Welcome, my friends, to our Brooklyn College Core 10.01 class blog. Hopefully, this will be a place where we can all learn from one another. Be honest, be inquisitive, be challenging.
“As they started for her front door, he took her hand and tried to guide her, but found himself an obstacle in her path and let go. Once they were inside, she felt her way to her cot and sat down on the edge” (Danticat, 95).
This excerpt from the Night Talkers chapter involves Dany and his Aunt Estina Estème. Readers are not aware that Dany’s aunt is blind until their reunion. Perhaps this illustrates that Dany does not pay attention to detail. It is obvious that he loves his aunt, yet he has been away from Haiti for so long that he does not know how to help her anymore. Dany has good intentions, but his attempts to assist his aunt only slow her down. Similarly, Dany almost gets sick traveling to his aunt’s house because he wants to surprise her. When he arrives at Estina’s house, she is away because she has no idea that he is in Haiti, let alone on his way to visit her. The fact that Dany is a minor character in the novel demonstrates that he serves a small role. He is an “obstacle” in Estina’s path, as he might be an obstacle to other characters in the book. In this chapter, Dany tells his aunt that he has found the dew breaker in New York. This recognition proves that Dany may be a threat to Anne’s husband, as well as Ka and Anne herself in the future. Estina’s reaction to this news is surprising. She does not reveal any emotions upon hearing about the dew breaker. Maybe she has already accepted the past and moved on with her life. Dany, on the other hand, is still coming to terms with how his parents died and how his aunt came to be blind. His interest in the dew breaker’s life seems to be an “obstacle” in the way Estina has dealt with her loss. Dany has the sense to “let go” of his aunt when he observes that she would move better without his help. This may indicate that he is a relatively normal man who makes mistakes. Since Estina is an older woman, this might be a reference to death and mourning. When she walks into her house and sits on the “edge” of the cot, she might be on the border between life and death. Dany might deal with the loss of his aunt by accepting what has happened instead of struggling with it. It is possible that Estina herself may not fight the inevitable when it happens. Her life will end in peace and dignity. Danticat’s reference to Estina being on “the edge” could represent her blindness. Estina can see in her own way, being familiar with the village. Yet she cannot see in the conventional way we think of sight. She is a unique character who talks in her sleep. She forgets that she is blind when she is dreaming, and in dreams one is on the edge of reality and fantasy. Dany shares Estina’s night talking abilities. Perhaps he is on the edge with her, or he alone is an outsider because he is an “obstacle” to his aunt. Dany knows Creole, but he does not feel a sense of belonging when he returns to Haiti after living in New York. He remembers his experiences with his aunt as a child, yet he has made a new life for himself in another country. Dany is a good person with a traumatic past. Although he tries to “guide” his aunt, he realizes that she knows more about her homeland and life in general. The fact that Dany is able to “let go” illustrates that he does not act irresponsibly based on his emotions. He can assess a situation and decide upon the best course of action. Dany trusts his aunt’s judgment and holds her opinion in high regard. That is why he wants to know her thoughts on the situation with the dew breaker.
