Like Water for Chocolate Summary
Description
Here you will find a Like Water for Chocolate summary (Laura Esquivel's book).
We begin with a summary of the entire book, and then you can read each individual chapter's summary by visiting the links on the "Chapters" section.
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Last Updated: Monday 1 Jan, 2024
Chapters
Chapters Like Water for Chocolate Summary Overview
Tita De La Garza is the youngest child in a Mexican family living at the start of the 20th century. The tale revolves around her quest for love and independence, documented in twelve chapters, each beginning with a recipe. Within these recipes lies the narrative's backbone, as each chapter's main events relate to food preparation or consumption. Tita is in love with Pedro Muzquiz, who marries her older sister Rosaura to stay close to Tita due to a family tradition that forbids the youngest daughter from marrying. A meal prepared by Tita with rose petals given by Pedro creates a passionate reaction in their sister Gertrudis, causing her to run away with a revolutionary soldier. Meanwhile, Tita becomes a mother figure to Rosaura and Pedro's son, Roberto. However, sensing that Roberto is connecting Pedro and Tita, their mother, Mama Elena, orchestrates Rosaura's family's move to San Antonio, leaving Tita heartbroken. After Roberto's death, possibly caused by his separation from Tita, she suffers a breakdown and is sent to an asylum. A local American doctor, Dr. John Brown, takes care of Tita, eventually leading her to decide not to return to the ranch. However, she is brought back after Mama Elena is injured in a rebel raid. Mama Elena rejects Tita's care, accusing her of poisoning her food, and soon after dies from an overdose of a potent emetic she took fearing poisoning. Following her mother's death, Tita accepts an engagement proposal from Dr. John Brown, but Pedro's return throws her feelings into question. After Pedro takes her virginity, Tita becomes pregnant and ends her engagement, leading to Mama Elena's spirit cursing her. In her despair, Gertrudis returns as a general in the revolutionary army and becomes the companion Tita needs. After Tita finally stands up to Mama Elena's spirit, her pregnancy symptoms disappear, and Pedro is set on fire by the ghost's light. Years later, Esperanza, Rosaura's daughter, marries Alex, Dr. Brown's son. Rosaura's death and Esperanza's marriage free Tita and Pedro to express their love openly. Their intense love leads to Pedro's death and Tita's eventual reunion with him in the afterlife, leaving behind only Tita's recipe book, the symbol of their love.
chapter 1
The book begins with a quirky tip from the kitchen: placing an onion slice on one's head can prevent tears while chopping onions. The chief character, Tita, is ironically born amidst a flood of tears in the kitchen. Her mother, Mama Elena, distressed by her husband's recent demise, is unable to breastfeed Tita. Therefore, she is given to Nacha, the cook, who brings her up amidst the vibrant kitchen environment. Tita's world revolves around food, and she relishes her solitary life in the kitchen. Life outside the kitchen, however, is strictly regimented by Mama Elena. Tita's days are filled with cooking, cleaning, sewing, and prayer. This regularity is broken when Tita reveals that Pedro Muzquiz wishes to court her. Mama Elena refuses Pedro's request, citing an age-old family tradition that mandates the youngest daughter to remain single and take care of the elderly matriarch. Tita is disheartened, but she doesn’t rebel against her mother's decision. Instead, she silently questions the tradition while preserving her love for Pedro. The following day, Pedro and his father show up unexpectedly to propose marriage. Mama Elena declines the proposal for Tita and offers Rosaura, her other daughter, as a bride instead. The household is taken aback by Mama Elena's blatant disregard for Tita’s emotions. Pedro and his father, however, agree to the new arrangement. Nacha, the housekeeper, overhears and conveys to Tita that Pedro has chosen to marry Rosaura just to be closer to Tita. Nevertheless, this revelation fails to comfort Tita. She remains disheartened and not even her favorite food, the Christmas Roll, can lift her spirits. A feeling of chill takes over her and to distract herself, she resumes crocheting a bedspread she had started when marriage talks with Pedro were initially discussed.
