Question

The "Prologue" to "Part 2" of the book is entitled "When I Was Dirt."  Paying very close attention to the words, imagery, and even the specific cultural references (look them up if you're unfamiliar) that Cisneros carefully includes in this brief but important page/paragraph (including the title - "When I Was Dirt"):

1. explore who is/might be the speaker(s) of this prose, what do they, s/he actually mean by the words on that page,
   
   and
   
   

2. consider how the sentiment of circularity, non-linear-ness (not a straight line), coming back again and again to repeat and repeat unavoidably (like, say . . . Destiny or history repeating itself) speak to other things invoked in the novel so far (history repeating itself, destiny - -  for example, we eventually learn in this section that Soledad is a pretty close parallel to the more recent example of Candalaria (poor, from "the Ranch," treated horribly by the lady of the house); is this also history repeating itself, a (non-linear, unavoidable)loop?
   
   and
   
   

3. think about the fact that the reader is indeed NOT sure who is speaking in this brief "prologue" to "Section 2" of the novel (Lala, Soledad, Candalaria, some earlier ancestor, all ancestors - who the heck is talking?) and what that (the mystery/anonymity) suggests. For example, is Lala's story Soledad's? Candalaria's Is it at once no one specific but also everyone - - all MesoAmerican indigenous women/Mexican/Chicanx women?? Is Lala unavoidably her ancestors? Does individual identity matter less than one's community identity - community being that thing that comes from ethnicity? (This is a "big idea" question!)