Reading Journal 4 || Sandra Cisneros || "Only Daughter"

1. At the beginning of the story Sandra Cisneros emphasizes her being the only daughter in her family with six sons. She goes on further telling readers that she is from a working Mexican class family. She spends time alone since her brothers think that it is unusual to play with a girl, so during these time periods she learned how to write all her thoughts down. Cisneros feels as if she is being erased from the family, and neglected by her dad because of her father's interpretations on the role of a woman. Throughout the story she is searching for her father's approval, which she receives at the end. When she lets her father read the paper at the end, she figures out his thoughts behind this paper and compliments her for her achievement. 
2. Sandra Cisneros, an author who has wrote many novels and has won several awards, including a National Endowment for the Arts fellowship, stated in "Only Daughter" in Bedford, "He read it very slowly. As if he were reading each line over and over. He laughed at all the right places and read each line he liked out loud" (499). This quote from the conclusion proves that her father enjoyed her written work and was proud of what she has done. He was able to read because it was translated to Spanish. This new character trait her father gained at the end of the story, from being "embarrassed" of having a daughter in his family to being a proud father that has a daughter with her work published in a Mexican-American writing. The decriptions she gave as her father was reading her work also defends my opinion.
3. Cisneros is similar to her father because they both are strong with their own opinions and goals. Just like her father wanted all of his kids to become something big that pays well and not what he was, she becomes a writer who falls back into the same pay as her father earns. Her father wanted her to go to college, so that she could find herself a husband, but instead she's in school for 6 years to become a writer, what she wanted to become. Her father wanted her to be something recognizable, so she proved it to him when she got awards and got recognized for the writings that were published. They both are from the same Mexican household where women aren't given much importance.