chapter 2
The De La Garza family is busy preparing for Pedro and Rosaura's big wedding event. The Chabela Wedding Cake, whose recipe opens this chapter, is the highlight of their preparation. Tita and Nacha bear most of the burden of preparing the massive amounts of food needed, including 170 eggs for the cake and 200 roosters for the meal. Overwhelmed by the task and the circumstances, Tita experiences hallucinations. Mama Elena insists Tita must not spoil the celebration. Despite nearing exhaustion, Tita and Nacha press on. Once alone, Nacha advises Tita to release her pent-up emotions, leading Tita to a cathartic cry. Surprisingly, Tita's tears make the cake batter soggy. Unexpectedly, Tita encounters Pedro in the garden. He expresses his enduring love for her, but Tita shuns his explanations. Back in the kitchen, Tita remains haunted by hallucinations. Nacha urges Tita to rest and alone, she tastes the cake icing. She finds the taste unchanged, but the event triggers memories of her own lost love. Overwhelmed, she falls ill and misses the wedding. Tita, however, must face the guests at the wedding, all aware of her feelings for Pedro. Their jeers and stares are challenging, but Tita remains composed. During the wedding, Pedro confesses his undying love for Tita, causing Mama Elena to question her. Frightened by Mama Elena's threats, Tita tries to steer clear of Pedro and Rosaura. The remainder of the wedding sees Tita joyous in Pedro's love confession, while the guests fall ill after eating the wedding cake. They experience the same painful longing Nacha did, accompanied by vomiting, ruining the event. Tita, having left early, avoids the chaos. However, her joy is short-lived as Mama Elena accuses her of deliberately poisoning the cake and beats her. Tita is unable to convince her mother of her innocence and finds no solace in Nacha, who is discovered passed away holding a picture of her long-lost love.
chapter 3
After Nacha's demise, Tita is left alone in the De La Garza kitchen where she finds solace in crafting intricate meals as the new ranch chef. She creates a dish of quail in rose petal sauce using a rose gifted to her by Pedro, a recipe passed down to her in Nacha's voice. Tita's cooking is met with great applause, particularly from Pedro. However, her second sister, Gertrudis, reacts differently. Consuming the meal stirs an unstoppable sensual hunger in her that also affects Pedro. Tita, conversely, experiences a form of astral projection during the feast, with her and Pedro locked in a mutual gaze. Post-meal, Gertrudis attempts to cool off in the shower but her body heat, fueled by the potent dish, causes the water to vaporize and sets the shower on fire. In her escape from the burning structure, a revolutionary soldier, drawn by her enticing scent, sweeps her up on his horse and they ride away. This leaves Tita alone on the ranch, unable to pursue Gertrudis' passionate escapade.
chapter 4
Joy unexpectedly finds its way to Tita through Roberto, Pedro and Rosaura's newborn. As Tita zealously readies a unique baptism feast, she crosses paths with Pedro in the kitchen, causing a significant shift in their relationship. A mere look shared between them conveys their unspoken longing, reinstating Tita's belief in Pedro's love after a symbolic "consummation". The story flashes back to the chaotic birth of Roberto during a time when the village was under federal control and no doctor was present. Tita had to assist Rosaura in labor on her own, guided by Nacha's spirit voice through the intense and risky process. Rosaura is unable to produce milk for her baby, leaving Tita to nurse Roberto. Initially, he refuses the special teas she prepares but when she offers her own breast out of desperation, she is surprised to find it full of milk. Pedro stumbles upon Tita nursing Roberto and aids her in hiding this from the family, deepening their forbidden connection. However, the keen Mama Elena senses the tension and remains firm on keeping them apart. She plans for Rosaura, Pedro, and Roberto to relocate to San Antonio under the pretense of improved medical care for Rosaura. The prospect of losing her nephew and the man she cherishes upsets Tita greatly.
chapter 5
After Pedro leaves, Tita becomes attached to a pet pigeon, neglecting her usual chores, and spiraling into sadness. Amidst this, federal soldiers raid the ranch. Mama Elena meets them armed with a hidden shotgun, forcefully retrieving her stolen chickens and intimidating them with her marksmanship. They search the property but only find Tita's dovecote filled with prized doves and pigeons, which they capture and take away. Thanks to Mama Elena's foresight, most of the ranch's valuable assets were hidden, sparing them from being looted. The missing birds amplify Tita's feelings of loss following Pedro and Roberto's exit. Her grief intensifies when news comes from San Antonio about Roberto's death, who could only feed on Tita's breast milk. Mama Elena reprimands Tita for grieving, leading to an emotional outburst from Tita, blaming Mama Elena for Roberto's death. In response, Mama Elena strikes Tita, breaking her nose with a wooden spoon. Tita retreats to her dovecote, where she's found in a catatonic state by Chencha. Following this, Mama Elena decides to send Tita to an asylum. Dr. John Brown saves Tita from the dovecote and whisks her away. As she departs, Chencha hands her the enormous bedspread she had been crocheting, now a kilometer long, symbolizing Tita's extensive sorrow.
