Aminata

The building of their home across the grave of the narrator’s mother is a “reminder of what I haven’t done” (21-22). There is no clear answer of what the narrator hasn’t done. Maybe she’s being reminded of how she needs to move on since everything else in the world has, or that she just has many regrets that she never cleared

After she assists the FBI in this task, her community shuns her since she ‘turned’ her back against the church. Her mother does not understand this since shunning is supposed to help people find their way back to the church and she did not stray away to begin with. She then runs away because she cannot stand watching her parents struggle with her shunning. Even though this is an exaggerated scene, the interesting part is that when Leanne is going through baptism, she states, “The others think that we are in prison, but this is where I am

Anna May lost her son, Simon, when he drowned on a fishing trip with her ex-husband, Tony. Every night since, she welcomed dreams that were once nightmares of her son’s death. Her dreams are the crippling hold of the past that refuses to let go, reminding her of her loss every day. During Anna May’s trip away from home, she begins to develop guilt as she thought about all she could have done to prevent Simon’s death, which becomes evident when she states, “she should have placated Tony; she should have lived alone; she should have pretended to be straight she should have never became an alcoholic; she should have never loved; she should have never been born. Let go!

Leaving her friends behind, she once again felt depressed due to isolation of her friends and family. The female speaker then states, “My lord commanded me to live with him here;/ I had few loved ones or loyal friends/ in this country , which causes me great grief”(15-17). These lines prove that no matter what the scenario is, the man's wife has to do what pleases him even if it costs her leaving her loved ones at her home country. In the “Wife's Lament”, the feeling of detachment and depression by the female speaker, describes the lack of control over her situation. For instance, the speaker announces “...I walk alone in the light of dawn/ under the oak-tree and through this earth-cave,/ where I must sit the summer-long day;/ there I can weep for all my exiles,/ my many troubles; and so I may never/ escape from the cares of my sorrow mind,...”(35-40).

When she came back from church, “she [pointed] her finger” at Constancia because she felt like Connie did not respect her feelings (Ortiz, 16). She was disappointed and angry at the fact that Connie didn’t help her out at church. This shows that the lack of a close family relationship will cause problems between family members. When you respect and value others, they will feel fortunate to have as their

I have a younger sister named Alasie. She is one year old. My grandma told me that Qalupalik will come take me and my sister away if we disobey them and wander too close to the shore of the sea. Qalupalik are humanoid with long wet hair, green skin, and long fingernails. They wear a amautit , in which they carry away babies and children.

She is denied to go to school, because according to her stepfather, she is ‘too dumb to keep going to school’ (CP 9). She is repeatedly raped by him and becomes pregnant twice, but the babies are taken away from her. Celie becomes a mother of two children born of incestuous union but they are sold by Alphonso for monetary benefit. Celie’s life is the representation of the female slaves whose children were forcefully taken away by the slave masters who enjoyed the financial gain by selling children. Celie mingles her physical suffering with the psychological torture through many letters that she writes to God and her sister.

(17-18). Nomi is distinctly hurt that her family has fallen apart. She says how close they were to staying together, yet this does not happen. She has not given up hope since she still believes that one day they will all meet again (91). By the end of the novel, her father Ray also ends up running away leaving his new suit, his dipping bird, his childhood bible and Nomi.

Her hatred towards Christianity allows to keep herself in check but in “Flesh and Blood” when she goes to see Sister Leopolda on her deathbed her trauma is manifested when she tries to prove her strength at whatever cost. “I would get that spoon,” shows how desperate Marie was to reclaim that power that Sister Leopolda had taken away from her when she was a child (Erdrich). But the most disheartening part of this story is that even on her deathbed Marie was still not able to reclaim her power. This scene serves as a metaphor to represent how native Americans are never able to get their strength back from the white

The family, then waits for her soul to pass on and the woman is waiting for her “King” (line 7). The king that Emily is showing the readers here is some sort of God, that some religions believe in, just like how this lady did. As the woman slowly passes on her “windows” (or her eyes) can no longer see (line 16). This goes way deeper into meaning than her just not being able to see. It actually meant that the woman did not see the “King” or anything that she hoped she would have seen when she passed.