Homegoing By Yaa Gyasi: Novel Analysis

In her novel, Homegoing, Yaa Gyasi beautifully writes about the lives of descendants from two half-sisters, Effia and Esi. No matter what side of the family a character came from, they all seemed to be on the search for a common theme; their identity. Throughout the whole novel, the characters had a longing to know their roots, which ultimately shapes their identity. As the novel goes along, the characters lose more of a sense of their identity than that of the previous characters. Knowing where you came from, what your purpose is in the world, and where they fit in, all helps shape who and what you are. Knowing what and who you are is my definition of identity. As I wrote about in my Homegoing discussion analysis, the structure in which Yaa …show more content…
Effia’s and Esi’s families were so different that one may never think they would be connected. This is the same with people in society today. Two people, at first glance, may seem completely different, and one could think that there are no similarities between the two. It isn’t until further investigation that people realize they may be more similar than what meets the eye. This shows how we can all be connected and should treat one another as equals. Learning to be accepting will help society to hopefully not repeat history and the horrendous and cruel events that were mentioned in the …show more content…
I feel as if I can relate to many of the characters’ desire of wanting to know more of where they came from. For me, I know where my ancestors came from, but these nationalities are just words to me. I can’t connect what “being German and Polish” really means. I want to know more about what life was like for my ancestors, their stories of coming to America, and anything else about their life to make me have a better understanding of my identity. Reading this novel has made me want to do research of my own about my family and