Like Water For Chocolate: Synthesis 9-12

Our symbol was more so neutral up until really the very end. It was important up until chapter seven when she left the ranch and went to Doctor Brown's house. After that we didn't get anything else on it until the very end, when Tita burned up the ranch.
It was a big symbol of hope to Tita when marriage might've still happened for her with Pedro. "Finally she went to her sewing box and pulled out the bedspread she had started the day Pedro first spoke of marriage (Esquirel 19)." The bedspread disappeared after Tita went to Doctor Brown's because that was when she had truly lost hope and given up on the idea of marriage. 

Like Water For Chocolate Chapter 12

Characters: Tita, Dr. Brown, Pedro, Rosaura, Gertrudis, Alex, Esperanza, Chencha

The recipe for this chapter is Chilies in walnut sauce.

The chapter takes place at the ranch.

Chencha and Tita as in the kitchen making the chapter’s recipe in preparation for Alex and Esperanza. They are the last ones in the kitchen due to everyone getting tired and leaving. Tita thinks about how Rosaura would have loved to be a part of this, but since she’s been dead for nearly a year due to unknown circumstances. We learn that at some point there was a small truce in the household when Rosaura and Tita struck up a deal that Tita would be in charge of feeding the child, while Rosaura was in charge of her education. Things fell apart again when Pedro and Tita insisted the girl go to school and learn more than just dancing, singing, and piano playing for when Rosaura is old; reluctantly Rosaura agrees. Things get even worse when the subject of Esperanza marrying comes up; but since Rosaura is now dead, there is nothing in the way of the engagement. Tita thinks about how hard Dr. Brown worked in helping prepare the dish, and how he was the last one to leave to rest. We switch over to Pedro’s point of view and see that wild jealousy aimed at Dr. Brown and Tita’s relationship is keeping him from getting any sort of sleep. Soon we transition over to the wedding where Tita and Pedro dance, showing that the toe of them are happy together now that both Mama and Elena and Rosaura are out of the picture. Everyone at the wedding enjoys the chillies with walnut sauce, but soon have to flee the scene because of intense feelings popping up similar to what Gertrudis felt after the quail with rose sauce; needless to say there was some very intense love making that night. Once everyone had left the rance, Tita and Pedro finally had some time on their own, and so they headed into the dark room, which now has candles lit EVERYWHERE. Each person thinks the other did it, and none of them notice Nacha standing in the corner, lighting one last candle before vanishing. Tita and Pedro have some very passionate love before Pedro just dies. Tita, overcome with grief, leaves the room, grabs the bedspread which is now big enough to cover the entire ranch, then goes to eat some candles in oder to try and rekindle her matches. After thinking of good memories of Pedro, the candles light inside her and she goes to see him once again, because she also died. The flame from the candle catches on the bedspread, and the whole ranch goes up in flames. People think that it’s fireworks going off in celebration, but go to investigates when they won’t stop for a week. The ground where the ranch stood is said to be some of the most fertile ground in the area, and everything grows there. At the end of the book we learn that the narrator was Esperanza’s daughter, recounting the recipes and stories that went along with them from an old cookbook that was rescued from the ashes.

Like Water For Chocolate: Chapter 11

Once again, the bedspread is non-existent in ch.11 of Like Water For Chocolate.  This could be because Tita is caught in the crossfire choosing between DR. Brown and Pedro. Even more so now that Tita had that "special" night with Pedro but feeling a deep love towards Dr. Brown.  In chapter 1, we first heard of how the bedspread was Tita's hope that Pedro and her would still get married.  The absence of it is because Pedro is not the only holder of her heart anymore, Dr. Brown is as well.  We don't see the bedspread because Tita is unsure of whether she should choose Dr. Brown or Pedro, she isn't "set in stone" on who she should end up with.  If she was totally all for Pedro, we would begin to see the bedspread again. 


