Friday, October 19, 2007
Closure
At the novel's end, the carved-woman in the African market is sure that "there has never been any village on the road past Bulungu," and that "there is no such village" as Kilanga. How is this both appropriate and ironic for Orleanna in seeking closure? What message do you think Kingsolver intends for us to take away?
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It's appropriate because what has happened has happened and you can't go back in the past and change things. Orleanna I think wishes she could go back and have things turn out differntly to wear Ruth May is still alive. It's also ironic that they can't go back and visit Ruth May's grave to get closure. It's like Kilanga never exsited. Ruth May in a since became one with Africa, she was barried there and in the end of the book, the last chapter ends with Ruth May talking about how she sees her family. She describes Orleanna and how she saw a boy who was about Ruth May's age and was moving like a little child, Orleanna began calulating what Ruth May's age would have been today. In the book it says that that would be the last time she ever did that. Orleanna finally got closure in the village where she saw the little boy.
Well Orleanna when she went back to the congo, talked to that woman, and found out that the village was destroyed and it no longer exists. This to Orleanna isn't really closure i think because she cant go back and visit RuthMays Gravesite. When she was in the village she saw a boy who remininded her of Ruth may and in her head she calculated how old she would have been, and that was the last time she did that. she couldnt go back and see her grave because kilanga got wiped off the face of the earth so she didnt get closure. i think kingsolver meant us to see that its carma for her because she shouldnt have gone to africa with the reverend and should have left him a long long time ago
I think it is appropraite. The Price family went through so much in Kilanga. I think it is better off that now there is no such thing as Kilanga. It kinda puts in perspective that Kilanga was all just a really bad dream. When you wake up, its not real. Even though the Price family knows its there, no one else does. I think it was best that they didn't go back to Kilanga. Ruth May was burried there, and they already said good bye to her. If they went back there, it would just bring back bad memoires for the girls and Olrleanna.
I think it was for the better that the girls and there mother didnt go back to the kilanga. Because Nathan and Ruth May both died there and it would have brought back bad/old memories. I think kingsolver did that to show that Orleanna should have never agreed to go to africa in the first place.
I think this is an ironic ending but not one that I actually liked. This is saying they could never go back to the place that they had made so many memories. In a way though Orleanna is now able to forget all together the horrible place where her child died, and where so many tragic events took place. Kingsolver may have wanted us to realize or see that maybe bad situations can be resolved. That we should forgive and forget.
I think its appropriat because Orleanna wants to go back and remeber what happend in Kilanga but all her memories are bad. She lived some of her worst years there. I think if she went back and remebered everything that happend she would just get depressed. Now that Kilanga doesnt excist she should just forget every bad thing that happend to her.
I think it was appropriate because Africa does not have closure it is always moving on and doesn't look back. It kind of goes back to the balance idea again. It is ironic that Orleanna finally seeks closure but Africa has moved on, Kilanga no longer exists. So in a sense Orleanna is a part of Africa now she has to move on the way Africa does because Africa dictates weather or not she is allowed to move on or not and the only direction Africa moves is forward.
The market woman saying that Kilanga doesn't exist could represent Orleanna finding forgiveness for Ruth May's death. The woman said that the road(on reality)stops at Bulungu. The village of Kilanga is a place where Orleanna experienced guilt. The woman, who had the okapi sculpture(a reminder of how each of us impacts history) also gave the message that the source of guilt didn't existed anymore. It was time for forgiveness.
I think this was Kingsolver's message: Forgiveness.
Well it shows how africa moves on, and i think the message was that africa wants oreleana to move on, she so it closed the chapter on ruth may by taking the village back into the jungle.
This is apropriate because its the way africa works you cannot go back you must keep moving forward or you die.
I think it's appropriate because If my daughter would have died in a country that I had to leave, I would have done the same thing and went back to seek closure also.
It's ironic that the lady at the market said " there is no such village" as kilanga, because at the end of the book Ruth May is the narrarator and she says that she sees her family, which means that where they were was kilanga only the people and the name have changed. Because Africa is the type of place that has to change and move forward to survive.
