Analysis Of Linda Hammerick In Monique Truong's Bitter In The Mouth

Superior Essays
Childhood experiences are a primary factor in determining future behaviors, perspectives, and mannerisms. The nature of childhood is attributed as a time of discovery and, moreover, revelation in support of one’s development and preparation for the future that awaits them. Such attributions are shared with the experiences of Linda Hammerick, the protagonist of Monique Truong’s Bitter in the Mouth. Amongst her return to Boiling Springs, North Carolina, the correlated nostalgia brings forth an uprising of memories, revelations, and confessions. Her most prominent attribute is her condition of synesthesia. As the novel’s motif, it directs the thoughts that arise amongst these discoveries thus defining the nature of the story. Bitter in the Mouth offers insight on how the …show more content…
Linda’s synesthesia offers her a new perspective on her life and in that sense, she re-experiences childhood. Bitter in the Mouth, as an autobiography, gives the reader a first-person perspective on a possibly foreign outlook on the meaning of life. In Linda’s mind, families, like canned beets, will always reflect on your own life; relationships simply fill a void left by your family. Universally, she learns that familiarity is meaningless without the clarity of connection. Her extraordinary condition of synesthesia gives her a unique perspective on her senses, thus leading to a unique perspective on her reality and a distinctive perspective on these discoveries. Therefore, similar to the way people attempt to guide childhood discoveries in preparation for the future, the reader can attribute Linda’s distinctive behaviors as a testament to her identity and, moreover, the direction that those discoveries would lead her. If one can take the time to step back and re-discover their body like a child, they can gain clarity on how their body is positioned in the world and, moreover, how it shapes meaning in their

Related Documents

  • Decent Essays

    Do you still think about what you did in your childhood? In the story Marigolds by: Eugenia Collier, the main character Lizabeth does something in her childhood that she still thinks about in her adulthood. Lizabeth and her friends tease Miss. Lottie, the old lady on the block. In the Marigolds i've came up with two themes: Don't hold on to your childhood and you can see the beauty out of life if you're willing to look for it.…

    • 376 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Decent Essays
  • Improved Essays

    When writing a poem a poet can twist a subject into whatever perspective they see fit. While Kilee Greethurst wrote her poems based on her experiences she opened up her thoughts and feelings to give the readers a wall of emotion and imagery. In order to portray these feelings of happiness and romance, she used the concept of bliss as her overall theme. All of Greethurst’s poems revolve around the idea of a blissful state of mind, creating a theme of happiness and love.…

    • 821 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    At 5:30 AM, the young, naive, Jenny Drpich is all dressed up finally ready to leave her home and head to her job for the first time. On her way, she grabbed a copy of West Australian newspaper, a leftover of cinnamon bun from last night and a freshly brewed cup of Long Black Arabica. The placidness of her home is unwieldy; the constant sound of the dead air seems remind her of pure elation of her little farmhouse in upper Swan Valley. These reminiscing values seem to ponder in her mind as she heads out of the driveway. It was a heinous drive from her house to the suburb.…

    • 1055 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Growing up can take many forms, whether that represents maturity and in some cases violence. Having a violent nature reveals one’s realization of how they are able to cope with reality. Joyce Carol Oates in her story, “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?” and Bob Dylan’s song “It’s All Over Now, Baby Blue” both interprets violence in a way to outgrow ourselves to keep up with the changing phases of reality. Both authors view violence in a metaphorical perspective that demonstrates the protagonists changing attitude.…

    • 1062 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    Women are some of earth’s most unique and underrated creatures. They are not weak, they are not emotional, and they are not the negative stereotypes that the world describes them as. “Trifles,” “Story of an Hour,” and “My Wicked Wicked Ways,” presents us with three women who are strong, mentally and emotionally. These three women: Mrs. Wright, Mrs. Mallard, and the speaker’s mother stories all relate in a way. The three ladies all relate in the way of being emotionally and physically tied to someone they either loved or not, who does not make them happy.…

    • 921 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Some people are like trees; they take forever to grow up, including Holden Caulfield, the sixteen year old protagonist of the novel “The Catcher in the Rye” by J.D. Salinger. Throughout the novel, Holden skirmishes through teenage life because he cannot take on the responsibilities that are a part of growing up. Holden is infatuated with childhood and he chooses to be trapped between two worlds; one of innocence and the other of adulthood. On the contrary, maturity comes easily to certain children like Jeannette Walls, the main character and author of the memoir “A Glass Castle”. Jeannette is a four year old innocent, fun-loving girl who thinks she comes from a remarkable family.…

