Kayla vomits from her fever, and then Jojo forces her to vomit the blackberry remedy Leonie made for her. … Vomiting is thus also linked to the idea that one’s body can house something evil which can only be expelled through a kind of purging—whether that is actual vomiting or a more symbolic, spiritual process.
Are Leonie and Michael married?
Leonie is Pop and Mam’s youngest child. She fell in love with Michael as a teenager, even though Michael’s cousin killed her brother, Given. She and Michael never married, and though he has been in prison for three years before the story starts, she still believes that she and Michael could have a happy life together.
What is the function of ghosts in Sing, Unburied, Sing?
Abstract: In her novel Sing, Unburied, Sing, Jesmyn Ward uses the ghost as both a literary trope and a cultural element in order to investigate an erased or distorted past and to assert an authenticated African-American cultural identity.
Is Bois Sauvage a real town?
It is set (as is the new novel) in a fictional, rural coastal town named Bois Sauvage, Mississippi. Interestingly, the French edition of the novel is called Bois Sauvage, meaning Wild Wood, the author playing with the world savage and salvage, connected to the theme of survival.
Is jesmyn Ward African American?
Jesmyn Ward (born April 1, 1977) is an American novelist and an associate professor of English at Tulane University. … She is the only woman and only African American to win the National Book Award for Fiction twice.
Why does Leonie fall in love with Michael?
Leonie’s mistreatment of her children is closely related to her drug use, which began as a result of Michael’s influence and continues after he goes to prison. … Leonie is madly in love with Michael, so much so that she neglects her children and other responsibilities.
When did Leonie Jojo?
Although Leonie feels a kind of drug-like euphoria in Michael’s presence, her relationship with him further isolates her from the rest of the world, including the children they have together. Leonie got pregnant with Jojo when she was seventeen, a year after she and Michael got together.
Why does given appear to Leonie?
Given does not speak to Leonie, so his purpose as a ghost remains unclear. However, the fact that he appears whenever she is high suggests that Given is trying to encourage Leonie to stop engaging in self-destructive behavior and be a better mother to her children.
Why does Jojo say Leonie kills things?
Jojo describes Leonie as someone who “kills things” because she is too caught up in her own concerns to care for others. The exception to her self-absorption is Michael, her longtime boyfriend and the father of her children.
What does Kayla do at the end of unburied sing?
In the novel’s final scene, Kayla sings to the ghosts. Although her song does not allow them to move on, it brings them great comfort.
What was in Jojo’s gris gris bag?
Inside Jojo’s gris-gris bag is a feather, an animal’s tooth, a rock, and a small note that says “Keep this close.” According to Pop, objects in a gris-gris bag––like everything in the world––each contain a spirit, and the particular combination of objects is thus designed to achieve a “balance of spirit” that will …
Who are the characters in Sing, Unburied, Sing?
Characters
- Joseph (Jojo) a main character is also one of three narrators. …
- Leonie is the daughter of River and Philomene, and mother to Jojo and Kayla. …
- River (Pop) is Jojo’s and Kayla’s maternal grandfather. …
- Philomene (Mam) is Jojo and Kayla’s maternal grandmother. …
- Misty is Leonie’s white friend from work.
How did Michael meet Leonie?
Leonie saw him for the first time three years ago, after doing a line of cocaine. At the time, she was at a party and was pregnant with Kayla. Given tried to speak to her, but she couldn’t hear him. Leonie didn’t tell Mam that she’d seen him.
Why did Richie go to Parchman?
Richie is a 12-year-old boy who was imprisoned in Parchman with Pop. Richie had nine siblings and would steal food to feed them, which is why he was sent to prison.
What did Michael tell Jojo about the day they went fishing What does this story reveal about Michael?
Michael asks Jojo if he remembers when they went fishing together, and says they will do more of that kind of thing now that Michael is home. Jojo recalls that Michael opened up about the explosion on the oil rig during that fishing trip. Michael also admitted that it was his cousin who killed Given.
What special abilities does MAM have?
Like many women in her family, Mam has healing powers, psychic foresight, and the gift of being able to communicate with the spirits of dead people.
Who dies in salvage the bones?
Esch and Skeetah try to climb over to the house first and open a window, but Esch falls into the rushing water with the puppies; two wash away, and though she saves one by tucking it into her shirt, it dies.