Hope In Children Of The Sea

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A French philosopher once said; “A craving for freedom and independence is generated only in a man still living on hope” (Albert Camus). Krik? Krak! demonstrates this idea throughout a series of fictional short stories that illustrate the harsh and beautiful lives of Haitians. The author Edwidge Danticat portrays the idea that hope is crucial to survive through hardships and to attain freedom. Hope pushes Haitians to keep living and to escape their troubles. In Children of the Sea, Celianne, a pregnant teenager, looks to escape Haiti in order to stay alive and keep her daughter. This hope keeps her from giving up. Although when her baby dies, her hope is gone, giving her no reason to live. After holding the dead baby in her arms, she finally…show more content…
In the chapter Night Women the mother is forced to prostitute herself in order to raise her son. She is hopeful that her son will be able to thrive and do well in life, so she is willing to continue with her situation even though it displeases her. She is aware that there is more hope for the future generation and isn’t phased by the idea of herself being hopeless, “A firefly buzzes around the room, finding him and not me” (72) This symbolizes light and hope finding the young boy instead of her and for that reason she is compliant when it comes to sacrificing herself because she has hope for her child. She is willing to give up what she has in order for there to be a chance that her son makes it in life. Guy from Wall of Fire Rising also uses hopes and dreams to cope or veer from reality. Guy and his wife are sometimes caught struggling to keep their family from going hungry or to keep a job and his dreams are the only thing that keep him from boiling over with stress. Guy describes the feeling he gets to his wife, Lili, whenever he sees the hot air balloon, “ ‘Sometimes I just want to take that big balloon and ride it up in the air. I’d like to sail off somewhere and keep floating until I got to a really nice place with a nice plot of land where I could be something new. Just be something new’ ” (61) Although instead of supporting him, she disagrees and doesn’t like the idea of him leaving. This eventually leads to Guy deciding to actually fly it, but when he does, he jumps out and commits suicide. Guy battled with the idea of freedom, but when Lili told him it was unrealistic he lost hope. Again showing that without hope, freedom cannot be achieved and survival is
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    Ayiti, by Roxanne Gay, and Krik? Krak!, by Edwidge Danticat are collections of short stories about Haiti and its people, which gives the readers insight into the complex Haitian diaspora experience. Both authors successfully empower the voiceless by sharing stories that give a glimpse into the struggles and hardships that Haitians face. The collections seek to offer a deeper view into Haitian society and covers an array of themes such as the politics of survival, assimilation, resiliency, and feminist

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