"Do not go where the path may lead, go instead where there is no path and leave a trail." This quotation, by Ralph Waldo Emerson, perfectly describes two opposing forces, conformity and rebellion, and the struggles that one faces between them every day. According to Webster's Dictionary, conformity is defined as an "action or behaviour in correspondence with socially accepted standards, conventions, rules, or laws". In the novels Like Water for Chocolate by Laura Esquivel and The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie by Muriel Spark, tyrannical dictators attempt to control the lives of people around them, forcing them to conform to the predetermined roles that are set out for them within their society. As a result of this pressure to conform, their true identities are being oppressed, which will ultimately lead to their rebellion. In both Like Water for Chocolate and The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie, both conformity and rebellion are illustrated in the characters" quests to find their true selves.
In Like Water for Chocolate and The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie, a tyrannical dictator is present who attempts to control and oppress the people who are inferior to them. In Like Water for Chocolate, Mama Elena tries to control her three daughters, Rosaura, Gertrudis, and Tita. Mama Elena is a very overbearing character, and she attempts to keep Tita captive by trying to keep their family tradition alive. Mama Elena thinks that the youngest daughter should take care of their mother until the day she dies, a tradition which has been in their family for many generations. "You don't have an opinion, and that's all I want to hear about it. For generations, not a single person in my family has ever questioned this tradition, and no daughter of mine is going to be the one to start." (Esquivel, 11). She attempts to force Tita to conform to the predetermined role that has been set out for her, which is to take care of Mama Elena until her death.
