Dennis, 1
Mackenzie Dennis
Mrs Orloff
English 1
4 April 2015
Sandra Cisneros Biography
Sandra Cisneros is a Mexican American writer who grew up with a big family in Chicago. Cisneros was born in Chicago and was
the only girl with six brothers in her family. Cisneros felt very isolated in her family because her brothers were always paired off
together, leaving her alone. Cisneros did not live in the American southwest region but she was Mexican American. Her family
was constantly migrating between Mexico and Chicago because of her father being homesick for his native country and his
devotion to his mother who still lived there. This caused her to feel she was not part of either culture. Due to constantly moving
to abandoned neighborhoods, because her family couldn’t pay for any other houses, Cisneros drew within herself and began to
read a lot. She also often wrote poems and stories about her childhood. Cisneros' mother was her strong female influence, as
with a teacher she had in high school who encouraged her to write. She wrote her first book, The House on Mango Street, based
off her childhood. In her books and stories Cisneros, “creates characters who are distinctly Hispanic and often isolated from
mainstream American culture by emphasizing dialog and sensory imagery over traditional narrative structures.” which is
exactly what she did in Salvador Late or Early. Her characters help exemplify that her unique childhood was very different from
others Americans.
Mackenzie Dennis
Mrs Orloff
English 1
4 April 2015
Sandra Cisneros Biography
Sandra Cisneros is a Mexican American writer who grew up with a big family in Chicago. Cisneros was born in Chicago and was
the only girl with six brothers in her family. Cisneros felt very isolated in her family because her brothers were always paired off
together, leaving her alone. Cisneros did not live in the American southwest region but she was Mexican American. Her family
was constantly migrating between Mexico and Chicago because of her father being homesick for his native country and his
devotion to his mother who still lived there. This caused her to feel she was not part of either culture. Due to constantly moving
to abandoned neighborhoods, because her family couldn’t pay for any other houses, Cisneros drew within herself and began to
read a lot. She also often wrote poems and stories about her childhood. Cisneros' mother was her strong female influence, as
with a teacher she had in high school who encouraged her to write. She wrote her first book, The House on Mango Street, based
off her childhood. In her books and stories Cisneros, “creates characters who are distinctly Hispanic and often isolated from
mainstream American culture by emphasizing dialog and sensory imagery over traditional narrative structures.” which is
exactly what she did in Salvador Late or Early. Her characters help exemplify that her unique childhood was very different from
others Americans.