Heat and Flames
“ Her ( Gertrudis) body was giving off so much heat that
the wooden walls began to split and burst into flame.” Pg.
54
“ She( Tita) didn’t miss a thing in spite of the rosy
clouds of steam, and the flames shooting out of the
bathroom, which made it hard for her to see.” Pg.56
“ The woman ( Gertrudis) desperately needed a man to quench
the red hot fire that was raging inside her.” Pg.55
Analysis: March. Tita’s cooking imparts her feelings onto other people. The rose
petals given to Tita by Pedro cause Gertrudis to attain the bottled up sexual desires that
Tita has for Pedro. Gertrudis is the lone medium through which Tita delivers her sexual
desires to Pedro because she is the product of a passionate consummation. “… Tita was
the transmitter, Pedro the receiver, and poor Gertrudis the medium, the conducting body
through which the singular sexual message was passed.” –pg 52 The significance of fire
and heat is to symbolize the burning passion Tita and Pedro have for eachother. The food
that Tita prepares for the family, nurtures Pedro unlike all the others.
“All of a sudden she had a thought that made her run
outside to look at the stars. Having felt it with her own
body , she knew a look could start a fire. Even to set the
sun itself ablaze. What then could happen if Gertrudis
looked up at a star? Surely the heat from her body which
was inflamed by love, would travel across an infinite
distance, with no loss of energy , until it landed on the
star she was watching. Those huge stars have lasted for so
many years by taking care never to absorb any of the fiery
rays of lovers all over the world send up at them night
after night.” Pg. 60
Analysis: March. The stars connected to the heat given off by Gertrudis connect to
the theme of fate. Pedro and Tita’s love is eternal and their fire will never burn out just
like the light of the stars will never burn out . However, at this time Gertrudis is their only
way for showing their love for eachother.
“ Tita knew through her own flesh how
elements, how a lump of corn flour is
tortilla, how a soul that hasn’t been
love is lifeless, like a useless ball
fire transforms the
changed into a
warmed by the fire of
of corn flour.” Pg.67
Analysis: April. Along with the fire revealing the passion that Pedro and Tita have for
eachother, the food also reminds the reader of the nurture aspect of their relationship. Tita
shows how much she cares for Pedro through the meals she cooks. In this particular
chapter, the motif of nurture is emphasized since Tita cares for Roberto and is able to
breastfeed him. “ She(TIta) was feeling a new love: for life, for this child, for Pedro, even
for the sister she had despised for so long. “ pg. 73
“With John’s warmth she felt better everyday.” Pg.108
Analysis: June. Unlike the warmth that Pedro gave Tita, John’s warmth does not
represent passion. It is purely nurturing. His warmth heals her but doesn’t ignite passion.
“ I ended up here because I( Gertrudis) felt an intense
fire inside; the man who picked me up in the field in
effect saved my life. He left because I had exhausted his
strength, though he hadn’t managed to quench the fire
inside me. “ pg.126
Analysis: July. When Gertrudis explains that the fire
inside was not quenched and still is not entirely quenched
symbolizes Tita and Pedro’s passion. It still exists.
“ Suddenly the water started to feel warmer and kept
getting warmer and warmer until it began to burn her skin…
alarmed, she opened her eyes, afraid that the bathroom was
on fire again, and what did she see on the other side of
the planks but Pedro.” Pg.153
“ She ( Chencha) saw a strange glow coming from the dark
room. Plumes of phosphorescent colors were ascending to the
sky like delicate Bengal lights.” Pg. 158
Analysis: August. Tita and Pedro finally are able show eachother their love. By finally
being able to show eachother the passion they have without Gertrudis. This causes the
warmth and fire to become more intense. The phosphorescent colors are linked to the
phosphorus in the matches. John could not ignite this spark but Pedro could.
“ Tita was literally “like Water for chocolate”- she was on
the verge of boiling over. “ pg.151
Analysis: August. This food metaphor is different compared to the others because it
doesn’t represent the nurture side of Pedro and Tita’s relationship but the passionate one.
Matches and Candles
“ Each of us is born with a box of matches inside us but we
can’t strike them all by ourselves. “ pg.115
Matches are what “ nourishes the soul.”pg.115
She(Tita) finds a “ way to strike a fire that would light
the way back to her origin and to Pedro.” Pg. 236
Analysis: June. John brown explains the way that human passion can be represented by
matches. John makes the matches and explains to Tita how to do it. He tells Tita that
everyone is born with a box of matches inside themselves. However, everyone needs to
discover the person who is able to light them. It is ironic in the sense that John teaches
Tita to make matches but cannot ignite her passion himself. It goes back to the theme of
fate and that only Pedro can ignite the matches inside Tita.