Like Water For Chocolate

This book is definitely an easy read- it goes by much quicker than the other novels we've read so far just because the text is so much simpler. So far I find it very interesting, a bit frustrating just because of Tita's sad situation. I really like the magical aspects of this novel, blending it with romance and the fantasy genre. I love fantasy books, they are probably my favorite type of novel. If there is ever a fantasy oriented literature class, I would definitely be the first person to sign up.

The way Tita's emotions affects her food reminded me quite a bit about the movie Simply Irresistible. The main character of that movie is a chef that discovers her emotions are being transferred into her cooking and thus affecting the emotions of the people that consume it. It is a love story, perhaps on a more 'cheesy' level than most people would enjoy, I love that movie regardless. But it strongly reminded me of this novel, with the direct relation between emotions based on love being represented with food. I think the emotions a person is feeling while they are cooking can affect the meal, obviously on a more realistic way than the magical side fiction represents. Food can be a powerful thing that bonds families and brings up strong memories. There are many people that feel passionately about the foods they chose to eat or not to eat. It plays an important role in our lives and this sense of magical realism that is represented in this novel is an indicator of that on a different level.

I feel very sorry for Tita in the beginning of this book, she is definitely the victim of her mother's controlling behavior and takes the brunt of the negativity. Since the responsibility falls upon her to take care of her mother and not to marry, she has no real control of her life. Like Dr. J mentioned in class, this is an excellent example of how the concept of 'patriarchy' or in this case 'matriarchy', is not exclusively male. Females can represent these characteristics of dominance and control, as clearly shown by the actions of Tita's mother. This is good way of showing that these problematic characteristics can be carried out by either gender. There is so much misconception about feminism and the assumption that feminists only seek equality for women and place blame on men. Obviously, this is not the case and in the context of the book, showing that females can also carry out these traits.