In the novel Chains, by Laurie Halse Anderson, the main character, Isabel is a young slave girl who lives in a Loyalist household during the Revolutionary War. In the Lockton mansion she endure loss of family and a great deal of abuse. Moreover, Isabel goes through a lot of emotional fluctuation, from wanting to drive a sword through her owner; to being in such indecision she cannot think straight. Anderson depicts how there is no progress without struggle through her use of repetition, Conceit metaphors, and symbols. Anderson uses repetition to portray Isabel’s frustration and annoyance with Madam Lockton throughout most of the story. Towards the beginning, Isabel has just been named Sal Lockton and serves Madam Lockton and her friends,
…show more content…
Right now, Isabel is consumed with the thought of joining the British army and finally has order in her mind, “The thought washed over me like a river, sweeping away the dead bees that had filled my brainpan with confusion” (174). What’s great about this quote is it jumps out and explicitly says the bees were what was confusing her. The only confusing part is the river. The river could be like a broom, sweeping away all the dirt on your floor so you can see your floor vividly. Right now, Isabel is taking a walk on a cold and bitter Christmas night and thinking to herself, The ashes of sadness and the buzzing bees of my melancholy all spun a storm inside of me” (246). It is apparent that the bees are indeed the reason that Isabel is so indecisive, for they are only present when she is confused or torn between two thoughts. Such as being torn between the Loyalists and the Patriots.The bees are able to help Isabel cope with her loss, such as Ruth being sold. When that happens, the bees are swarming in her brain and she becomes almost numb to the pain because she cannot think …show more content…
At this point in the story, Isabel is feeding the soldiers and Curzon has just finished his story about his friend getting his head ripped off by a cannon.“The ashes within me swirled and filled up my throat again”(220). It is now prevalent that the ashes do not only represent her thoughts, but also Isabel’s actions or result from her sadness, like her choking on tears (or what she calls her ashes). Once again, Isabel is taking a walk on a cold and bitter night, “The ashes of sadness and the buzzing bees of my melancholy all spun a storm inside of me” (246). This quote explicitly says “The ashes of sadness” and justifies that the ashes are indeed her sadness.You may be thinking, what does she benefit from being sad? Well typically, when Isabel is sad she will have an epiphany where begins to rebel more, like on page 246 when Isabel says “A thought surfaced through my ashes. She cannot chain my soul” In this way, Isabel is inching closer to her
Right now, Isabel is consumed with the thought of joining the British army and finally has order in her mind, “The thought washed over me like a river, sweeping away the dead bees that had filled my brainpan with confusion” (174). What’s great about this quote is it jumps out and explicitly says the bees were what was confusing her. The only confusing part is the river. The river could be like a broom, sweeping away all the dirt on your floor so you can see your floor vividly. Right now, Isabel is taking a walk on a cold and bitter Christmas night and thinking to herself, The ashes of sadness and the buzzing bees of my melancholy all spun a storm inside of me” (246). It is apparent that the bees are indeed the reason that Isabel is so indecisive, for they are only present when she is confused or torn between two thoughts. Such as being torn between the Loyalists and the Patriots.The bees are able to help Isabel cope with her loss, such as Ruth being sold. When that happens, the bees are swarming in her brain and she becomes almost numb to the pain because she cannot think …show more content…
At this point in the story, Isabel is feeding the soldiers and Curzon has just finished his story about his friend getting his head ripped off by a cannon.“The ashes within me swirled and filled up my throat again”(220). It is now prevalent that the ashes do not only represent her thoughts, but also Isabel’s actions or result from her sadness, like her choking on tears (or what she calls her ashes). Once again, Isabel is taking a walk on a cold and bitter night, “The ashes of sadness and the buzzing bees of my melancholy all spun a storm inside of me” (246). This quote explicitly says “The ashes of sadness” and justifies that the ashes are indeed her sadness.You may be thinking, what does she benefit from being sad? Well typically, when Isabel is sad she will have an epiphany where begins to rebel more, like on page 246 when Isabel says “A thought surfaced through my ashes. She cannot chain my soul” In this way, Isabel is inching closer to her