chapter 6
Tita gradually recovers from her emotional trauma under Dr. Brown's nurturing care. She is initially detached and desensitized, still experiencing the lingering chill from Rosaura and Pedro's wedding. Gradually, she begins to understand her new existence free from the suffocating ranch and Mama Elena. In John Brown's home, she meets a figure resembling Nacha. This silent woman, who visits Tita daily, is revealed to be the phantom of John's Native American grandmother, Morning Light. Morning Light influenced John's fascination with science and medicine. His home brims with intriguing experiments that captivate Tita. Despite the quietude, a connection develops between Tita and John during her stay at his home. John imparts a match-making recipe to Tita, using it to explain the concept of the inner fire in every individual and how to safeguard it. Eventually, he prompts Tita to reveal her silence, requesting her to write on the wall (with a luminescent stick) the reason for her quietness. He returns to find her response, "Because I don't want to." Through this act of self-assertion, Tita moves closer to her liberation, firmly deciding never to go back to her mother's house.
chapter 7
Food becomes the catalyst that brings Tita back to her senses when Chencha visits, bearing a bowl of ox-tail soup. One taste and a flood of memories, especially of her childhood in Nacha's kitchen, wash over her. She cries with Chencha, recalling the recipe the first time since her mental collapse. Chencha also brings news from the ranch where Tita's name is now forbidden, and a letter from Gertrudis who is residing in a brothel. After hearing all this, Tita decides never to return to the ranch. Upon hearing her decision, John Brown proposes marriage, which Tita sees as a fresh start. Before Chencha can relay Tita's decision, bandits attack the ranch. They violate Chencha and severely beat Mama Elena, who was defending Chencha, leaving her paralyzed. This prompts Tita to return and care for them, especially by preparing the soup that healed her. However, Mama Elena refuses Tita's care, believing the food is poisoned, and only allows Chencha to serve her. Tita's love-infused cooking doesn't heal her mother as she had hoped, and when Chencha is not around, Tita secretly cooks for Mama Elena. When Mama Elena finds out, she fires Chencha. Tita takes over the cooking again, but Mama Elena dies within a month, due to her self-imposed ipecac consumption, not Tita's meals. Despite Mama Elena's relentless mistreatment, Tita is deeply saddened by her death. While preparing her mother's body for the funeral, Tita finds letters revealing that Elena was once in love with a mulatto man, the real father of Gertrudis. Her parents forced Elena into a loveless marriage, but she continued her affair until her lover was killed. Tita mourns for her mother and the love she was never allowed to pursue. At the funeral, Tita vows to never deny love. She is ready to accept John, but her feelings for Pedro linger, stirring conflict within her. Now with Mama Elena gone, and the prohibition against her marriage lifted, Pedro is resolved to win Tita's heart.
chapter 8
Mama Elena's passing liberates Tita from her oppressive decree and her joy of impending nuptials with John Brown is momentarily disrupted by the birth of Rosaura's second child, a girl. Tita, who is intimately involved in the infant's upbringing, names her Esperanza, meaning 'hope', in a defiant wish that the girl may evade the family custom that denied Tita's own marriage. Rosaura, who is ill due to childbirth, becomes envious of Tita's bond with Esperanza. She announces her intent to uphold the family tradition and prevent Esperanza from marrying, while Pedro attempts to dissuade Tita from marrying John Brown. This provokes Tita to a state of fury, a feeling that intensifies as she cooks a meal, champandongo, for John's visit to propose. While cooking, Tita's rage generates a suffocating steam that engulfs her. Abruptly, her wrath subsides with the arrival of Chencha, who returns to the ranch joyfully married. Tita, relieved from cooking by Chencha's return, readies herself for John's arrival. In the shower, her anger cools down, only to be ignited again when she discovers Pedro observing her with desire. She hastily exits the shower as Pedro approaches her. Tension rises as John arrives and argues with Pedro about politics. Despite his reluctance, Pedro agrees to John's proposal of marriage to Tita. John gifts Tita a diamond ring, marking their official engagement, and leaves for America to bring his aunt for the wedding. After dinner, Tita is left alone in the kitchen. In a room adjacent to the kitchen, Pedro silently leads her to a bed and they make love. The unusual glow emanating from the room startles Rosaura and Chencha, who believe it to be Mama Elena's angered spirit, refusing to approach the room.
chapter 9
Tita finds herself in a dilemma, suspecting she's pregnant after her moment with Pedro. This realization troubles her amidst the making of King's Day bread, as it could affect her engagement to John Brown. The act of baking this particular bread brings back memories of her past, especially of Nacha's nurturing care and Gertrudis's company. In the middle of her baking, Rosaura approaches Tita for help. Rosaura's digestive issues have led to weight gain, bad breath, and flatulence, alienating her from Pedro. Despite having a prescribed diet from John Brown, Rosaura seeks Tita's help with her health and marital problems. Tita agrees to assist, suggesting a special recipe for bad breath and dietary foods for weight loss. Although Tita feels guilty about her affair with Pedro, she's also touched by Rosaura's trust in her. After Rosaura exits the kitchen, the ghost of Mama Elena appears, chastising Tita for her affair with Pedro and casting a curse on Tita's unborn child. The sudden arrival of Chencha forces the spirit to retreat. Tita is left in a state of distress, with no one to confide in. During the celebration of the Three Kings, Gertrudis returns to the ranch. Accompanying her is the man who whisked her away years ago and a battalion of fifty soldiers. Now a general in the revolution, Gertrudis regales everyone with her war tales. The return of her long-lost sister brings Tita immense joy.