    • 1679 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    In “Bitter in the Mouth,” Truong avoids the traditional love tale focused on an intense affection, rather she has various dynamic relationships which vary due to different circumstances throughout the story. The relationships are all centred around love ranging from romance, heartbreak, family, friendship and ones that seem strained beyond repair. “Bitter in the Mouth” occurs in Boiling Springs, Linda, who has synesthesia, understands that she is different from everybody in her adopted small town and is unsure of her backstory how she ended up there. Seeing that and the states of her respective relationships continuously influence the decisions she makes throughout her life. Truong’s theory of love consists of it being shown in many diverse…

    • 1366 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    The Intergenerational Sounds of Silence: Denial, Dysfunction, and Healing in David Small’s Stitches and My Life David Small’s Stitches is an acclaimed graphic memoir that reflects the intergenerational effects of denial, silence, and repression in a young boy’s life. The dysfunction of my own family goes back generations, and is inextricably linked to the ways in which my parents and their parents and their parents’ parents grew up: in a world rife with unchecked anger, manipulation and denial. As time has passed, however, Small and I have both discovered that the exposure of the candid truth, the courage to embrace it, and the choice to make change sets the impetus for healing. A pervasive family culture of silence and suppression based…

    • 1699 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Superior Essays

    The novel “The other Wes Moore,” written by Wes Moore, is a story involving two men with the same name, who grow up to live two totally opposite lives. Both boys grew up fatherless, in poverty, and living in bad neighborhoods. For the most part, their upbringings were extremely similar with minor differences, but at a point in their lives they went on to live on opposite sides of the spectrum. Wes, the author, grew up most of his life without a father because he died, but he lived with his mother and older sister. After his father’s passing, Wes’ mother, Joy, decided to move their family to the Bronx with his grandparents.…

    • 1969 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Most children require a decent and nurturing role model, otherwise they cannot see the optimistic qualities of life nor form lasting relationships with anyone. In Monique Truong’s Bitter in the Mouth, Harper Evelyn Birch or Great-Uncle “Baby Harper” befittingly serves this niche as the role model for the protagonist, Linda Hammerick. Throughout the text, there is evidence of their sincere bond such as Linda confiding and finding solace in him which is significant because comparatively speaking, it is arguably the only healthy relationship Linda has. As a result of this bond, his involvement in the story is to not only serve as a confidant to Linda, but rather a much more essential purpose; he highlights the positive aspects of the three reoccurring…

    • 1099 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Introduction This paper will discuss psychological development in late childhood based on references and the movie Stand By Me (1986). These four main points will be discussed: physical behavior, gender roles, self-esteem, and cognition. Physical Behavior Children’s physical behavior are noticeably advanced compared to those of infants and toddlers ( Sigelman and Rider, 2015). Children learn over a period of time to move their bodies with their changing environment.…

    • 506 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The transition from childhood to adulthood is inevitable. It is an experience that tests teenagers to their breaking points. Most adults cherish childhood innocence, as they have experience with an onerous adulthood. At a young age, parents teach their children that the world is a perfect, Utopian society. As children mature, they realize that the once ‘perfect world’ was nothing but a false, sugar-coated take on the harsh realities of life.…

    • 906 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    In her autobiographical novel, The Bell Jar she vividly describes the oppression of women 1950’s America, in doing so she undermines the familial values associated with the American dream. Esther, the book 's protagonist notices a gap between the expectations society held about her experiences and the reality of her experiences. As she is living the American Dream, society expects that she should be happy and confident meaning that Esther feels the need to oppress her natural cynicism and dark humor in order to meet the demands of society. Her self inflicted oppression causes her to slip into a manic depression which eventually results in a suicide attempt. Esther 's sense of alienation stems from the oppression she has endured as a women of the 1950s, we witness her internal struggle as her desire to become an independent career women conflicts with the expectation that she should, ‘settle down’, marry and have children.…

    • 1424 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Decent Essays

    Miss Brill’s Fantasy vs. Reality In Katherine Mansfield’s short story “Miss Brill” (rpt. In Greg Johnson and Thomas R. Arp. Perrine’s Literature: Structure, Sound, and Sense, 12th ed. [Boston: Wadsworth, 2015] 155-158), the protagonist, Miss Brill, lives a very lonesome life.…

    • 561 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Decent Essays
  • Great Essays

    Awakening Memories through Nostalgic Imagery in “Reflections of Spring” Memory is a part of human’s heart, mind and soul. Some memories are kept safely and some are neglected. Those are kept can take people back to their old days like a time machine. However, sometimes those memories from the past haunt people down for the rest of their life.…

    • 1794 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Great Essays

Related Topics