With everyone that you meet you automatically form an impression. There are some people that you might have known for all of your life, and then there are those that you have known for only a couple of days, nevertheless, despite the length of time that you’ve known someone you have an impression of them. Edwidge Danticat, author of The Dew Breaker, writes about the lives of many different Haitian immigrants, that through one way or another are connected. The lives are based on impressions and memories of the past, and it is through this that we see that Dew Breaker come alive. Danticat opens up her novel with the story of a young woman and her father away on a trip. Ka is an artist who depicts the struggles her father has gone through, or at least the ones she thought he went through, in sculpture. On Page 20, Danticat writes about the reason why the father threw the sculpture in the water. He says, “Ka, I don’t deserve a statue…not a whole one, at least.” This not only shows that he doesn’t feel himself worthy, but it also shows the reader that he doesn’t consider himself a man. He is missing a part of him, something that takes away from his manhood making him half of a man or at least not a whole one. It is because of his past, of which we learn later on, that he considers himself less than a man, not worthy of having a statue made of him, in honor of him. This shows us the internal conflict that he is facing at this point in his life and at this point in the novel, one which he cant deal with and one that he wishes he could just throw into the water and watch it sink away in his memory. He doesn’t want to remember what he has done, but it is almost impossible for him to forget about it because not only is it embedded in his memory, but he also has a physical defect that is attributed to that time in his past. Ka at this point in the novel still doesn’t know the truth about her father, she still thinks that he got that scar as a prisoner in jail and she still believes that her sculpture is a true depiction of her father. As you go on in the novel, Danticat writes, “You see, Ka, your father was the hunter, he was not the prey.” This is a very confusing point for Ka because she doesn’t know what to take of it. She knew that her father was in prison, but she didn’t know what his comment really meant when he said it. He was the hunter, the one who actually stalked the prey, rather then the one who was stalked. He wasn’t the prisoner like she though he was, rather he was the guard or the “macoute” that captured the people and killed them. Her impression of him, the man she admired and based all her sculptures on was a fraud at this point, someone she didn’t recognize anymore. He wasn’t the poor, hovered over man she created, but rather he was the one that made people cower in the corners of the prison and who made other peoples lives a living hell. He took mothers and fathers from their children, husbands from their wives and wives from their husbands, and he was no that man she looked up to as a child and now as a woman. Her impression was wrong about her father, and this leaves her in a state of confusion. She no longer knows whom she is, how she is going to identify herself, or what she will answer when someone asks her where she is from. It is a total state of confusion, and disappointment and this sets us up for the rest of the book. As we read on, everyone is connected to each other through Ka’s father, the Dew Breaker, and everyone has formed impressions about the next person according to what they know of them or think they know of them. This book takes us through many of these impressions and shows us how much these impressions impact relationships. Edwidge Danticat is an amazing author that has written a very interesting and amazing book. It is through reading this book that we truly see how small the world really is, and how many people are interconnected through one person. She shows us how wrong our impressions can be and how they can affect our relationships forever. It is important to understand that first impressions aren’t everything, and if we ever realize that someone isn’t who we thought they were, not to dwell on their past but figure out what will happen amongst the two of you in time to come.
One method that Edwidge Danticat uses to create separate identities throughout her novel is by simply using dualism. This method involves making multiple and different references to the same object or human in order to show two or more separate aspects of the subject. This method may be used to uncover certain specifics that may otherwise go unseen yet play a vital role in the subject’s development. One such example of this literary use may be found as a means of showing a separation of culture. The book of miracles commences with the first mentioning of any mother’s name: Anne. Up to this point in the novel the overall motherly figure has been referred to as Manman (assumingly the Creole word for mother.) While the use of her name can simply be seen as a form of identification, it is interesting that its replacement word has been used so often before. This may be an indication of the mother’s feeling toward her current surroundings. The previous uses of the word have been used in reference to personal conversations, whether between Ka and her Manman or Nadine and hers, or even as a point of specifically Haitian culture. The first mentioning of her name, however, is a mentioning in a much more Americana social sense, that being her car ride to church on the Christmas Eve; an event where it was made clear that she and her family did not see eye to eye. In this situation her surrounding shifts from that of her Haitian background, which is possibly being shown by the author throughout her conversations with her family, to one in which her community has taken priority, as she is moving away from her family and towards the church. Once experiencing that environmental change, the language used to accompany this is shifts accordingly. Additionally, to show the significance of this change, within that very car ride to church, the author reverts back to the original use of terminology when her daughter says, “Okay, whatever, Manman, please go on with your story” (Danticat 70). Once there is a return to the personal family setting the linguistics shift back to the way it was earlier in the novel. This movement back may once again be symbolized by the change in language from her American reference to her Haitian identity. Danticat seems to use many double sided terminologies in her book and this seems to be no exception. By specifically referring to the same thing in two separate ways, she is creating a distinction that must be answered, and this answer may very well be seen in the way each word is used. These distinctions may be imperative in the realization of how the author is specifically using detail to describe attributes or any other character traits of any subject within the story.
