When I started reading the book, I have to admit it was very difficult for me at first. I had trouble understanding the context of the story. I had to go and read a little bit about the Spanish Civil War and some other aspects of that time period. This helped me get a grounding of the situation I was reading about. From the story, I saw that there were many symbols. The clearest one is the birds, but they are not just single symbols. On the one hand, they are symbols for the children. There is the passage when Natalia is describing chasing the children in the house and trying to get control of them, and then also how the doves are making trouble for her. Then she describes how she watched the doves when they were put in nesting boxes so they would not have to go through the house and instead can climb up the ladders. Watching them struggle to do this is similar to a mother watching her children struggle through life.
At the same time, the birds are also a symbol for other aspects of the story, such as how they have wings and can fly, but there are obstacles that stop them from doing it. For example, they are seen as prisoners because they are kept in the dark and forced to lay eggs, just like people in the city were kept from being able to live freely because of the civil war that was going on at this time.
As I read the book, there were many emotions I felt about the story. I could not help in feeling angry about some of the decisions made. Natalia makes decisions that led to negative consequences such as choosing to be with a man who was abusive, and then deciding that the children were suffering so it would be better to kill them. This part especially makes it look like she is worried about their suffering, which I think shows her character to feel like life is something that she can decide how it should be lived. It was interesting to read about the situation that people are in when there is a war going on. We often read about wars from those who are in it and forget how traumatic it can be to just be in a wartime situation. The question I thought about was – could this story be told without the backdrop of the war, or is it a necessary part of the story?
Hi Zobel,
To answer your question, I think for the doves to add as much symbolism as they do to the story, it is necessary for it to be told during the war. As you said, “just like people in the city were kept from being able to live freely because of the civil war…” in comparison to the doves, I don’t think the doves would have made as big of an impact to the story as they did because of the war.
Sorry Shanshan, misread your name! was looking at your last blog post.
Hello! I also noticed a lot of symbolism regarding the doves. As for your question, I think we would have quite a different story if told without the war. I think it’s a necessary part of the story as it sets the scene and heavily influences Natalia’s life. For example, Quimet’s death was due to the war, and the war caused many supply shortages.
Hi.
I believe that was necessary for this story to happen, as that is what end up taking the life of Quimet. But also I believe we get to see the life of the people which do not go to war, but that do end up feeling the effects of it on their home.
“There is the passage when Natalia is describing chasing the children in the house and trying to get control of them, and then also how the doves are making trouble for her.”
– this is insightful and intriguing! I encourage you to use page numbers for reference for you blog readers. If you can find them for the parallelism you point out in these passages, I’d love to know!