts her friend, Felice, who agrees to drive Cleofilas and her baby, Juan Pedrito, to San Antonio. From there, they can catch a bus back to her father in Mexico. Felice is an independent, spirited woman who owns her own truck and is committed to helping women in distress. She defies traditional gender roles and fiercely supports women trapped in restrictive, conventional lives. As they cross the bridge over Woman Hollering Creek, Felice transforms the creek's holler from a cry of pain or rage into a shout of laughter and liberation. Cleofilas is stunned when Felice opens her mouth and yells "like Tarzan."
Characters
Dolores
Dolores, whose name translates to "sorrow," is the neighbor to Cleofilas' right. She is a widow living in a house filled with incense and candles, mourning her late husband and two deceased sons. She cultivates large sunflowers and fragrant roses to adorn their small graves in the nearby cemetery. Dolores is concerned about Cleofilas and her baby falling ill if they are ever outside at night, where the ghostly La Llorona might find them.
Felice
Felice is a self-reliant, spirited woman who owns her own truck and is always ready to assist women in distress. Together with the clinic physician, Graciela, she devises a plan to help Cleofilas escape from her abusive husband. Felice defies traditional gender roles and passionately supports women trapped in restrictive, conventional lives. She transforms the cry of Woman Hollering Creek from one of pain or rage into a shout of laughter and liberation.
Graciela
Graciela, whose name means "grace," is the clinic physician who, like Felice, has rejected traditional gender roles. She takes the initiative to help Cleofilas escape her husband by calling Felice to drive the abused woman to the bus station in San Antonio.
Cleofilas Enriqueta DeLeon Hernandez
Cleofilas is a young, innocent Mexican woman filled with curiosity and dreams of a life brimming with love and passion, inspired by her favorite books, song lyrics, and soap operas. When her father offers her in marriage to a man from "el otro lado"—the other side of the border—she eagerly makes her bridal gown, gathers flowers for a makeshift bouquet, and leaves with the "man she has waited her whole life for" to find "passion in its purest crystalline essence," even if it means enduring "sweet pain."
After her husband, Juan Pedro, begins to abuse her, she remains silent, shuddering at the thought of the dead women she reads about in newspapers. Aware of the danger she is in, her pride prevents her from returning to her father in Mexico. "Where's your husband?" she imagines them asking. Eventually, Cleofilas gathers the courage to leave, with help from Graciela and Felice. Drawing strength from these fascinating women, she leaves Juan Pedro behind and returns to her previous life.
Juan Pedro Martinez Sanchez
Juan Pedro is Cleofilas' abusive, alcoholic husband who hastily marries his young Mexican bride and takes her back to his impoverished life in Seguin, Texas. There, he resumes his habits of drinking and carousing with his foul-mouthed friends at the local ice house. Shortly after their marriage, he shows his true colors—faithless, violent, and prone to tears of remorse and shame, which are inevitably followed by more episodes of physical abuse.
Juan Pedro is a man who despises the romantic notions that fuel his wife's fantasies and has a strong aversion to the music and soap operas she loves. He is short, stocky, has acne scars, and is overweight from his heavy beer consumption. Reflecting the gender-role expectations from his upbringing, he insists that his wife prepare dinners just like his mother did. He also expects Cleofilas to cater to all his needs and those of their children without any complaints.
Don Serafin
Don Serafin is Cleofilas' father, who assured her as she left with her new husband, "I am your father, I will never abandon you." Despite this, he sends her off to "el otro lado"—the other side—with a man neither he nor his daughter truly knows. As she departs, he wonders if she will one day long to return to the hard life of chores with him and her six brothers. Don Serafin teaches Cleofilas that the love between parent and child is distinct and stronger than the love between a man and a woman, a lesson she recalls when looking at her infant son. After her disastrous and violent marriage, which he initially approved of, he is there to welcome her and her children back home.
Soledad
Soledad, whose name means "alone," is Cleofilas' neighbor to the left in Seguin, Texas. Soledad claims to be a widow but seldom speaks of her husband. Local gossip suggests he either died, ran off with another woman, or simply vanished one day. Soledad is one of the few people Cleofilas can visit, but she does not offer any solace from the abuse Cleofilas endures. She frustrates Cleofilas by being unable to explain the name of Woman Hollering Creek and by frequently warning her about the dangers of walking alone at night.