3 comments:
CC 10.01 Raquel Arnao
Close reading for The Dew Breaker
“As they started for her front door, he took her hand and tried to guide her, but found himself an obstacle in her path and let go. Once they were inside, she felt her way to her cot and sat down on the edge” (Danticat, 95).
This excerpt from the Night Talkers chapter involves Dany and his Aunt Estina Estème. Readers are not aware that Dany’s aunt is blind until their reunion. Perhaps this illustrates that Dany does not pay attention to detail. It is obvious that he loves his aunt, yet he has been away from Haiti for so long that he does not know how to help her anymore. Dany has good intentions, but his attempts to assist his aunt only slow her down. Similarly, Dany almost gets sick traveling to his aunt’s house because he wants to surprise her. When he arrives at Estina’s house, she is away because she has no idea that he is in Haiti, let alone on his way to visit her.
The fact that Dany is a minor character in the novel demonstrates that he serves a small role. He is an “obstacle” in Estina’s path, as he might be an obstacle to other characters in the book. In this chapter, Dany tells his aunt that he has found the dew breaker in New York. This recognition proves that Dany may be a threat to Anne’s husband, as well as Ka and Anne herself in the future. Estina’s reaction to this news is surprising. She does not reveal any emotions upon hearing about the dew breaker. Maybe she has already accepted the past and moved on with her life. Dany, on the other hand, is still coming to terms with how his parents died and how his aunt came to be blind. His interest in the dew breaker’s life seems to be an “obstacle” in the way Estina has dealt with her loss.
Dany has the sense to “let go” of his aunt when he observes that she would move better without his help. This may indicate that he is a relatively normal man who makes mistakes. Since Estina is an older woman, this might be a reference to death and mourning. When she walks into her house and sits on the “edge” of the cot, she might be on the border between life and death. Dany might deal with the loss of his aunt by accepting what has happened instead of struggling with it. It is possible that Estina herself may not fight the inevitable when it happens. Her life will end in peace and dignity.
Danticat’s reference to Estina being on “the edge” could represent her blindness. Estina can see in her own way, being familiar with the village. Yet she cannot see in the conventional way we think of sight. She is a unique character who talks in her sleep. She forgets that she is blind when she is dreaming, and in dreams one is on the edge of reality and fantasy.
Dany shares Estina’s night talking abilities. Perhaps he is on the edge with her, or he alone is an outsider because he is an “obstacle” to his aunt. Dany knows Creole, but he does not feel a sense of belonging when he returns to Haiti after living in New York. He remembers his experiences with his aunt as a child, yet he has made a new life for himself in another country.
Dany is a good person with a traumatic past. Although he tries to “guide” his aunt, he realizes that she knows more about her homeland and life in general. The fact that Dany is able to “let go” illustrates that he does not act irresponsibly based on his emotions. He can assess a situation and decide upon the best course of action. Dany trusts his aunt’s judgment and holds her opinion in high regard. That is why he wants to know her thoughts on the situation with the dew breaker.
With everyone that you meet you automatically form an impression. There are some people that you might have known for all of your life, and then there are those that you have known for only a couple of days, nevertheless, despite the length of time that you’ve known someone you have an impression of them. Edwidge Danticat, author of The Dew Breaker, writes about the lives of many different Haitian immigrants, that through one way or another are connected. The lives are based on impressions and memories of the past, and it is through this that we see that Dew Breaker come alive.
Danticat opens up her novel with the story of a young woman and her father away on a trip. Ka is an artist who depicts the struggles her father has gone through, or at least the ones she thought he went through, in sculpture. On Page 20, Danticat writes about the reason why the father threw the sculpture in the water. He says, “Ka, I don’t deserve a statue…not a whole one, at least.” This not only shows that he doesn’t feel himself worthy, but it also shows the reader that he doesn’t consider himself a man. He is missing a part of him, something that takes away from his manhood making him half of a man or at least not a whole one. It is because of his past, of which we learn later on, that he considers himself less than a man, not worthy of having a statue made of him, in honor of him. This shows us the internal conflict that he is facing at this point in his life and at this point in the novel, one which he cant deal with and one that he wishes he could just throw into the water and watch it sink away in his memory. He doesn’t want to remember what he has done, but it is almost impossible for him to forget about it because not only is it embedded in his memory, but he also has a physical defect that is attributed to that time in his past. Ka at this point in the novel still doesn’t know the truth about her father, she still thinks that he got that scar as a prisoner in jail and she still believes that her sculpture is a true depiction of her father.
