All four stories notes


Children of the Sea

Plot: two narrators who don't know each other are in love. The girl is angry at the fact that her father does not let her keep writing letters to her lover. However, she does not know that her father gave up all his properties to save her daughter from the danger of Macoutes (A military force created by Papa Doc). The female narrators heard the news that their neighbor was killed by the Macoutes. The male narrator tries to escape Haiti by using a boat. In his boat, there is also a pregnant woman who was raped by Macoutes. When her baby died, she suicides too. A few days later when the female narrator sees a black butterfly, it foreshadows that the male narrator is dead.

Characters: the Male narrator
                   Female narrator
                   Female narrator's father
                   Celianne (the pregnant woman)

Personal response:  this is a story that presents the sense of hopelessness when Haitian people are facing Macoute and the pressure from the government. Also, this small story shows how insignificant the relationship between people is. For instance, when the female narrator sees the black butterfly, there is nothing she can do. I can sense the theme of despair when I am reading the part when the pregnant woman decides to kill herself after the double damage - being raped and the death of her baby.



Nineteen Thirty-Seven

plot: Josephine's mother is imprisoned because she was blamed to be a witch (she was taking care of a child who died accidentally). Josephine goes to see her mother frequently and brings her food. Her mother is treated unequally since people think she will put a curse on them. When Josephine sees the Maddona made by mother is 'crying', she realizes that her mother is dead...

Main characters: Josephine
                            Mother
                           Jacqueline

Response: this story is in a depressing tone that shows the numb society that believes in the existence of witches. Also, there are lots of symbolism used throughout this story. For example, when the mother walks out of the sea, she was covered with blood, which was misunderstood as fire wings. Also, the 'cry' of Madonna foreshadows the death of Josephine's mother. The saddest part of the story would be the last paragraph which describes the moment Josephine sees her mother goes burning, which shows how powerless Haitian were during that period of time.


The wall of fire rising

Plot: Guy's family lives on plantation. He has a part-time job that is at the lowest status in the plantation. His wife Lili wants their child Little Guy to pursue education, but Guy wants him to get on the work list. Guy has a dream of getting onto the hot-air ballon which is owned by the owner of the plantation. One day he gets on it just for the attention, hwoever, due to the late realization of consequences, he committed suiside.

Characters: Guy, Lili, Little Guy, owner of the plantation.

Response: It is interesting to think why did Guy get onto the ballon. I think it is because he wants to grab attention from others and also a form of relief. He is at the lowest status in the plantation, which seem so significant that when he dies, the shock only lasts a short moment. Also the different points of view between Lili and Guy show the different expectation between the two, clearly, Lili is wiser. Lastly, it is ironic that Little Guy starts to read his line from the performance class about freedom, which symbolizes that Guy is finally free.



Night Woman

Main Characters: Narrator (the mother)
                            The son of the mother

Theme: love, fear, hopelessness, poverty.

Plot:The story "Night Woman" is about a prostitute who lives with her son (Father left them after the son was born). Her son is the only thing in the world she cares, but at the same time, she is afraid of losing him since she knows that one day her son will understand her profession. Whenever her son sees a married man is in bed, the mother will tell him that he is the father who only comes at night. She also mentions the angel.

Response: the story starts with mother's description of her son, which gives the reader a good impression of her son. From her perspective, her son is the only important person to her. However, she knows that as he keeps getting older, he will eventually know the truth that she is a prostitute. But due to her financial situation and the lack of the role of father, she was forced to keep doing it though she hates it. The story perfectly emphasizes the lack of choice poor people had during that time and how they hope their next generation can have a better life.

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