Critical Analysis on Edwidge Danticat's A Wall of Fire Rising

had to wear some old shoes that he had at home. Gold did not like this

Gates of Fire is a story about the Spartan way of life and their fight to protect their country. The story is told by a dying Spartan squire named Xeones, who was captured by the Persian army after the battle at Thermopylae. He is telling the story to the Persian king. The story took place around 480 B.C. Xeones began the story in a small town where he grew up called Astakos. He tells of how his town was destroyed and how he was taken in by the Spartans. Eventually he became a servant for a Spartan youth name Alexandros, who was the protégé of Dienekes. Xeones finally became a squire for the Spartan officer Dienekes.

Gates of Fire By: Steven Pressfield Subject Person- Spartan Warriors Place- Greece 480 B.C. Event- Battle of Thermoplae. Concept- Xeones recounts his life leading up to the battle. Object- Greek city-states consisting of 300 Spartan Warriors, 400 Thebans, 700 Thespian Volunteers And around 900 Helots Fought The Persian Empire at the pass of Thermopylae. Reason For Choosing Book Prior to reading this novel I had some knowledge of the Battle of Thermopylae. I watched the movie 300last year and it is based on the battle of Thermopylae and the lifestyle of the Spartan Warriors. Summary Gates of Fire tells the story of a young Greek boy, Xeones, who is the sole Hellenic survivor of the epic battle of Thermopylae in 480 BC. After

Throughout the 16th century, as there was a demographic collapse of the indigenous population, there was now a new demand for slave labor in Latin America. In Brazil, the Portuguese needed a large workforce to cultivate sugar plantations. As a result, numerous slaves from Africa were imported to work on large plantation fields. In various plantations, rural slaves experienced harsh working and living conditions. Few slaves had a high life expectancy. Robert Edgar Conrad in “Children of God’s Fire,” shares some primary sources that dealt with the types of environments and conditions many slaves faced and encountered in Brazil. The sources also gave insight into the regulations and economics/business of the slave trade. Conrad states that rural Brazil was “a hell for blacks” (Conrad 54). Many slaves dealt with extremely harsh conditions just to keep the European market in Latin American growing and profitable. This paper will analyze how rural slaves lived and worked on Brazilian sugar plantations.

At the time of Guy’s death, the foreman asked if Lili wanted her husbands eyes to be closed. She responded, “No lave them open. My husband, he likes to look at the sky” (244). Guy was not happy with his life on earth living in poverty. He finally reached freedom when he passed away. Lili did not judge her husband for committing the act and was not disappointed at him when he left her and Little Guy. Little Guy was in shock when he stood over his father’s dead body. He did not say anything besides his lines for the play. Little Guy‘s voice tone was angry and confused.

The first passage reveals the parallel suffering occurring in the lives of different members of the family, which emphasizes the echoes between the sufferings of the father and the narrator. The narrator’s father’s despair over having watched

The essay goes into great detail of his relationship with his father. He describes his father as cruel (65), bitter (65), and beautiful (64). He does mention the bad in length. On the flip side, he tells us some of the good as well. Throughout his storytelling, the reader gets a glimpse into his life and the way he feels. His feelings evolve during the extent of the essay.

In the beginning of the story, the first sign of symbolism is the play that the son, little Guy, is reciting his lines for. The play has significance because it serves purpose to the boy because every moment in the story he is worried about not forgetting his lines. His parents, Guy and Lili, see the play as a sign of hope for little Guy. This is because they want him to be able to live a better life then the struggling one they have now. You can see this when Guy mentions in the story that since it is taking him so long to retrieve a job at the sugar mill he thinks it would be best if he enlists his son early for the same job. This statement caused the mother to quickly reply, “I don’t want him on that list for a young boy to be on any list like that might influence his destiny…” (241). This shows how she is willing to keep helping her son to get better with his lines to influence him never to give up on dreams. Also, since the play is about a hero who helped slaves gain independence in Haiti, it makes the parents prouder of little Guy to be a part of such a historical play.

The imagery of fire in Edwidge Danticat 's short story “A Wall of Fire Rising” possesses a very powerful meaning and also continually changes throughout the entirety of the story. Fire was a very sacred thing to have, especially during the time this story has taken place.

Memoirs of war often reflect the positive or negative experiences endured throughout battle. Considered by many to be one of the best memoirs of World War I, Hervey Allen’s “Toward the Flame”, recalls his own experiences of battle. His recollection of events shows that he had a negative image of war and that there was nothing glorious about it. What started out looking like a man’s greatest adventure turned into a shell-shocking reality that war is actually horrible and trying. Allen’s experiences with consistent hunger, mustard gas, and artillery shellings led to his disillusionment with war, and left him with a permanent hatred of battle.

The half lemon the Lili keeps beside her mat in Edwidge Danticat’s short story, “Wall of Fire Rising,” represents a clean slate. When “she smooth[s] the lemon of her ashen legs,” (64) Lili is rubbing away the dirt, germs, and pain; giving her a clean slate to write on tomorrow. The lemon is softly washing the hate and anxiety that being alive comes with and allows Lili to peacefully slumber. Guy also uses this lemon to say goodbye to his wife the night before he jumps out of the balloon. He “‘would like to be the one to rub that piece of lemon on [her] knees tonight’” (75). This is his way of telling her that he wants Lili to have a better life than what he could give her, that he is sorry, and that he is erasing his mistakes to allow her a

Ilan Stavans says that Juan Rulfo’s book, The Plain in Flames, is best represented by the phrase realismo crudo. Stavans defines this phrase as “a type of realism interested in the rawness of life”, meaning that he characterizes Rulfo’s writing as an unfiltered view into the lives of the average Mexican (Stavans, xi). By writing in this style, Rulfo is able to provide “an image—instead of just a description—of our landscape” as stated by Octavio Paz (xv). To create this image, Rulfo broke his story writing the process down into three separate steps. As paraphrased by Ilan Stavans, the first step “is to create a character”, the second step “is to place him in an environment where he might move around” and the third step “is to discover how the character expresses himself” (xiii). Rulfo was able to repeatedly crafted stories that were filled with high levels of realismo crudo by using that special three-step process. By creating his protagonist, crafting an environment for said protagonist, and allowing the character to express themselves within this environment, Rulfo crafted a three-tier image of post-revolutionary life in Mexico that has never been seen before.

Out of the Flames by Lawrence and Nancy Goldstone is a nonfiction read that highlights the journey of Michael Servetus and how he impacts the world around him. Religion is a powerful weapon used by the Church in the Early Modern Period, but only a few have the will to defy the power of it. Important figures such as Martin Luther and Michael Servetus, step out of the dark to take up the Reformation against the Church. Both use the power of books to defy the Church’s power, which books are a powerful tool used in the sixteenth century.

The third chapter in the book “Krik? Krak” by Edwidge Danticat, is about a struggling family that lives in the country side of Haiti. Its titled “A Wall of Fire Rising”, which is a reference to a play written about the famous Haitian Dutty Boukman. He was one of the leaders of the slave revolt in Haiti in 1791 and is a token for freedom in Haitian Culture. Knowing the background of the title gives us a great insight into the story’s past and is foreshadowing the importance of freedom.

In “A Wall of Fire Rising” by Edwidge Danticat, Guy is a poor Haitian man stuck struggling in a shantytown with his wife and son. This kind of life is the only one he has ever known but, dreams stir within him. When his son gets the part of a legendary Haitian revolutionary in the school play, Guy’s idealism begins to beat up against the reality of his situation causing this loving father and husband to become increasingly weary of life.