-Ashley 

Like Water For Chocolate: Chapter 10

Recipe of the chapter: Fritters
Setting: Ranch
Characters: Tita, Pedro, Rosaura, Esperanza, Ghost Elena, Gertrudis and her troop

So during this chapter, we learn how to make syrup for fritters. Mama's ghost came back to Tita, telling her to go far away from here to not cause others trouble, and what ends up happening is she end up smashing a lamp, setting Pedro on fire. Gertrudis uses her skirt to stop Pedro from running around "like a human torch" and they finally put the fire out. Pedro then has burn wounds and as he lays there he says Tita's name instead of his wife's. Tita then spends the rest of the chapter caring for him through the night.

The bedspread wasn't mentioned in this chapter.

Like Water For Chocolate: Chapter 9

Recipe of the chapter: Three Kings Day bread/ Hot chocolate
Setting: Ranch
Characters: Tita, Pedro, Rosaura, Esperanza, Ghost Elena, Gertrudis and her troop, the Loboses

We have a lot of new things happen in this chapter. At the end of the last chapter, we got Tita and Pedro making love. Afterward, Tita's convinced she's pregnant.  Mama Elena is also continually bothering Tita, trying to guilt her about her pregnancy. She tells Tita her baby is cursed. This is pretty hypocritical but I mean that's never stopped her. Rosaura's health is getting to be awful? She's gaining weight and she doesn't smell real great. She goes to Tita for help, who tells her to chew mint leaves and gargle a mixture. Pedro is avoiding Rosaura and it isn't helping her. Oh! Gertrudis is back! She's brought her troop with her too. She's highly respected and a General now!
The bedspread wasn't mentioned in this chapter.

Like Water For Chocolate: Synthesis 4-8

From after chapter 4, we've started to see some major shifts and changes. Our symbol is, obviously, the bedspread. The bedspread is coming up less and less and we've thought this might be because Tita is back at the ranch and Pedro is there. Also, we get a new potential love interest, John Brown.

    The bedspread is very long. The last we saw was in chapter 5 at the very end, when Dr. Brown comes and takes Tita off the ranch. It was dragging behind them in the dirt due to size, and this might mean something. It might show the growing insignificance of Tita and Pedro's love. John has started to come into the picture and dwarf their affair.  It could also show Tita's growing uncaring attitude towards Pedro.

  The absence of the bedspread before may represent how Tita's feelings for Pedro are slowly fading, and her thoughts and feelings are going to Dr. Brown.  At the end of chapter 8 however, things may start heating up again for Pedro and Tita throughout the rest of the book. The bedspread might start to show up again due to this.

Like Water For Chocolate Chapter 8

Characters: Tita, Pedro, Dr. Brown, Chencha, Esperanza (Pedro and Rosaura’s daughter) Jesus Martinez (Chencha lover)

The chapter’s recipe is Champandongo

The chapter takes place in the Ranch

Tita is frantically trying to prepare a meal for when Dr. Brown comes over to the ranch to ask for her hand in marriage. She would normally have lots of time to do it, but due to the birth of Rosaura’s daughter Esperanza, and Rosaura’s inability to feed her, Tita has to take control again, reducing her time to prepare the meal. It is noticed that Esperanza’s life is taking a similar course to Tita’s, since they’ve both had to be raised in the kitchen, and Tita is worried that Rosaura might decided to keep her daughter from marrying like Mama Elena did to Tita. Rosaura decides that Esperanza needs to spend more time with her and less in the kitchen, but the child has already grown attached and will not stop crying. Tita eventually has to keep carrying dishes up and down the stairs to keep her satisfied, and on the last trip she falls, dropping all the food she was carrying. Pedro shows up to make matters worse by trying to tell Tita not to Marry Dr. Brown, and she yells at him to never speak with her again, then calls him a coward. Chencha shows up to lift Tita’s seemingly never ending irritation and brings along her new husband Jesus Martinez, who seemed to help her cope with the trauma the bandits left. Chencha helps fix the meal while Tita goes to take a shower, only to once again encounter Pedro as he watches her bathe. The time finally comes for Dr. Brown to arrive, and Tita goes to greet him after some last minutes setups. Pedro and Brown are arguing about politics when Tita comes in, which breaks rules about manners. Dr. Brown presents Tita with a ring to ask for her hand and Pedro, being the man of the house at this point, reluctantly agrees. Once the meal is finished Tita and Dr. Brown kiss each other goodbye, as he has to leave to get his only surviving aunt from the US, and then Tita goes off to do some chores around the house to calm down her conflicted emotions. She goes to the store room to put some kitchen utensils away, not knowing she’s being followed by Pedro until he shuts and locks the door; Tita and Pedro then engage in what I can only describe as love making so passionate and powerful that multicolored steam starts flying from the storeroom. Upon seeing this, Rosaura then proceeds to pray, thinking it was Mama Elena’s restless spirit still roaming the ranch due to unfinished business.

