Thought out a persons ever changing life, the one thing that is always consistent is their name. However, sometimes a persons identity will change so much that their own name seems foreign when speaking it out loud. This creates the need for a new name to match a new identity. Kingsolvers The Bean Trees and Lena Coakley’s Mirror Image both apply characterization, conflict, and symbolism to show how identity changes with names and labels. To began with, Symbolism is literary element used often in The Bean Trees and Mirror Image. In Kingsolvers book, symbolism is used in the very title The Bean Trees. Turtle’s first word is bean which she gets from seeing a wisteria plant that has gone into seed form and produced bean like pods. Later the author emphasizes the symbolism by having Turtle read about how the plant thrives in bad conditions. Kingsolver relates this to various characters in the book, particularly Taylor, Turtle’s adopted mother. In addition to that, the birds in the throughout the story are also a nature based form of symbolism used widely in the book. As Taylor’s life changes so do the sounds the birds make; each of these bird sounds representing different emotions like comfort when the mother quail and her chicks are walking in …show more content…
In The Bean Tree’s, Taylor’s character grows and changes quite frequently throughout the book. When Taylor goes off on her own she becomes even more worldly and cultured. Not that she was ever naive, but experiencing and hearing things like Estevan and his wife's story then Turtle’s prowler encounter opens her up to the real corruption in the world which gives her character a strong desire to make the world better and help those who are mistreated. She also becomes more independent and strong willed from these experiences which is apparent from her name changing decisions. For, it is a very private decision and yours alone to
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Show MoreTaylor takes the child in under her wing, and gives her the name Turtle because of how she clings to things like a mud turtle. While giving her a bath in a hotel Taylor rents for the night, she
(134) This shows Taylor would give up her only freetime just to know that Turtle is in safe hands. As her love and affection grows towards Turtle, Taylor would do anything to keep Turtle safe and starts becoming more organized with motherly schedules. Starting out as a confused young lady, Taylor Greer matures into a loving individual that is not scared to take risks. Throughout the book, The Bean Trees, written by Barbra Kingsolver, readers get to see Taylor grow up through her eyes and narration.
In the novel, The Bean Trees, by Barbara Kingsolver, symbolic actions taken by the characters illustrates how anyone could be a person’s family through emotional support through hardships and life even if they are not related. Taylor ends up with Turtle and they form a family together, and when they move in with Lou Ann and her son, their family grows even bigger and stronger together. Even though Taylor and Lou Ann are no where near related, they still think of each other as family. Lou Ann talks about how Taylor and Turtle is her family and said, “I meant you all. Mainly I guess because we’ve been through hell and high water together” (309).
Taylor was now finding out about how the life of her friends was in danger she knew that this could harm them but she also realized that she couldn’t change much because she was all by herself, this motivated her to do as much as she could for those she
In my own personal opinion, motherhood does not sound like an easy thing. I mean, think about it, all the responsibilities and precautions you have to take when it comes to taking care of a child. In The Bean Trees, Taylor takes on the role of a mother when she is given a child by a strange woman at a bar in Oklahoma. Even though this child was not legally hers, Taylor decided to care for Turtle.
Taylor is making closer and closer connections with the people around her as she tries to make Turtle open up to her once again after she was molested. Taylor was trying so hard to make everything perfect for her, but in reality “[a]ll you can promise is that you’ll take care of [her] the best you can...and just hope for the best” (226). All this time Taylor has tried to show Turtle that she can protect her from the world. Throughout the traumatic experiences they both went through, this eventually brought Taylor and Turtle closer than ever before. It got to the point where she would do anything for her, even when it came to the government's attention that “[she] had no legal claim to Turtle” (233).
In The Bean Trees by Barbara Kingsolver, Missy, The novel’s main character changes. Said changes are what defines Missy as a whole. These changes occur as a result of Obstacles she comes across and conquers. Such obstacles drive on these changes through either fear or just a lack of will, suppressing her mind and then being confronted with a need for change The reader can see Missy’s first transition when she has a change of heart in the people of Pittman County.
The first instance of birds symbolizing Turtle maturing is when Lou Ann, Taylor and their friends are sitting in Lou Ann’s living room and Turtle is having trouble eating a piece of pineapple. They all laughed and cheered her on but she got startled and cried. Mr. Parsons takes a spoon and feeds a piece to her. The narrator explains, “ She looked like a newborn
Since this occurrence, her relationships grow stronger between her and Turtle. She pledges to fight for Turtle and does an extra step for keeping her. Ever since Taylor was given Turtle , her responsibility over another human being and dedication to Turtle’s health , show’s that even though she is not the natural mother , she still cares and loves this
The Bean Trees by Barbara Kingsolver uses birds to represent several of the main characters in the novel. Taylor saw in the desert birds nesting in a cactus which shows the connection between several characters in the novel. Turtle represents the birds in the nest because she is depending on taylor just like the birds depend on the cactus for shelter. Also it shows how how turtle in not where she is meant to be because birds usually nest on trees.
The identity a person holds is one of the most important aspects of their lives. Identity is what distinguishes people from others, although it leaves a negative stereotype upon people. In the short story Identities by W.D Valgardson, a middle-aged wealthy man finds himself lost in a rough neighborhood while attempting to look for something new. The author employs many elements in the story, some of the more important ones being stereotype and foreshadow. For many people, their personal identity is stereotyped by society.
Iranian writer, Firoozeh Dumas, in her narrative essay, “The F Word,”illustrates the challenges of having a different name in America. Dumas’ purpose is to represent the importance of accepting one’s identity and other’s. Having a different name brought her a great challenge to fit in with her peers. Through the story, she learned how to accept her own name and how should others accept people’s differences. She portrays this idea in a humorous way.
Symbolism is one of the literary device used in The Yellow Wallpaper. Symbolism is the use of symbols, in this case objects, to represent ideas or qualities, by giving them symbolic meaning that is different in a literal sense. Some of the symbols used are the nursery, the wallpaper, the yellow color and the greenhouses. Firstly, the nursery symbolizes the way her husband John treats her like a child
Symbolism, the first literary element used in this story. There are many different examples of symbolism use in this story. However the most important are the symbolism of the chestnut tree, cigarettes and the cranes. The chestnut tree was used as a memory. A memory of Friendship.
Symbolism in general is the building blocks to all sources of literature and can shape a piece of writing in many ways. Symbols in general can portray what something or someone represents, giving a deeper and metaphorical meaning to a symbol. Symbolism is often used within poetry, literature, music, or even art. This is how an author conveys a different meaning to the audience. For example artists may use the color “red” not only because of the color theory, but to convey love, passion, and maybe even health.