Symbolism In Mcbride's The Color Of Water

”(Chapter 2). James was not able to keep himself together because

James had a complicated family life as a child first from his mother was married three times. His first father was a pastor and left to go teach the gold miners in California about God. He sadly died from cholera and was laid in an unmarked grave

The Color or Water is a memoir about a multicultural family. This book is a memoir about James McBride’s life having a white mother. Looking at the family so far with the family life cycle, the family is in the preschool age (Allen & Henderson, 2016). The mother, Ruth is on her second marriage due to her first husband’s death. The family consist of 12 children, 7 where from the first marriage and 4 from the current marriage.

“The Indians called it Wakan, a reference to the clarity of its waters. Now it was fetid and murky, the mud banks glittering with broken glass and strewn with beer cans and the charred murky remains of bonfires. There was a single ravaged island a hundred yards from shore, so stripped from vegetation it looked as if the air force had strafed it. We went up to the lake because everyone went there, because we wanted to snuff the rich scent of possibility on the breeze, watch a girl take off her clothes and plunge into the festering murk, drink beer, smoke pot, howl at the stars, savor the incongruous full-throated roar of rock and roll against the primeval susurrus of frogs and crickets.” (Boyle 168) “Greasy Lake”, written by T. Craghessan Boyle

My first reason is that James is protective over Isaac. When the leader of the gang asks why he brought Isaac along, James says “I told you. I can’t leave him alone. What if something happened?”

In the novel We Were The Mulvaneys the author Joyce Carol Oates gives the readers an insight of the thoughts of one of the characters, Judd Mulvaney. Judd, who a young boy around the age of eleven or twelve, is on his driveway by a brook and he’s looking down just watching the brook’s water flow by; spending his time thinking alone. Oates put a lot of symbolism of death with the thoughts Judd is having. It gives the reader a clear idea of what Judd is feeling about reality.

In chapter 11 of “The Color of Water” discusses Rachel’s (Ruth) first love… Peter. They were never able to meet in public because of racial opinions of other people and because it was illegal for black men to have a companion of a white woman during the 1960s (The Civil Right Movement). For them to keep a healthy relationship during these times, he would sneak out and meet her wherever she was. “ He was the first man other than my grandfather who ever showed me kindness in my life, and he did it at the risk of his own because they would’ve strung him faster than you can blink if they have found out.

Throughout his life, James knew his mother was different. As a child, this was based solely on the color of her skin, being the only white person in his black neighborhood.

John Cheever’s use of the journey motif conveys meaning in “The Swimmer.” Neddy Merrill thinks of himself as an “explorer” who is traveling through unknown territory. He drinks very often and tries to forget the reality of his loneliness. At first, Neddy’s only focus is swimming “the Lucinda River,” but he faces temptation at the Bunkers’ party where everyone is drinking. Neddy gets out of the pool, interacts with the party, and has a “gin and tonic.”

“The Color of Water” by James McBride, elucidates his pursuit for his identity and self-questioning that derives from his biracial family. McBride’s white mother Ruth as a Jewish seek to find love outside of her house because of her disparaging childhood. The love and warmth that she always longed from her family, was finally founded in the African American community, where she made her large family of twelve kids with the two men who she married. James was able to define his identity through the truth of his mother’s suffer and sacrifices that she left behind in order to create a better life for her children and herself. As a boy, James was always in a dubiety of his unique family and the confusion of his color which was differ than

This proves that although James is trying to or into his family, his emotion(s) put a major roadblock in his path. Another reason that supports this idea is on page 4. While and after the kitten is dying, he lets his emotions pour over and doesn’t care what his family sees of him, only about the dead kitten.

Most people tried to avoid James because he would always be complaining or always be holding a grudge. He also constantly talked about war and how he was a “war criminal”, even though he never served in the Forces. Etna knew that something was wrong with James because he always acted sad and lonely. Etna had even told James to call a mental-health clinic, right before the day of the massacre. The next morning, James was in court for traffic offences, but the judge let him go with just a fine.

James was mentioned in the newspapers for his criminal act but for some odd reason, he liked it. From that day on he started to commit more and more crimes to attract more attention to himself. Later on James was aided by an Ex-Confederate soldier named John Edwards who was a newspaper editor to tell James to begin making himself out to be a heroic Southern fighter who helped poor Missourians over ruled by the rich Republican outrages. In letters that Edwards published, James continually proclaimed innocence for specific crimes saying, "We are not thieves, we are bold robbers. I am proud of the name, for Alexander the Great was a bold robber, and Julius Caesar, and Napoleon Bonaparte.

Being that the Scriptures were the only textbook in his day, Jewish boys were to memorize the Law in whole. Consequently, once he reached thirteen or twelve it is quite possible that, as the Jews centuries later kept in tradition to do, James would be then considered as a “son of the commandments” and bound to observe the entirety of the Law5. His education in the Law would then conclude and he would shift onto the next pathway of the common Jewish man's life, working a trade. Assumably James would have worked as a carpenter, such as his father Joseph and brother Jesus until his role in the church possibly took

James begins by presenting who he is, then expanded on the fact that it is better to stay joyful, when trials enter ones life. In verse 4 of chapter 1, it demonstrates that through these tough times, one becomes mature and understanding. Continuing, James teaches that it is futile to go through life asking God for something, then not following through with ones belief. He preaches to be cautious around such people.