Like Water for Chocolate - Essay Example

She chooses to block out the poor treatment and hide her feelings away, tucked in the corner of her mind. But when one particular visitor group graces her with his presence, she is surprised and decides not to judge the rest of them. "They left peacefully, just as they had come, and Mama Elena was quite disconcerted by the way they had treated her: it didn’t fit the picture of the heartless ruffians she’d been expecting. From that day on she would not express any opinion about the revolutionaries.

What she never learned was that this captain was the same Juan Alejandrez had carried off her daughter Gertrudis some months before." Chapter twelve is a very unique chapter because it gives us a glimpse of the Mama Elena’s character as she seems to slightly change throughout the story. This chapter focuses on the month of December. It’s been almost a year since they had found Tita’s recipes and Mama Elena is still upset that her daughter Tita (who had died) wants to marry Pedro and leave her all alone.

Her tyrannical personality seems to keep people away but for some reason, Juan Alejandrez’s sincere concern for her three daughters softened her heart. No trespassing! The visit from the entire battalion was more of a surprise as Mama Elena began to defend her turf. She raised her gun high and pointed it to the troops. Due to her maternal authority, even grown men were afraid of her. Though they had a perfect shot, they could not seem to do away with her because of her daunting personality.

But as the captain chose not to shoot her, she realized that her assumptions of these people were incorrect. Though they came to take, they had such great respect for Mama Elena and her people. This confused her, making her rethink the definition of “heartless ruffians.” She feared them taking what was precious to her. She feared being left alone. According to tradition, who would care for her after all were gone? The chapter’s theme is quite simple. The title of the chapter is “Chiles in Walnut Sauce.

” This refers to hot personalities in a calming setting. The quote resembles this title and theme only because you have the so called “thieves” with a good nature. It appears that the title itself is ironic because no one expects to be confronted by polite thieves. It just does not fit the definition. This dish was being made for the wedding, so the shelling of the nuts had to be done quickly and correctly. As the chapter continues, and the ranch is burned down, the celebration of the weddings is ironically placed.

Fireworks are not the causes of the fire but instead, candles….to think the fire is fireworks celebrating a union creates a symbol of the last straw and is a sign the oppression being stopped. Once the ranch burnt to the ground, no longer were the Gaza sisters under Mama Elena’s tyrannical rule. Chili in a Walnut sauce is like a deaf person enjoying music. You must do what is expected of you! Duty, tradition and responsibility are the overriding themes in the entire book “Like Water for Chocolate.

” Each are very important as the book moves from what one feels they must do to what one has to do for themselves. As tradition lies at the center of the story, it is important to note that throughout generations, tradition does not change, instead, people do. As