Like Water For Chocolate: Chapter 7

In Like Water For Chocolate the characters for this chapter are Tita, Dr. Brown, Pedro, Rosaura, Mama Elena, and Chencha.  Mentioned characters include Roberto (Tita's dead baby nephew), Mama Elena's parents and her starcrossed lover Jose Trevino and her husband Huan de la Garza in a flashback scene.  

       In the seventh chapter, Chencha goes to Dr. Brown's house and is so happy to see Tita there.  To help her feel better, Chencha gives Tita some Ox-tail soup and Tita perks right up from her slump.  When Chencha gets back to the ranch prepared to tell Mama Elena a story of what happened to Tita, she is raped by bandits.  In a action to "protect her honor", Mama Elena breaks her back.  Mama Elena is actually sick, so know Tita must care for her since Chencha is unable to.  Unfortunately, Mama Elena dies because she is so paranoid that she won't eat any food that anyone makes her because she deems it "poison" and overdoses herself on medicine.  At Mama Elena's funeral, we learn of her frustrating past love life and Tita weeps for her for that reason, not because she died.  Meanwhile at the funeral, Rosaura and Pedro come to pay their respects to Mama Elena.  Tita realizes though she still loves Pedro, Dr. Brown might be her true love. Therefore, she leaves arm-in-arm with Dr. Brown leaving a very envious Pedro behind. 

        The setting of this chapter was in Dr. Brown's house, Mama Elena's ranch, and the church graveyard.

        This chapter is in this book because it gives us another perspective of Mam Elena, a girl with a tragic love story.  We see Mama Elena in a new light as to why she became so cold and bitter.      

         The bedspread in this chapter was actually not mentioned, but from what I conclude Tits is no longer really "hoping" for Pedro, more she is trying to move on with Dr. Brown.  The absence of the bedspread could represent the "absence" of Pedro from her thoughts and heart. 

 -Ashley  

Like Water For Chocolate: Chapter 6

Characters include Tita, Dr. Brown (John)

This chapter takes place at Dr. Brown's House

This chapter's recipe is how to make matches

The chapter begins with Tita at Dr. Brown's house, away from her mother's ranch. She was taken to his house because she went "crazy", but still was able to bring the bedspread with her.  At his house, John (Dr. Brown) has a different set of values, leaving Tita with some more freedom than what she had with her mother. He guides Tita towards well-being and is sensitive to her due to everything that has happened. John also offers Tita the freedom and independence she seeks and seems to help Tita move forward.

-Maddie

Like Water For Chocolate: Chapter 5

Characters present in this chapter: Tita, Momma Elena, Chencha, the doctor, the revolutionaries, Pedro in a flashback, and two ranch hands

Recipe: Northern-style Chorizo

In this chapter, Tita finally broke.
She was tired of her mother's commands and constant scrutiny and was already unhappy because Pedro and Rosaura had moved away, taking Roberto with them. Her mother had her sent away because she was convinced Tita had gone mad, and really so had everyone else on the ranch. Arguably she's really just dealing with her grief in awful ways, and her mother isn't helping. It's revealed towards the end that Roberto had died from something he ate, and this is where Tita snaps. She yells at her mother, saying Momma Elena had killed Roberto by sending him off. She gets hit by her mother and then runs off. The revolutionaries coming and taking all the doves didn't help Tita's state of mind either. They came to collect what they could from the ranch and had almost used force to get inside the house, but Tita's mother scared them off pretty easily. Tita had found a baby dove and had wanted to raise it, though had ended up killing it after the news of the baby's death. She overfed the poor bird, hurting too much to notice it had died. The doctor was called soon after Chencha found Tita in that state, and he managed to convince Tita to come down from her hiding place in the bird area. He took her away to an asylum presumably, with Chencha running after the carriage to give Tita the bedspread as the carriage drove off. The analogy used at the end of the chapter really kinda darkened the mood. The bedspread was compared to a bride's train on her dress, which was... almost ironic because of the reason Tita was making the bedspread.