This is appropriate for Orleanna because it tells her that even if she could go back she cannot change anything. Up to that point I believe Orleanna thought she could in fact change Ruth May’s death, and in some way erase her history. But as she says herself “To live is to be marked.” This lady’s notation is also ironic because it kind of erases the family’s history. If Kilanga never existed, then the Price family never existed, and Ruth May might not have died. So in a way she kind of got what she had hoped for, to not have been. In the final book Ruth May sees the family as the eyes in the trees. She describes seeing Orleanna watch a boy that was Ruth May’s age acting like a young child, Orleanna the began figuring out how old Ruth May would be now. That is the last time Orleanna would do such a thing. If not for this boy it would have been very interesting to see how she found closure.
for orleanna going to Kilanga is a closer of all the bad memories she had there. she never wanted to be there in the first place, but she had no choice. she wanted to leave on numerous occations but she knew if she left she would leave her daughters behind and she didnt want to leave her daughters with there father wich i totally understand, because he is a prick
I think that it is ironic because like Rachel said she felt like she was living in a bad dream and how she hated it so much and always wanted to leave... i think that it is appropriate that there is no such thing as Kilanga anymore because then it kind of just puts in perspective that it was just a bad dream..... but then again it doesn't really give closure.... they can't go back and see Ruth Mae's grave to get some of that closure.... also maybe another thing that could be ironic and that she didn't get closure was because she shouldn't have ever gone to Africa and she should have left the reverend a long time ago.... so then it just goes back to being a bad dream and how she could have avoided it......
In my oppinion it was a great way to end the book. Both the Price family and Africa needed to forget they even lived in Africa. This is actually a great thing for all of them. It makes Orleanna believe there never was a village of Kilanga and the ironic part of it is I dont think she really wanted to see ruth mays grave. They already said goodbye to ruth may and Africa why go back? I think Kingsolver intended exactly what i just said.
It's appropriate for Orleanna because she won't be able to go back to the village to think about the events that occured there. It'll force her to put things in the past and keep them there. It's ironic because now she won't be able to say goodbye to the village one last time, which, I think, would be the ultimate closure for her if she had a choice.
I think Kingsolver wanted us to think that Kilanga died with Ruth May. Once the Price family left, the Kilangans couldn't possibly experience anything new, so it simply ended its time on earth in a sense.
I think it is appropriate because Kilanga was a bad experience for the Price family, and it is better off distroyed so that they can't go back and visit. I think that the message Kingslover is delivering is that the past is the past and you can't change it. You must forgive, forget and move on.
I think its appropriate in the way that now she has to move on because she can't look into the past by looking for ruth-may's grave. Its ironic because they used to hate living there so much and wanted to leave, but now that the years have past the wanna go back but its happens that the village does not exist anymore. I think kingsolver means to show us that it is better to remember but to move on with life and not to let the past bring us down.
The ending is appropriate in a sense that Africa is always moving forward and contantley changing. Africa 'wants Orleanna to move on'. Africa has a culture that does not hold onto things. It has had years of conflict and problems and the people have learned to move on and to forget. They do not take anything with them, including guilt. The African women loose many children, and cannot spend their lives feeling guilty about it because they still have more children to care for.
The ending is ironic because Orleanna came to Africa to see Ruth May's grave and to try to finally let go. But once she gets there, she cannot find the closure that she was looking for. She has to be at peace with things the way they are, and accept that it was not her fault Ruth May died.
The massage that Kingslover is trying to get across is that sometimes it is best to move on and not hold on to events that you could not control. Also, that in African culture the people have no time to hold onto grief because there is so much of it.
Its really ironic that in the end the lady said that kilanga had "never existed". its pretty much saying that they can never go back to the one place where they had so many memories. but i believe that its a good thing in a way because now orleanna can forget about all the horrible things that had happened and can now move on with her life.
i think that kingsolvers message is that bad things happen but they can be resolved. u just have to forgive and forget.
i think its apprpriate because of what has happend in kilanga.. so they say it doesnt exzist,atleast try and make it(in there minds)that it dont exzist.Because of the das memories that had happind there.. like thier baby sister dieing!! so its better off if therte wasnt no kilanga..i think king soliver is tryin to sendx out a message to jus forget about everything....forgive all thats happind.... and move on.. pretty much
I think What kingsolver is trying to tell us is that we should just forget about it. That is what I think. The reason I think it is appropriate is because non of the girls wanted to be there. So they should just forget about it. It is Ironic because Orleanna was going to go pay her respects to her Daughter and she couldn't Because kilanga did not exist.
