Aminata

A Monument to the Dead Throughout Native Guard by Natasha Trethewey there are themes of death, grief and change. These themes are carried through the collection and are present within the entire collection. These set up the mood that this collection is ultimately about change but change for the reader as well as what happens in the collection. In “Monument” we can see all these changes through a paraphrase of the poem and the sense of elongated time from the from the form and imagery of the poem.

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!

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).

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

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 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. Alice Walker’s

(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).

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.

Being alone is hard. Being alone during one of the most tragic times in history is unimaginable. Everybody needed someone to help each other get by. In the novels Milkweed by Jerry Spinelli and North of Danger by Dale Fife, the theme “You can’t always prepare yourself for what lies ahead” is shown by identity, betrayal, and survival. The authors express the theme by making the narrators young, naive kids who are on their own in cold, European countries during WWII.

Their stories depict how our education systems track those who are going to be placed into the cycle of the criminal justice system. Interviewees illustrate how our criminal justice system is locking up “people we are mad at” instead of the “people we are afraid of.” Demetra had 11 charges by the age of 14, diagnosed with anxiety, placed in juvenile jail 3 times, and placed into juvenile housing after assaulting her aunt (guardian). She stated multiple times throughout the documentary, that being incarcerated never taught her a life lesson, and only made her angry. She had barely entered high school, and already had been a placed into the cycle of incarceration.

I’m six years old, cold, and impatiently waiting to be given a warm drink. My aunt comes over to me and gives me a drink that I’ve never smelled so I ask her what it is and she informs me that it’s something called ponche. I hesitantly drink a sip from this drink called ponche and boy is it good! Now I’m 12 years old and trying to get away from my mom so I can gossip with my friends when we are told to be quiet. We continue on our way singing and asking for posada, I’m starting to feel cold.