Someone help this poor girl. The things that have been happening have really affected her badly. She's still having the hallucinations/flashbacks, and they're affecting her performance in things she's usually good at. She very much needs a break and getting away from the ranch might help her greatly, though if she's going to San Antonio then it might only harm her more.

-Emily

Like Water For Chocolate Chapter 4

Characters: Tita, Mama Elena, Rosaura, Pedro, Roberto (Pedro and Rosaura’s son), Chencha, John Brown (the doctor)

The chapter’s recipe is Turkey mole with almonds and sesame seeds

The chapter switches from location to location, mostly taking place in the kitchen in Mama Elena’s ranch before switching to a church at the end of the chapter.

The chapter begins with Tita grinding the almonds for the dish, making sure to go into great detail about the erotic position she is in while doing it. Pedro walks into the kitchen, catching sight of Tita’s breasts for the very first time, and the two share a look of intimate love. When Pedro leaves the kitchen Tita can’t stop thinking about the intense emotions she’s experiencing, feeling that they rekindled her hopes that Pedro still loves her as much as she loves him. It is explained that she felt she had done something wrong when Pedro stopped praising her cooking, and that somehow, he didn’t love her anymore; when in reality, Mama Elena told Pedro to stop praising the dishes since it was making Rosaura upset. Every night, after continuing to make the bedspread, Tita comes up with new and better recipes to make for everyone in the household. At some point Rosaura goes into labor and Tita is the only one that can tend to her since Pedro got captured by federals while trying to find a doctor, and Mama Elena and Chencha had to stay with some people since guns were firing in the streets. Tita manages to deliver the child successfully (with help from Nacha’s spirit) and she ends up getting attached to it. Mama Elena calls a doctor to help Rosaura recover since the labor almost killed her, and the doctor ends up getting attracted to Tita, not knowing that she will never be able to marry, and that she still loves Pedro. Since Rosaura is unable to produce milk for the child, a wet nurse is called, but she ends up getting gunned down on the streets; so the task falls to Tita. She is able to feed the child with breast milk from herself, due to the overwhelming urge to feed the child so that it will stop crying; Pedro sees this but pays it no mind, and she continues to feed the child this way. The time to baptize the child comes around, and Mama Elena is starting to notices the going ons between Pedro and Tita; she confides in a priest in an idea to send him, Rosaura, and their kid away to stay with some family so that Rosaura will get the proper healing she needs, even though we all know that’s not the case. Tita overhears this and is depressed by the news.

-Ariana

Like Water For Chocolate: Synthesis 1-4

      Ultimately, the bedspread was meant for Pedro and Tita's marriage. But since that's forbidden due to Tita's position, they can't have the relationship they want. The bedspread now could represent Tita's hope, perhaps, for a relationship. It could also be a venting kind of thing. She's pretty upset about this.
      The author's reasoning for using this symbol could be for showing how strong the love is between Tita and Pedro and the growing intensity between them.
      The author's use of the symbol is effective. The bedspread is brought up multiple times so you don't forget about it. It's also effective because it really shows how Tita is trying to persevere through her mother's commands. She stays hopeful that the love between her and Pedro will one day not have to be hidden and that they may be together.  Everytime Tita works on the bedspread, it represents her undying passion for Pedro. It also can represent her hope that eventually she will be married to Pedro.
      The larger purpose of this text is that the bedspread could represent the hope we have for something that seems impossible, something the world is against. It could link to another story, Romeo and Juliet, with the whole "forbidden love" thing and such. The situation is just a bit different. For the story as a whole, it gives something to keep up with and something to read about other than what's happening from month to month. It gives an ongoing plot line that's more or less to the side, but still keeps your attention.

Like Water For Chocolate: Chapter 3

The character's in this chapter are Tita, Pedro, Gertrudis, Mama Elena, Rosaura, and a new character, Juan.