I think it is appropriate because she dosen't have to relive Ruth May death. Its ironic becuase She can't find closure in Ruth May death. I think the message that he is trying to get is that life goes on.
I think that Orleanna must realize, as well as her girls, that life goes on. When the woman told her that the village never existed, it just goes to show how things in that country can change so fast. They take nothing for granted and the Price family is not use to this way of living. Orleanna never got to go back and see Ruth May's grave or revisit her past, but this may be the best way for her to move on. I think the author want to convey the fact that things come and go, but what you take from your experiences can make or break you.
I think that Orleanna and the Price girls have to realize that although horrible things happened in the Congo, they have to take those experiences and look at them and learn from them. They were such life lessons throughout the time they were there! Although Orleanna when returning to the Congo to see Ruth May never got to see her daughters grave at the same time i think that with her going back it would only bring back the negative times, and i think that she should have realized right at that moment when the lady explained to her that Kilanga no longer exists that there is a reason why that happened and to maybe consider that her baby is in peace without all the chaos in the town now!
I believe it is appropriate because what happens says happened and can't change the past. I think Orleanna wishes she could back into the past to change what has happened so Ruth May would not be dead. It is ironic tha Orleanna and her daughters can't go and visit Ruth May's grave like the village never even existed. Ruth May became one with Africa in a way due to the fact that she was killed and barried in Africa at the end of the book, the last segment ended with Ruth May saying how she can see her family.
I think kingsolver meant us to see that it is carma for her because she shouldn't have gone to africa with the reverend and should have left him before they even went to Africa or at least the first insident that happened.
I feel that it is appropriate because when Orleanna looks for closure she is looking in the wrong place. The reason being because everything in Africa keeps on moving and does not stop. So in return Orleanna needs to keep moving on because there is no way for her to find closure.
i beleive that closure is a very important for one person to have when someone important passes away. i dont think its easy for orleanna to obtain closure when she cant even go and see ruth mays grave site.its liked kalinga never happened. orleanna saw a little boy who moved like a child whitch somehow brought her closer. so in the end orleana does get closure for ruth may whitch lets her move on.
I think that it is appropiate because, she never really wanted to go to Africa and the fact that now they say that the Kilanga never exsisted... i dont know its just kind of ironic... but also she cant go and see Ruth Mays Grave.... so in that way she cant get closure her baby girl is some where but now where she is never exsisted its just kind of weird. i think that she wants us to think that maybe since she never really wanted to go that now it doesnt exsist it kind of never happened...
it was a good idea for the girls and their mom to not go back to kilanga, just because there was so many bad things that happined like the death of too family members.
By going back there will just bring back bad memorys.I think Kingsolver wanted to show us that things can get relly bad but after its all done every thing will be ok.
forget about it.... thats how I see it and thats what kingsolver is trying to tell us. you cant let the past bring you down so think of the future and think positive. the ending was not what i expected if you have time to make this very long and boring book then at least have a good ending, but it is kinda good that kilanga didn't exist maybe it was a dream lol.....or was it dadadadaddddaaaaaa!!!!!!!
I think that it's really a good thing that she can't go back and relive everything. Especially considering that Africa was so painful for her.
It's ironic that all the girls, including Orleanna wished that Africa didn't exist when they were there. Now when Orleanna does go back, it really isn't there.
If it had existed when she went back. It would have given us so much more insight to what Orleanna really thought about the whole eperience. It just leaves us with more questions, which I think Kingsolver intended.
I think it was for the better that the girls and there mother didn't go back to the kilanga. Because Nathan and Ruth May both died there and it would have brought back bad memories. I think kingsolver did that to show that Orleanna should have never agreed to go to Africa in the first place.
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