Farming Of Bones

Symbolism in The Farming of Bones

Edwidge Danticat's novel, The Farming of Bones is an epic portrayal of the relationship between Haitians and Dominicans under the rule of Generalissimo Rafael Trujillo leading up to the Slaughter of 1937. The novel revolves around a few main concepts, these being birth, death, identity, and place and displacement. Each of the aspects is represented by an inanimate object. Water, dreams, twins, and masks make up these representations. Symbolism is consistent throughout the novel and gives the clearly stated and unsophisticated language a deeper more complex meaning. While on the surface the novel is an easy read, the symbolism which is prominent throughout the novel complicates the audience's interpretation. The reader is left to look beyond the language and uncover the underlying themes of the novel. Through symbolism Danticat is able to use inanimate objects to represent each of her character's more deeply rooted problems. In order to prove this theory true, I will thoroughly examine the aforementioned symbolic devices and provide a clear interpretation of their significance in the novel.

The first example of symbolism we encounter is in the first chapter and comes in the form of dreams. When Amabelle and Sebastian open up to one another it is through their shared experiences, which are most usually, their dreams. They are able to be the most themselves when they are not in real life experiences, though it sounds like an oxymoron, the juxtapose between dreams and reality says a great deal about the characters. Dreams are essentially escapes from reality, and when Amabelle and Sebastian share their dreams with one another it serves as an escape. It becomes clear that they share the desire to escape, but escape from what exactly, their pasts, presence, or futures? This implication of escape prepares readers for the escapes made by the lovers near the end of the story. On page 2 Amabelle says of her nocturnal escapes, "It's either be in a nightmare or be nowhere at all. Or otherwise simply float inside these remembrances, grieving for who I was, and even more for what I've become." This quotation implies that that even her life has become a nightmare. Readers can infer that a good night's sleep would be Amabelle's only chance of escape. Her nightmares are destroying her life, and her life, in turn is becoming a nightmare.

As the novel opens, we readers learn that one of the main characters, Senora Valencia, is expecting a child. Within the first four chapters the Senora is in labor and much to her surprise, and the surprise of the readers, the Senora gives birth to a set of twins. Upon the arrival of the twins it is said that most babies begin as twins but one usually kills the other as a result of having to share the same womb. "Many of us start out as twins in the belly and do away with the other," says Doctor Javier (p. 19). This is an exact parallel to Haitians and Dominicans. The womb is the island that the two nations share, and they are the twins, one of which will most likely kill the other. It becomes abundantly clear throughout the novel the amount of hatred and disgust the two nations have for one another and when one of the twins dies unexpectedly, readers are left wondering which nation will be the first to fall. There was quite a difference between the twins as one was lighter skinned, and the other, much to the family's dismay, had much darker skin. The Dominican Republic was represented by the stronger, lighter skinned, male baby, and Haiti was portrayed by the weak, dark skinned, female child. When, much to the readers surprise, the male child is the one that dies, it implies a sort of uncertain future for the Dominicans. The use of twins is an important aspect of the novel as it allows the author to inform her readers through symbolism as opposed to literally disturbing the story line.

After Kongo loses his son, Joel, he battles with identity and coming to terms with himself as an individual instead of a father. He brings to Amabelle one night a mask of his own face made when he was much, much younger. He tells her of how happy mask making used to make he and his wife, but once his wife was gone he had no desire to make the