This chapter takes place on Mama Elena' ranch once again.

The recipe for this chapter is a dish of quail covered with a type of rose sauce.

At the beginning, Pedro gives Tita some pink roses.  The now pregnant Rosaura sees this and runs away crying.  Mama Elena gets angry at Tita for being close to Pedro and tells her to throw the roses away.  Not wanting to get rid of such pretty, now bloody roses, Tita uses them in a dish with quails.  When Tita serves the meal and evryone starts eating, they all start feeling very strange from the food.  Pedro feels the love Tita feels for him, Gertrudis feels really heated and passionate as she suddenly thinks of the soldier she saw in the village and is smitten with, Mama Elena is salty, and Rosaura just feels sick.  Being so heated up, Gertrudis runs to the shower to cool off.  However, the heat emitting from her body cause the shower to catch on fire and for Gertrudis to run out naked as a jaybird.  Juan the soldier from the village, smells the scent of roses and follows it.  It leads him to Gertrudis and he is immediantly in love.  So he picks her up on his horse and they ride off into the distance.  Pedro and Tita, having seen the whole thing tell Mama Elena she was kidnapped, causing her to go into a frenzy of burning all Gertrudis's pictures and her birth certificate.  At the end of the chapter, Tita looks up at the stars, hoping she will one day experience the passion and happiness Gertrudis is with her lover.

-Ashley

Like Water Like Chocolate: Chapter 2

Like Water for Chocolate: Chapter Two

Characters include Tita, Nacha, Mama Elena, Tita's sisters, Pedro, 

This chapter also takes place on Tita's mom's ranch.

This chapter's recipe is for a wedding cake, for Rosaura and Pedro's wedding. 

The chapter begins with the fateful wedding of her sister and her love; Pedro. Tita, Nacha, and Mama Elena are in the kitchens preparing for the weddings by making a cake. Throughout the work required to make the feast, Tita begins to have problems with hallucinations. One egg Nacha is about to crack begins making a peeping noise, in which Tita thinks there is a chicken inside. Only a second later to have Mama Elena yell at her for her craziness. Everyone continues to cook, and eventually, Mama Elena goes to bed. Tita and Nacha both cry it out, but the batter won't rise because of Tita's crying and it takes a while for it to do so. Nacha insists that she gets some rest and Tita leaves, and afterward, Nacha tastes a bit of the cake to see if Tita's tears made it salty only to feel a great sadness that made her far too sick to attend the wedding.

-Maddie

Like Water for Chocolate: Chapter One

Characters include: Aunt Tita, Momma Elena, Tita's sisters (Rosuara and Gertrudis), Nacha, Chencha, Pedro, Pedro's father, and the ranch dog

This chapter takes place on Tita's mom's ranch, in Mexico

The recipe for Christmas rolls is what opens this chapter. This is thought to be because it is Tita's favorite. The chapter is about Tita's childhood, and the whole thing between her and Pedro. 

       Tita's life begins in the kitchen of the house. It was said while her mother was chopping onions, Tita's cries could be heard from her stomach. She was born right then, with enough tears to produce salt that they use when cooking. Tita's mother breast milk dries out, so an alternative is made and Nacha, the cook, takes care of her. This is where she grows up, a bit isolated from her sisters, but not on purpose. See, Tita is the youngest daughter, meaning she can't marry or leave because she has to take care of her mother until her mother dies. This becomes a problem when Pedro walks into her life. They, both love each other, and Pedro tried to ask for Tita's hand, but her mother refused and gets him to engage one of her sister's instead. This greatly upsets Tita. Pedro swears on his love for her, and confesses at the dinner they had for Tita's birthday. She doesn't really receive this well, and sends him off as soon as he tells her. The dinner ends, they leave, and Tita goes to bed. She describes this cold and hollow feeling she feels after the dinner. She pulls on multiple layers, and finally pulls out a bedspread she had planned on making while her and Pedro waited to marry. This bedspread was to take exactly a year to make, the amount of time they were to wait. Instead of sleeping, she works on the bedspread and cries.
  The bedspread we thought represented the marriage and Tita's love for Pedro.

-Emily