As you go on in the novel, Danticat writes, “You see, Ka, your father was the hunter, he was not the prey.” This is a very confusing point for Ka because she doesn’t know what to take of it. She knew that her father was in prison, but she didn’t know what his comment really meant when he said it. He was the hunter, the one who actually stalked the prey, rather then the one who was stalked. He wasn’t the prisoner like she though he was, rather he was the guard or the “macoute” that captured the people and killed them. Her impression of him, the man she admired and based all her sculptures on was a fraud at this point, someone she didn’t recognize anymore. He wasn’t the poor, hovered over man she created, but rather he was the one that made people cower in the corners of the prison and who made other peoples lives a living hell. He took mothers and fathers from their children, husbands from their wives and wives from their husbands, and he was no that man she looked up to as a child and now as a woman. Her impression was wrong about her father, and this leaves her in a state of confusion. She no longer knows whom she is, how she is going to identify herself, or what she will answer when someone asks her where she is from. It is a total state of confusion, and disappointment and this sets us up for the rest of the book. As we read on, everyone is connected to each other through Ka’s father, the Dew Breaker, and everyone has formed impressions about the next person according to what they know of them or think they know of them. This book takes us through many of these impressions and shows us how much these impressions impact relationships.
Edwidge Danticat is an amazing author that has written a very interesting and amazing book. It is through reading this book that we truly see how small the world really is, and how many people are interconnected through one person. She shows us how wrong our impressions can be and how they can affect our relationships forever. It is important to understand that first impressions aren’t everything, and if we ever realize that someone isn’t who we thought they were, not to dwell on their past but figure out what will happen amongst the two of you in time to come.
Marc Gamss
CC 10.01
Professor Hopes
Close Reading: The Dew Breaker
One method that Edwidge Danticat uses to create separate identities throughout her novel is by simply using dualism. This method involves making multiple and different references to the same object or human in order to show two or more separate aspects of the subject. This method may be used to uncover certain specifics that may otherwise go unseen yet play a vital role in the subject’s development. One such example of this literary use may be found as a means of showing a separation of culture.
The book of miracles commences with the first mentioning of any mother’s name: Anne. Up to this point in the novel the overall motherly figure has been referred to as Manman (assumingly the Creole word for mother.) While the use of her name can simply be seen as a form of identification, it is interesting that its replacement word has been used so often before. This may be an indication of the mother’s feeling toward her current surroundings.
The previous uses of the word have been used in reference to personal conversations, whether between Ka and her Manman or Nadine and hers, or even as a point of specifically Haitian culture. The first mentioning of her name, however, is a mentioning in a much more Americana social sense, that being her car ride to church on the Christmas Eve; an event where it was made clear that she and her family did not see eye to eye. In this situation her surrounding shifts from that of her Haitian background, which is possibly being shown by the author throughout her conversations with her family, to one in which her community has taken priority, as she is moving away from her family and towards the church. Once experiencing that environmental change, the language used to accompany this is shifts accordingly.
Additionally, to show the significance of this change, within that very car ride to church, the author reverts back to the original use of terminology when her daughter says, “Okay, whatever, Manman, please go on with your story” (Danticat 70). Once there is a return to the personal family setting the linguistics shift back to the way it was earlier in the novel. This movement back may once again be symbolized by the change in language from her American reference to her Haitian identity.
Danticat seems to use many double sided terminologies in her book and this seems to be no exception. By specifically referring to the same thing in two separate ways, she is creating a distinction that must be answered, and this answer may very well be seen in the way each word is used. These distinctions may be imperative in the realization of how the author is specifically using detail to describe attributes or any other character traits of any subject within the story.
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