Many have attempted to write a romance novel or story and they generally follow the same pattern, however, Jackie Kay expands on this format to delve into the topic of how love can affect oneself and others. Motivation can come from a variety of sources and can cause one to act against the status quo or challenge what is deemed as “right” in society. Jackie Kay intertwines love and motivation in her work Trumpet to challenge societal norms of race, gender and a desire for money; as well as uncovering individual motives ranging from greed to happiness. This creates an intriguing and fresh take on love that ventures off the beaten path that love stories tend to follow. In doing so, Kay is able to extend her message beyond many other authors
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Kay not only brought up the topic of gender change, but she included race as well. She places this novel in the 1950’s, a time period when racism was no doubt a pressing issue. The love between Joss and Millie was not inhibited as a result of a mixed race marriage. Big Red did not hesitate to accept and admire Joss despite his race or gender change. This can be interpreted as Kay’s way to comment on the juvenile judgements that society has made in the past and encourage acceptance for all people. Ali Smith, an author for The Guardian, commented Kay’s unique love …show more content…
She illuminates her main goal of universal acceptance by highlighting her disapproval for inequality as a whole. This serves as Kay’s motivation throughout the work and some aspect of her goal is accomplished by each character. Millie and Big Red are all around accepting and therefore are the “good guys” that those in society should strive to emulate. Sophie Stones is clearly the antagonist that feeds off people being different than others. Her work is represented in a poor light which encourages readers to be wary of those who are close minded. Colman serves as a middle ground; somebody who had trouble with acceptance, but in the end found that he was happier when he overcame societal
Kay not only brought up the topic of gender change, but she included race as well. She places this novel in the 1950’s, a time period when racism was no doubt a pressing issue. The love between Joss and Millie was not inhibited as a result of a mixed race marriage. Big Red did not hesitate to accept and admire Joss despite his race or gender change. This can be interpreted as Kay’s way to comment on the juvenile judgements that society has made in the past and encourage acceptance for all people. Ali Smith, an author for The Guardian, commented Kay’s unique love …show more content…
She illuminates her main goal of universal acceptance by highlighting her disapproval for inequality as a whole. This serves as Kay’s motivation throughout the work and some aspect of her goal is accomplished by each character. Millie and Big Red are all around accepting and therefore are the “good guys” that those in society should strive to emulate. Sophie Stones is clearly the antagonist that feeds off people being different than others. Her work is represented in a poor light which encourages readers to be wary of those who are close minded. Colman serves as a middle ground; somebody who had trouble with acceptance, but in the end found that he was happier when he overcame societal