chapter 10
Gertrudis and her troops overwhelm the ranch with their presence, but Tita finds solace in her sister, confiding about her pregnancy. Gertrudis advises Tita to speak with Pedro. Pedro initially wants to elope with Tita, but his family obligations hold him back, leaving them both uncertain of their next move. Later, Mama Elena's angry spirit confronts Tita, incensed at seeing a drunken Pedro serenading Tita. The ghost orders Tita to leave, but Tita fearlessly retorts, banishing the ghost with the firm declaration: "I know who I am! A person who has a perfect right to live her life as she pleases. Once and for all, leave me alone, I won't put up with you! I hate you, I've always hated you!" When Mama Elena's ghost fades into a tiny spinning light, Tita experiences physical relief, including a "violent menstrual flow." The spinning light transforms into a fireball that crashes through Tita's window, igniting an oil lamp next to a drunken Pedro, setting him ablaze. Everyone assists the burning Pedro, with Tita distraught and Rosaura attempting to uphold her role as his wife. But when Pedro calls for Tita, not Rosaura, she's embarrassed and secludes herself for a week. Tita devotes herself to Pedro's recovery. Shortly after this incident, Gertrudis and her troops depart the ranch. On the same day, John, Tita's other suitor, returns from America. Tita is pleased to see him, but fears revealing the recent events.
chapter 11
As Tita cares for Pedro, she feels conflicted about her engagement to John since she's not a virgin anymore. She's cooking tamales when Rosaura, having lost significant weight, confronts her about Pedro, accusing her of usurping her position as Pedro's wife. Tita, in anger, criticizes Rosaura for marrying Pedro, leading Rosaura to insult her and banish Esperanza from her company. Following the argument, chaos ensues outside as the ranch's chickens savagely attack one another, causing a blood-soaked whirlwind that stains baby Esperanza's diapers on the clothesline and forms a tornado. Tita makes futile attempts to save the diapers and the chickens, but the tornado sucks in all but three chickens. Returning to her unfinished tamales, Tita recalls Nacha's belief that arguments affect cooking. To dispel the negative energy from her disagreement with Rosaura, she invokes happy memories of Pedro and serenades the beans, causing them to cook, as she had hoped. During dinner with John and his aunt, Tita is uneasy as she plans to end her engagement. Realizing something is wrong, John inquires and Tita discloses everything in Spanish to keep it from John's English-lip-reading aunt. John, despite his disappointment, affirms his love for Tita and willingness to marry her despite her past with Pedro, asking her to choose whom she wants to be with.
chapter 12
Tita and Chencha are occupied with wedding preparations, which initially appear to be for Tita and John. However, it's revealed that years have passed, and the celebration is for Esperanza and Alex, John Brown's son. All this time, Tita had been living with Rosaura, Pedro, and Esperanza, maintaining a silent agreement. This fragile peace shatters when Esperanza and Alex decide to marry: Rosaura stands by the tradition that shackled Tita, while Tita and Pedro support Esperanza's desires. Eventually, while still suffering from her odorous disorder, Rosaura dies after heated disagreements, leaving a poorly-attended funeral due to the lingering foul smell. Without Rosaura, Esperanza can marry Alex, to everyone's delight. Pedro and Tita can openly express their feelings, but attempt to suppress their desires. After Esperanza and Alex's wedding, Pedro and Tita, left alone on the ranch, finally give in to their desires without fear or restraint. Tita experiences a bliss so intense that she sees a radiant tunnel to the spirit world, as described by John Brown. She calms herself, deciding to live and relish in her newfound joy, while Pedro's heart stops. He dies, entering the spiritual tunnel in a vision of ecstasy. Tita yearns to join him. To revisit the blissful vision of death, Tita eats the candles that were lit when Pedro passed away. The vision returns, and she glimpses Pedro at the end of the tunnel. Tita decides to leave the physical world to join him. Their union in the spirit world creates sparks that ignite the ranch, causing spectacular flames that onlookers confuse for wedding fireworks. Returning from their honeymoon, Esperanza and Alex find their ranch reduced to ashes. They unearth a cookbook beneath layers of ash, which captures all of Tita's mastered recipes.
