Abstract:  As one of the prominent Mexican-American women writers in the 20th century, Sandra Cisneros, occupies an important position in the literary area in the United States. When published, her novel The House on Mango Street had attracted a wide spread attention from the critics and the common readers. The thesis attempts to analyze the process of Esperanza’s female consciousness awakening in the novel by describing the awakening of her self-consciousness,her pursuit of beauty, the emotional touches to the desire of love and the exploration of the way of Chicana women’s survival in the future under the background of income discrepancy, ethnic difference and gender difference, so as to show the feminists’ continuous desire and pursuit for freedom and identity.

Key words: female consciousness; The House on Mango Street ; Esperanza

CONTENTS

Abstract

摘要

1. Introduction1

1.1 Introduction to Sandra Cisneros

  1.2 Introduction to The House on Mango Street

2. A Brief Introduction to Female Consciousness2 

3. The Process of Esperanza’s Awakening of Female Consciousness.3

  3.1 The Awakening of Her Self-Consciousness

  3.1.1 Awareness of Income Discrepancy

  3.1.2 Awareness of Ethnic Difference

  3.1.3 Awareness of Gender Difference

   3.2 The Awakening in Her Adolescence

  3.2.1 Pursuit of Beauty 

  3.2.2 Maturity of Sexual Awareness

  3.2.3 Awareness of Independence

4.Conclusion9

Bibliography.11

Acknowledgments12