From Oppressed to Oppressor: Racism and Patriarchy in The House on Mango Street and Little House on the Prairie

Author(s): Ratri Bhadra

Publication Date: December 30, 2025

Abstract

This paper investigates the connection between racial oppression and the manifestation of patriarchy by examining male figures in Sandra Cisneros's The House on Mango Street and Laura Ingalls Wilder's Little House on the Prairie. Men are often characterized as aggressive in society due to inherent mindsets. However, this study suggests that the historical oppression of Mexican American men by white Americans based on race, culture, ethnicity, and class is an exposure to extreme gender violence. This violence is viewed as a displacement of outer racial and social powerlessness onto women within the domestic sphere. To strengthen this argument, the paper contrasts the male figures of both novels. It shows that White Americans, as members of the dominant group, exhibit significantly less domestic aggression. Ultimately, it reveals that the violent patriarchy depicted in The House on Mango Street is not only an inherent trait but a response and manifestation of systemic racial oppression. The paper employs an interdisciplinary analysis through qualitative research, applying critical race theory, Sigmund Freud's defense mechanisms and Henri Tajfel's social identity theory. The paper utilizes Alfred Adler's theory of the inferiority complex to demonstrate how feelings of racial and social powerlessness fuel patriarchal behaviour. By intertwining these theories, this study offers a new angle on patriarchy, discovering it as a direct consequence of racial oppression.