Summary
The title ‘Only daughter’ simply means only one daughter in a family, where the father is guided by patriarchal ideologies. It is an autobiographical essay in which Cisneros explains how she achieved success in a family of six sons and only a daughter The author’s father used to think that college was good for girls good for finding a husband. Her father often referred to having "seven sons," unintentionally erasing her identity as a daughter. She describes how being the only girl led to loneliness, but that solitude helped her develop as a writer.
He wanted her to get married and bear children. She thinks that being only a daughter for her father meant her destiny would lead her to become someone's wife. But when she was in the fifth grade, she shared her plans for college with her father, she was sure her father understood. After four years in college and two more in graduate school, and still no husband, her father shakes his head even now and says she wasted all that education. Like all traditional Mexican American families, the author's father wanted her to learn the skills needed for a woman.
Instead of following the conventional role of a woman, she decided to get university education against her father's desire. She tried to change her father's attitude in her early career. Her father began to change his attitude once she started earning money. She was able to bring complete change in her father's mind when she showed him her story, which was translated into Spanish and published in Mexico. Finally, her father was proud of her.
To conclude, despite earning graduation and becoming a successful writer, Cisneros longed for her father's recognition. Eventually, when one of her stories was translated into Spanish and published in Mexico, her father read it, understood it, and proudly asked for more copies to share with relatives. That moment of validation, after years of striving to be seen and appreciated, became the most meaningful accomplishment of her career.
a. What does Cisneros mean when she writes that being an only daughter in a family of six sons "explain everything"?
By the expression “explains everything” means being only one daughter in a family is being ignored, isolated and unwanted. A daughter also can make her parents feel proud, but parents guided by patriarchal ideologies fail to understand this potential. In other words, ‘being the only daughter’ means she was the only girl among seven children. It’s a factual statement that implies she might receive special attention or a unique place in the family. On the contrary, ‘being only a daughter’ reflects how her father saw her—not as someone with potential or individuality, but as just a girl, someone whose primary purpose was to marry and fulfill traditional gender roles.
In her narrative essay, Cisneros tells her own experience in her family. She does have the dream of becoming a writer. Being only a daughter among the six sons, she always has to struggle a lot to make her own identity that she is not "a son" but 'a daughter' "only a daughter". Once her father says, “I have seven sons". But she whispers on her father's ear that she is the daughter not a son. And he has only six sons.
Cisneros describes the difficulties of growing up and the only daughter in a Mexican-American family of six sons. Historically, sons have been valued over daughters in most cultures. There are various cultural proverbs that focus on the importance upon the sons.
Daughters have less employment opportunities. The role of woman in every society, even in the traditional to modern society is inseparable. Cisneros in her writing 'explains everything' means that is not a son but a daughter who can establish her identity herself.
1. Are male and female children treated differently in your family? Have your parents had different expectations for their sons and daughter.
The narrative of Sandra Cisneros reflects traditional society which is guided by patriarchal ideologies. I think there is no society which can treat their male and female child equally. School going age group can be treated equally, but in case of transfer of inheritances, there is wide gap between male and female.
My family is not an exception. My family treats us (me and my brother) completely different. If it is evening time and we have to go to market for anything, my family feels safe to send my younger brother to the market. If we have to do the household task, my family orders me to do indoor tasks whereas my brother enjoys outdoor tasks.
Regarding the education, though I do not experience, but most friends do have. The daughters are sent to the simple governmental schools where they do not believe that they have good education. But brothers are sent to the English medium school. The daughters are believed that they do not need good education because they have to only take care of the family and their households. Whereas sons have to find better job opportunities and earn much for the family. By this, the girls get less opportunity for the jobs
My parents have also certainly the different expectations from their sons and daughters. They have encouraged my brother to study Science stream and I am doing the Management stream. They believe that though I am doing my academic education better, it is only useful for my would-be family and husband. Like all mother do have, I think my mother does also have the tint of the pain of farewell to the daughter with her marriage. I think, though my father does not express, my mother has that her daughter would be a good mother like her and have a good family. I think these are not the primary things.
2. What is Cisneros's thesis? What incidents and details support this thesis?
Cisneros’s thesis is “being the only daughter in a traditional Mexican family shaped Sandra Cisneros’s identity as a writer, as it gave her both the loneliness to develop her carrier as a writer and the deep desire to gain her father's recognition and approval.”
Cisneros narrates this story to show the social relations regarding the female identity. The daughters are of second priority. Women always and anywhere in the world are struggling to establish their identity. Cisneros, in this story remembers that her father calls her as a son because he has six sons already. She is included as a son. The inclusion of the daughter in to the son does not signify that his daughter isn't like a son rather a daughter does have her own category.
She calls "Not seven sons. Six! and one daughter". The 'one daughter' should have more identity because she is the 'only daughter'. Here, she wants to trace the development of her identity as an adult, as a female, and as a writer. The females want to establish their identity as a separate one not "include one", she develops the narrative where she struggles against the father's version of identifying the daughters. She does not like to be treated as a part of the sons but she shows a difference. Her father simply wants her to get an identity of being someone's wife. He used to think that even after getting so and such education, she was not able to get a husband so she had wasted her education. Contrary to this, Cisneros wants to win her father’s approval and make him feel proud. Finally, she gets success to change her father’s attitude towards daughter/herself through her story which is translated into Spanish and gets published.
