Clashing Canes
This image of the narrator walking through the field of sugarcane evokes a sense of confinement and intimidation. She asserts, "The orchard ended and we were on the narrow cart road that led through the canepiece, the canes clashing like swords above my cowering head. Again, she turned and her thin muscular arms spread wide, dim gaze embracing the small field of canes." The narrow cart road through the clashing canes represents the narrator’s journey through the old world of her grandmother. It captures the narrator's vulnerability in a world that feels both foreign and hostile. This imagery also suggests that while there is a certain power and pride in the land that Da-duh represents, it is also confining and rigid. Thus, it is resisting the new ways of life and perspectives that the narrator embodies.
Tropical Wood
The narrator states, "In the middle of a small tropical wood – a place dense, gloomy and tremulous with the fitful play of light and shadow as the leaves moved against the sun high above. It was a violent place, the tangled foliage fighting each other for a chance at the sunlight." This description immerses the reader in a dense tropical environment, where light and shadow engage in a constant interplay. The word "tremulous" gives a sense of uncertainty as if the entire scene is alive with movement, yet fragile in its existence. Therefore, the interplay of light and shadow symbolizes the layered nature of Da-duh's worldview. This environment mirrors the emotional and intellectual struggle between the two generations. It shows that Da-duh’s world is filled with a kind of fear and resistance to the unknown and the modern.
Royal Palm
The protagonist states, "There in a small clearing amid the dense bush, she stopped before an incredibly tall royal palm which rose cleanly out of the ground, and drawing the eye up with it, soared straight as an arrow high above the trees around it into the sky. It appeared to be touching the blue dome of sky, to be flaunting its dark crown of fronds right in the blinding white face of the late morning sun." This description of the royal palm captures its resilience against the overpowering brightness of the sun. However, this defiant symbol of natural beauty becomes a representation of Da-duh's loss. When faced with the towering skyscrapers of New York, the palm's once unmatched height is reduced to insignificance. This moment marks a turning point in the story, where Da-duh is faced with the overwhelming reality of change and modernity.
Low-Flying Planes
The following imagery symbolizes the intrusive force of colonial power and modernity crashing into the natural world: "On the day of her death, England sent planes flying low over the island in a show of force—so low, according to my aunt’s letter, that the downdraft from them shook the ripened mangoes from the trees in Da-duh’s orchard." This scene is an embodiment of everything foreign and overpowering to Da-duh's world. Their presence disturbs the natural order causing the ripened mangoes to fall prematurely. The planes' ability to shake the very fruits from the trees mirrors the impact of modernity on the old ways of life.
