Images of Completeness
The images of completeness are evident in Jackie Kay's character when she meets her sisters. She realizes that she has found a sense of identity which was absent in her life. The love and care of her foster patents couldn't complete her and she only found completeness after knowing about her parental identity and culture. She feels herself as an alien but the sight of her sisters provides her with a sense of acquaintance. She understands that she has found humans like her, whose color, eyes and features resemble her own features.
Imagery of Windy Place
Jackie Kay's foster parents show much care and love for their adopted daughter. Despite of all the compassion, Jackie says, " My mum all those years ago sensed a child who had been adopted was also a child who could feel terribly hurt. And no matter how much she loved me, no matter how much my dad loved me, there is still a windy place right at the core of my heart." The images of the windy place have been demonstrated by the author through the description of her feelings. She says, "The windy place is like Wuthering Heights, out on open moors, rugged and wild and free and lonely. The wind rages and batters at the trees. I struggle against the windy place." The curiosity regarding her biological parents made her feel lonely and incomplete. She feels the storms inside her because she wanted to find her birth parents who gave her away to adoption.
Imagery of Selfishness
The book begins with the imagery of selfishness which has been presented through the characters of Kay's parents. The novel begins with the intimate scene between Kay and her father who refuses to accept her and shows an averse attitude towards her. He calls her as a sin just because he wanted to avoid his guilt. Kay's parents left her at her birth because of their selfish motives and she meets them after a long time, they demonstrate selfishness and ask her to go away. Elizabeth and Jonathan were mean and only concerned about their lives and reputation. They were so callous that they never showed any sympathy or tenderness for Kay.
Images of Racism
There are images of racism in the novel which have affected Kay's life more than anyone else. Kay's parents gave her away because of racism in their society. Jonathan was an African and Elizabeth belonged to a Catholic community where it was not acceptable to marry an African man. The fear of their societies and the racist attitudes led them to part their ways. Kay suffered because of her parents' relationship. Throughout her life until the discovery of her family, she went through various conflicts because of her parenting. She herself faced racism in her school where she was tortured by her fellows owing to her color. When she asked the help of some boys, they denied by saying that they cannot help her because of her color. Jackie Kay feels herself inferior or different because the society made her feel that she was not a part of them.
