"You must keep writing. It will keep you free, and I said yes, but at that time I didn't know what she meant (61)."
I keep coming across this theme of women should write in order to be free. bell hooks called it "talking back". Victorian women writers wrote in order to be free. Writing is a way for ethnic and women writers to free themselves from societal constraints. It's one of the many ways that they have found their voices.
Is Esperanza's writing keeping her free from the same constraints? What freedom was her aunt talking about? Does this sound more like the author's voice than the characters in the book?
Your last question makes a really good point and I definitely agree with that. I think that the introduction to the book also shows a lot of that same idea. I read about Cisneros that she grew up being the only daughter among 6 other brothers which, when paired with her moving back and forth from mexico to the U.S., probably made her feel a little trapped. So yes, I think that this idea is a real one that comes straight from the author's beliefs.
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