In Sandra Cisneros' play The House on Mango Street, young Esperanza must face the trials and tribulations that come with growing up. This daunting task is made even more difficult by society's views of her race and gender. As a Latina teenager living on Mango Street, Esperanza is expected to become a cookie-cutter version of the women she is exposed to on a daily basis. This, however, is not the life Esperanza has in mind for herself. Three major problems seem to plague the women of Mango Street: an excess of loneliness (which in turn leads to other excesses), the complete loss of potential, and an extreme distrust of men. These problems seem to give Esperanza even more motivation to leave Mango Street and follow her own path. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay An overarching problem that seems to affect several women on Mango Street is an extreme feeling of loneliness. This is fueled by several factors. One of these factors is abandonment. Rosa Vargas has to deal with this horrible feeling every day of her life due to her husband leaving the family: "Those Vargas are bad, and how can they avoid it with only one mother who is always tired... and who cries?" every day for the man who left without leaving even a dollar for bologna or a note explaining why” (Cisneros 29). She is forced to raise all her children alone. One can't help but feel alone after a situation like this occurs in their life. Another minor character who shows a telltale sign of loneliness is Cathy, the “queen of the cats” (13). He has something bad to say about everything and everyone on Mango Street. He has no friends and seems to overcompensate for this lack of companionship with an abundance of cats. This further reveals that although one may pretend to be content, there may be some deep-seated issues that need to be resolved within that person. Another handicap that gender and ethnicity place on the women of Mango Street is the complete loss of potential. This is evident in the lives of Ruthie and Esperanza's mother. Ruthie is very talented in the performing arts: "Not only is she a good whistler, but she can also sing and dance" (68). She has been offered several jobs in the past, but has not accepted any of them. She got married and moved out of town, but somehow always seems to return with her mother Edna to Mango Street. It would seem that this path has a hold on her from which she cannot free herself. This makes Ruthie seem like nothing more than "the only adult we know who likes to play" (67). But perhaps the greatest loss of potential is revealed in the form of Esperanza's mother in the vignette titled A Smart Cookie. In this episode, Esperanza's mother is depicted as a well-rounded woman, fluent in many different areas of practical knowledge. She is unhappy with her life because she had to drop out of school at an early age. He expresses this sense of regret in his statement: “I could have been somebody, you know?” (90). He disgustedly explains to Esperanza that the only reason he had to drop out of school was the lack of nice clothes. One can't help but feel sorry for her in this situation; due to circumstances beyond her control, she was forced to give up her formal education. This further illustrates the socioeconomic struggles due to ethnicity and class. The third, and seemingly most pertinent, problem faced by the women of Mango Street is the complete distrust and, to some extent, fear of the male gender. This theme seems to influence almost every little girl, teenager.