Throughout the novel, Like Water for Chocolate, by Laura Esquivel, Tita, the struggling protagonist engages in an emotional battle with herself. Since the story is set in early 20th century Mexico, the concepts of unchallenged family obligations and matriarchal rule were socially accepted values. Especially for a daughter, disagreeing with her mother's word was considered outrageous. As a result, on the one hand Tita feels bound to the traditionally accepted younger daughter's role of remaining unmarried to care for her mother, while on the other hand she harbors a reciprocated passion for her older sister's husband, Pedro. This prominent theme of filial duty over sexual desire is accentuated throughout the nighttime encounter scene in chapter 5, making this passage a crucial moment in the novel. Furthermore, the passage is representative of the animalistic tendencies of Tita, Pedro, and Mama Elena. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay First, the setting and atmosphere created by Esquivel lays the foundation for the passage, creating an atmosphere of moral tension and forbidden desire. As the night envelops everything in darkness, Tita finds that her vision is impaired both literally and figuratively, which creates confusion and tension. Added to this is the closeness of Pedro and mother Elena. While the former's closeness heightens Tita's sexual awareness, the latter's presence functions to repress such feelings. The soundscape created by Esquivel serves to complement the tension, as the “violent beating” (line 17) of Pedro's heart mixes with the soft sound of Tita's footsteps. An aura of suspense is created, in which neither of the two characters knows whether to risk embracing the other in the middle of the night, while both Rosaura and mother Elena sleep a few steps away. The atmosphere remains static for much of the song, reaching its peak of tension in Tita and Pedro's most intimate moment, when mother Elena wakes up and asks who is awake and around. In this anticlimactic moment, the mood quickly and rather comically, given Tita's dual physical and emotional impulses, a pressing need to urinate and her desire for Pedro, changes to one of repressed desire and feigned normality, as neither Tita nor Pedro are willing to do so. risk being discovered by Mama Elena. The structure and stylistic conventions used by Esquivel also serve to reflect the significance of this passage as a turning point. The dual narration, in which the third-person point of view constantly switches between Pedro and Tita, gives an anxious atmosphere to the passage. This alternation, combined with the continuous use of indefinite articles and vivid, sensual diction, highlights Tita's importance to Pedro. Furthermore, it promotes the novel's recurring themes, such as food and its sexual symbolism, through “jasmine and the smell of cooking” (line 15), given off by Tita, who kidnaps Pedro. This theme is further alluded to when Pedro "eats a slice of watermelon and thinks of Tita" (line 10) as, when the instances of food and love are combined, the conceit of food as an erotic symbol becomes evident. Furthermore, the antithetical theme of filial obligations versus raw love is conveyed through the use of adjectives such as "shy" (line 24) and "fearful" (line 26), indicating the emotional confusion that Tita feels, as she is caught between loving Pedro, and remaining obedient to his mother. When Tita and Pedro finally meet in the darkness, hearing and smell, which are already animal senses, give way to the tactile as Tita is surprised to "feel someone pulling her" (line 20) towards them. Esquivelhe writes that the night is so dark that not even a “glimmer of light” remains (line 7), signifying a lack of vision, which subsequently serves to sharpen their alternative senses, giving them both a more alert and animalistic aura .characters. Powerful and evocative sexual imagery is then applied as Pedro and Tita explore each other, Tita “timidly touches” (line 24) Pedro, while he “invites her to explore his body” (line 24). This moment in which erotic tactile images are used is their most accentuated example of connection. The scene's literary devices help portray Tita and Pedro's paradoxical attraction and affliction. Pedro's line of thought exemplifies the characters' conflicting feelings: as he “couldn't sleep thinking of her there, a few steps away from him… and from mother Elena too, of course” (line 12). The use of the ellipsis here suggests better than words the ever-persistent presence of Mama Elena, both real and subconscious. Every time Pedro lets his thoughts wander, he somehow manages to meet mother Elena. Later, when he realizes that this is an appropriate, yet inconvenient, time to meet Tita, he approaches her "quiet as a cat" (line 16). The simile reinforces Pedro's animal personality as he heads towards Tita, his desired mate, which parallels their finding their way to each other using hearing and smell. Helen then lets out a “shout” (line 26) out of the night, in this case a warning howl, another example of animalistic tendencies in the passage. This also applies to the obstacles they encounter. No matter how close they get to each other, the alpha female of the family group, mother Elena, always manages to divide the two and enforce her hierarchical order at home, thus reiterating the contrasting themes of nature versus society and characterizing the relationship between two lovers throughout the novel. The passage also serves as a crucial moment in character and plot development because it is the first time that Tita and Pedro physically embrace each other, despite the close proximity of both Rosaura and mother Elena. It is at this point that mother Elena, despite having no concrete evidence of their infidelity, bases her assessment of the situation entirely on instinct, another animalistic trait. Significantly, he realizes that as long as Tita and Pedro are close, it will be useless to try to keep them apart. Therefore, she accelerates Rosaura and Pedro's departure for Texas, seeing it as the only way to maintain traditional, socially acceptable behavior in her home. This is also the only scene in which Tita and Pedro manage to embrace each other, without guilt and without any concern other than for each other, except for the conclusion and resolution of the novel. It is a time when their love is pure and whole, even if strained, and they can, for a short time, express themselves fully. This provides a contrast to Pedro's return later to find Tita bitter over his departure and in Doctor Brown's arms. The meeting serves as a confirmation of mutual love, through which Tita and Pedro authenticate their feelings for each other. This is more significant than it may seem at first glance since, previously, Tita was unsure of Pedro's motives for marrying her sister and his indecision about how to behave towards her. Furthermore, the conflict between filial commitment and erotic/romantic love is summarized in this scene. Tita and Pedro find themselves attracted to each other but estranged at the same time. Even when they overcome their fears of social conformity and maternal oppression, they find Mama Elena, as always, the overbearing force that ensures that their love cannot be openly expressed or consummated. In line with the general course of1993