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Chapter 11
Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in The Farming of Bones, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
The Power of Memory
Dreams vs. Reality
Language and Identity
Death, Grief, and Hope
Home, Family, and Belonging
Summary
Analysis
The morning after the births, Amabelle meets Mimi, Sebastien’s sister, by a stream. They talk about Joël’s death, and Mimi explains how Doña Eva, a rich widower, is celebrating her fiftieth birthday. Amabelle wonders if they will live as long as the doña, and Mimi claims she would rather die young. Mimi pities the older women, who have toiled in the fields and are now too poor and sick to work or “return to their old homes in Haiti.”
Amabelle and Mimi’s conversation discusses the lives and deaths of different groups of women in the Dominican Republic. Due to differences in class—and the prejudice faced by Haitians—a wealthier Dominican woman is celebrating her old age, whereas the Haitian women suffer as they grow older. In this way, cultural identity and the oppression of some groups by others persist across individuals’ lives.
Themes
Amabelle sees Kongo bathing in the stream, and notes that he is washing himself with wet parsley, which she calls both “pesi” and “perejil.” She describes the herb in detail, describing how the Haitians “savored” the herb “for [their] food, [their] teas” and how it is used “to cleanse” their bodies “of old aches and griefs.”
Amabelle uses both the Haitian Creole and Spanish words for “parsley,” illustrating how some concepts transcend language boundaries. She emphasizes that parsley is part of Haitian culture and how it is cherished for its properties. As parsley and its pronunciation will later be used to separate Haitians from Dominicans, this initial discussion of parsley’s importance to Haitian identity becomes more poignant. Parsley will eventually trigger violence between the two cultures, but it is initially presented as an herb that is universal: both cultures enjoy it equally.
Themes
Mimi speculates about the consequences of Joël’s death, pointing out that it must be painful to do nothing about the killing. She believes that since the man who killed Joël is “one of them,” there is “nothing” that can be done to avenge him.
Mimi’s comments about the lack of punishment for Joël’s murderer further illustrate the strained relationships between the two cultures in the Dominican Republic. Even in the context of death, the power dynamic between the two groups leads to prejudice and mistreatment. Despite the feelings of grief and despair that are growing in the Haitian community, the Dominicans’ oppression continues: the Haitians are not allowed to seek justice.
Themes
The discussion turns to Señora Valencia’s new children, and Mimi points out that Beatriz will likely become the godmother. Amabelle chastises Mimi for using her name informally, and Mimi asks if she must use the honorific Señorita. Amabelle realizes that she has always called her Señorita or Señora, while she herself was always referred to by her first name, Amabelle.
Amabelle’s realization about her first name and the señora’s title emphasizes how their cultural identitiesas a Haitian worker and a Dominican aristocrathave defined both women for their entire relationship, despite their close emotional bond. In this way, language (in the form of an honorific) reinforces differences in identity between a higher-class woman and her employee.
Themes
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Mimi and Amabelle go back to discussing Joël, and Mimi insists that there should be “no sad faces.” She claims that they should “give him a joyous wake” and he would want everyone to “be grateful he’s not here now.” Félice, Joël’s lover, overhears the conversation and leans on Amabelle for support; she claims Joël was “too young” to die. She tells Amabelle that she wishes to help the Dominicans learn “that [Haitians’] lives are precious too.”
Mimi’s insistence on celebrating Joël’s death is yet another example of how the living cope with grief: in this case, they rebel against it, and try to rejoice. Still, it may be that Mimi’s coping mechanism of joy prevents her from truly confronting the reality of death. Meanwhile, Félice, wishes to break down the boundaries that separate Dominican and Haitian cultures, in order to show that both identities are equally worthy of respect. Félice’s wish is a product of a country that separates its cultures through prejudice: she wants to transcend the boundaries—preserved by politics, the government, and individuals—that allow one group to consider themselves superior.
Themes
