House Lights, Week 5, Post A

VOCAB
Ennui (178)- feeling of weariness and discontent

Self-abnegation (199)- self-denial

FIGURATIVE LANGUAGE
“…the sound of the grasses as you walked wetly through them on your way to the farmhouse kitchen” (176). This is an example of imagery because the reader can hear and feel the grasses as they hit one’s leg, it’s almost as if the reader is also walking through the grass because the sound and feeling is so descriptive.

“The can was full of water, and when every so often a drop fell from the leaky spigot, it made a cool plip” (193). This is an onomatopoeia because the word “plip” is being used to recreate the sound that the drips of water made.

“ ‘Who has she known her whole life?’ ‘Her parents.’ ‘Whose law has she lived under her whole life?’ ‘Her parents.’ “What does she want more than anything?’ ‘To leave them?’ ” (197). This is an instance of a symbol, because the questions Hale is asking Beatrice about her character symbolize what is happening in her own life. Also, Beatrice is becoming closer to the other members of the cast than she is to her actual family, so Hale’s questions also symbolizes that he is aware of the troubles she is going through.

QUOTE
“Touch could seal a pact, or substitute for words; it could communicate reminders of responsibility, duty, and one’s correct role, whether submissive or dominant” (186). Beatrice realizes that what a person means is not only affected by the words they speak, but also the body language. She recognizes that the few times her mother would stroke her face were in times of serious family issues, which portrays her mother as one who tries to cover things up.

THEME
A theme in this novel is that there are different kinds of families, there is no family that is perfect for everyone! For instance, Beatrice learns that she has been yearning for a family which is not only admired, but also has depth to it, and she find this family setting on the farm, with other cast members.