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Chapter 5
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
Amabelle comes to look at the new children. She notes that Rosalinda is “dwarfed by her brother,” and picks her up. The señora, seeing this, urges Amabelle to hold the child close to her and feel her breath. The señora thinks this is miraculous, and her facial expression illustrates that there is “nothing else in the world” she sees except her children.
The señora’s insists that Amabelle cradle Rosalinda, a sign that Señora Valencia has expanded her conventional idea of family to include her employee. Still, the señora’s loving expression when looking at her children implies that one’s true home is often defined by one’s relatives. In this way, the señora’s actions both reinforce and revise traditional ideas of home, illustrating how feelings of belonging often fluctuate and change over time.
Themes
Señora Valencia confesses that when she asked Amabelle to light a candle during the birth, it was not for religious reasons. Rather, it was because the señora “promised [her mother] that [she would] light her a candle after she gave birth.” She tells Amabelle that she had been “having more than [her] usual number of dreams,” but insists that during the birth, it felt as if her mother was truly “next to [her,] in this bed.”
The trauma from the death of Señora Valencia’s mother has led the señora to fantasize about her mother’s presence during the birth. The señora’s fantasies provide her an escape from the grief of her mother’s loss: she insists that her mother was present at the birth, as the lack of a maternal figure is too painful to contemplate. The señora’s dreams about her mother’s presence also impart a feeling of belonging: instead of feeling alone and isolated, she feels surrounded by her family, even though her mother is not actually present.
Themes
Señora Valencia wishes Amabelle could have known her mother, Doña Rosalinda, who died before Amabelle’s parents drowned. Amabelle notes that both women have lost family members, leading them to “parent all our childhood dreams out of ourselves.” Juana delivers some food to the señora, but tears begin to “stream down her face.” The señora explains that Juana was present for both of her mother’s pregnancies.
All three women in this interaction have had to reconfigure their idea of home as a result of grief. Amabelle and the señora, who suffered deeply after the deaths of their mothers, have lost their childhood sense of home’s safety and protection. As a result, they were forced to grow up too early and create homes for themselves without a maternal figure. Juana, too, is hurt by the loss of the señora’s mother, and grieves for the woman as if she were a blood relative. Juana’s deep grief reveals how her idea of family has expanded to include her employers, despite the lack of biological connection.
Themes
Señora Valencia is excited for her husband, Señor Pico, to see the children. She says that Pico is “full of ambition,” and that he “dreamed” about “advancing in the army and one day becoming president” of the Dominican Republic. She admits, however, that she would not like to be the wife of the president.
Señora Valencia’s comments about her husband and her place in the Dominican Republic reveal her conflicting thoughts about cultural identity, and how she values it but does not define herself by it. She understands her husband’s extreme patriotism—an indication that she finds one’s cultural legacy to be important—but at the same time, she admits that she does not personally wish to be a cultural figure or symbol of political power.
Themes
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Amabelle goes into the pantry and talks to Juana; she asks why Juana is crying. Juana replies that she is happy to have new members in the household; still, the births remind her that “time passes quickly.” She then confesses that she has prayed for children, but had a miscarriage many years ago. She claims her tears are for Señora Valencia, who is unable to be with her mother on a momentous day.
Amabelle’s discussion with Juana reveals how Juana’s idea of home has changed over time. Juana mourns the absence of the señora’s mother, but her thoughts about time’s passage indicate that she is also mourning the loss of the family she might have had. Juana’s confession about time’s passage suggests that she may regret redefining home; it could be that she focused too heavily on building her employers’ home, at the expense of creating her own.
Themes
