Anna Tikhomirova
Courtney P2
2/13/2018
10 on 1
“It’s a tree, Lu. A chokecherry tree. See, here’s the trunk - it’s red and split wide open, full of sap, and this here’s the parting for the branches.You got a mighty lot of branches. Leaves, too, look like, and dern if these ain’t blossoms. Tiny little cherry blossoms just as white. Your back got a whole tree on it. In bloom. What God have in mind, I wonder.” (Page 79)
Over the course of reading the novel Beloved, I came across a fascinating tendency of the utilization of trees to serve as a representation of beauty, hope, and comfort. I found it interesting the author described something that would be associated with pain and violence, and transformed it into a way that was beautiful.
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Amy had just came across Sethe in the woods and could see that she was in pain. That’s when she created a euphemism once Sethe revealed her scars on her back which we learn it serves as a reminder of the painful memory of the boys robbing her of her breast milk and torchouring her. The scars remain on Sethe’s back, similar to the painful memories she experienced. This part, however, is part of a larger discussion of when Beloved asks Denver, “tell me how Sethe made you in the boat” (Chapter 2). The girl Amy who helped deliver Sethe’s baby happened to be the part of the story that she adored the most.
The scars on Sethe’s back show up numerous times in the text, most of the time portrayed as “beautiful”, in the shape of a blossom tree. Seeing the scars as beautiful and turning a painful memory into something hopeful, Amy creates an overall image of trees representative of healing, comfort, and hope as she describes the scars to help Sethe relax and relieve the pain. The scars themselves are a sign of Sethe’s strength since her
She felt ashamed for others to see her scars even though all the people of her village wore the same blemishes. The idea that disfigurements were shame had been engrained in her from the time of her birth. Even when living in a village with people wore the same blemishes, her scars made her ashamed. Fortunately, Stephen and Matsu were able to show her the beauty they saw in
In contrast with the tree; the walls family were always beaten down due to poverty, spun in different directions by the wind; as in the millions of miles they move about through the country but they also have strong roots as well. Rose; Jeanette’s mother shows a deep interest and fascination over the tree. She loves to study and make portraits about it. In Rose’s perspective the tree is her view about her family; deep underneath their dysfunctional roots of trial and hardships they face; there is a strong bond of love and compassion that they have together as a
The theme that the author is portraying, is that sometimes in life it's hard to do things that seem impossible, but we as humans can do anything if we put our minds to it. The figurative language that was present within the book was incredible. As a result, my options were limited. The first figurative language that symbolizes the importance of a forest was described, “This forest eats itself and lives forever” (5). This particular quote gave non living things, humans characteristics.
But after the rape, Melinda is not happy with anything in her life and she is always stressed out. This is represented when she states, “But when I try to carve it, it looks like a dead tree, toothpicks, a child’s drawing. I can’t bring it to life. I’d love to give it up” (78). Melinda has changed dramatically, and this is represented by the tree she sees versus the tree she tries to make.
This passage from “A white Heron”, by Sarah Orne Jewett, details a short yet epic journey of a young girl, and it is done in an entertaining way. Jewett immediately familiarizes us with our protagonist, Sylvia, in the first paragraph, and our antagonist: the tree. However, this is a bit more creative, as the tree stands not only as an opponent, but as a surmountable object that can strengthen and inspire Sylvia as she climbs it. This “old pine” is described as massive, to the point where it, “towered above them all and made a landmark for sea and shore miles and miles away.” (Line 8).
Take a look at an apple tree, the tree lives in the perfect world, growing in a stable environment, compared to the struggling world that the Joshua tree undergoes. In the book “The Glass Castle” written by Jeannette Walls, the following quote took my interest and sparked great wisdom. “Mom frowned at me. “You’d be destroying what makes it special,” she said. “It’s the Joshua tree’s struggle that gives it its beauty.
He turned, expecting Sarah, But Sarah could not be seen. It was the scar upon his own face That caused such words so mean.” In the middle of the story when the main character
In paragraph four, when the children encounter the tree, Mary “trudged solidly forward, hardly glancing at it”. Her reaction to the tree proves that she does not need or seek the comfort the tree may provide. Alternately, the details of Karl’s reaction, how “his cheeks went pink, he stretched out his arms like a sleepwalker” and “floated to the tree”, prove that he needs the comfort the tree provided. The environment’s impact on the children causes them to react in this way. Erdrich effectively uses selection of detail to reveal these reactions.
Many people have conflicting ideas regarding the meaning of any given symbol. In The Scarlet Letter, by Nathaniel Hawthorne, the symbolism of the forest varies just as the symbols of the modern world. The forest, at first, represents the essence of evil and mystery, which transitions to a sort of friend for the young girl, Pearl, and finally, to a fortress of solitude for those who are supposedly living in sin or shame. In the beginning of The Scarlet Letter, the forest symbolizes evil and mystery.
As young kids or adults, we sometimes experience events that scar us, but I don 't know if we truly know the meaning of “scar.” In the novel, Like Water for Chocolate, by Laura Esquirel, there 's a girl named Tita. Tita is a sixteen year old young woman who lives in Mexico along with her family; Mama Elena, and her three sisters, Gertrudis, Chencha, and Rosaura. Throughout the novel it portrays drama, romance, and tradition. Because of this, many characters changed by the end of the novel.
Art is way of expression. People can use actions and art or express themselves in ways other than speaking. In the book Speak, by Laurie Halse Anderson, symbolism holds a big significance. The trees mentioned throughout the book symbolize Melinda’s changing “seasons” (her “growing” as a person). People, like trees, go through phases, they freeze in the winter, becoming nothing but lonely limbs without leaves covered with white slush.
John Muir states “It seems wonderful that so frail and lovely a plant has such power over human hearts” (Muir). These words create a spiritual mood and make me feel the power of nature. The words “rejoicing”, “glorious” and “cried for joy” add to the mood of the story because they really create the feeling of having joyous revelation when someone is in harmony with nature. Wordsworth, on the other hand, states that “A poet could not but be gay, /In such a jocund company” (Ln 15-16).
Near the end of the novel she observes, “In the years she had been tying scraps to the branches, the tree had died and the fruit turned bitter. The other apple trees were hale and healthy, but this one, the tree of her remembrances, were as black and twisted as the bombed-out town behind it.” (Hannah 368) The apple tree represents the outcomes of war. It portrays the author’s perspective that lives wither and lose life due to such violence.
The tree image indicates that she has been wiped so much that the scar looks like a tree with its crowded branches. “But that’s what she said it looked like. A chokecherry tree.
Dana Gioia’s poem, “Planting a Sequoia” is grievous yet beautiful, sombre story of a man planting a sequoia tree in the commemoration of his perished son. Sequoia trees have always been a symbol of wellness and safety due to their natural ability to withstand decay, the sturdy tree shows its significance to the speaker throughout the poem as a way to encapsulate and continue the short life of his infant. Gioia utilizes the elements of imagery and diction to portray an elegiac tone for the tragic death, yet also a sense of hope for the future of the tree. The poet also uses the theme of life through the unification of man and nature to show the speaker 's emotional state and eventual hopes for the newly planted tree. Lastly, the tree itself becomes a symbol for the deceased son as planting the Sequoia is a way to cope with the loss, showing the juxtaposition between life and death.