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The birch tree represents Clara’s connection to her home and to the Indigenous culture that was stolen from her when she was taken from her family and placed in the residential school. Birch trees were an important resource for many Indigenous nations: their bark can be used to make canoes, paper, and even clothing. In addition, the leaves and bark both have medicinal uses. Clara’s transformational journey of redemption begins when the Old Indigenous Woman draws her attention to a birch tree situated outside a Vancouver jailhouse window. This tree in turn reminds Clara of the birch grove where, as a child, she heard the voices of spirits or angels. Her yearning to recapture that feeling leads her, through George and Vera, to Mariah’s cabin, where she finds a sense of home for the first time in many years.
Birch Tree Quotes in Five Little Indians
The Five Little Indians quotes below all refer to the symbol of Birch Tree. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
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Chapter 6: Clara
Quotes
“That little birch tree. Even here they shine.”
Clara looked again. A little birch, no taller than Clara herself, stood alone in a small square of dirt carved out of the pavement for it. The rain had stopped and the clouds parted for the muted sunlight of dawn. Clara watched as the leaves of the little tree captured the light, shining silvery and soft. The old woman looked at her with eyes as black as night and placed her hand over Clara’s.
“The power of Creation is everywhere. In the tree, in you, in all of them.” She gestured to the others. “Never forget.” The old lady settled back into the variegated shadows of the cell, her deeply wrinkled hands folded. Clara gazed at the little birch, blocking out the restless sounds of the cell.
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Explanation and Analysis:
Get the entire Five Little Indians LitChart as a printable PDF.
Birch Tree Symbol Timeline in Five Little Indians
The timeline below shows where the symbol Birch Tree appears in Five Little Indians. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Chapter 6: Clara
...Indigenous woman and the window. The old woman points out the window at a small birch tree planted in the verge between the street and the sidewalk. The woman gently touches...
(full context)
...songs she learned in Sunday School. The homeward path wound through a grove of silver birch trees, and on that day, Clara thought she heard angels playing among them. The next...
(full context)
...the station, Clara bums a cigarette. She stands smoking it with her hand on the birch tree.
(full context)
Chapter 17: Clara
...of the visit passes uneventfully, full of long walks through the groves of poplar and birch trees that surround the cabin. At the end of the week, Clara returns to Vancouver....
(full context)
