Translations

We discussed in class whether or not a person could fully claim to be a part of a culture if they do mot speak the language. I think no. I think you can't be fully a part of a certain culture unless you speak the language--fluently. This is because, as each of us who fluently speaks english knows, there are little phrases that mean certain things, that when literally translated, are changed. In the play, Yolland knows this because he is trying to learn to speak Irish. My thought is that, if Lancy knew Irish, he would not have ordered so many  of the names to be changed into English because he would have appreciated the history that accompanied the Irish names. The lack of language knowledge made him think that there was no significance in the names.  

Jamie Soto

Turns out she did know where the panther was! Ok, so what I don't understand, and what I also don't think Omishto understood, was why Jamie Soto was so keen on banishing Ama if she knew all along where the panther was? She seems to be an accomplice in the whole thing.

Another thing I don't understand is why Omishto doesn't feel more resentment toward the clan for banishing Ama, the person that she may love most in the world. She's never going to see her again, which would make me blame the elders. But in the end, Omishto goes and joins them! I don't understand how she can be ok with joining the people that sent away her beloved Ama.

I also thought, maybe Ama had a plan all along. She knew that the clan was dying out. Omishto would be a natural choice of someone to carry one the traditions. Perhaps Ama sacrificed herself so that Omishto would join the traditional way of the clan and therefore give new life to the dying tribe. That's just a theory, im still unsure of what really happened in the end of this story.

Does anyone else think its unsettling the way that Ama dissapears forever and Omishto joins the people who bannished her?

The Panther

I would like to make a prediction. After reading today I think there is something weird going on with the whereabouts of the Panther. I mean, where could it be? I think Janie Soto knows where it is. Here's why. When Dona picks Omishto up after the storm and after Ama had been taken away by the police, Omishto learns that Dona and Mama gave Janie Soto a ride because for some reason she was down near town, away from Kili. The first time I suspected that something was going on was when Dona says, "And her bag. She was carrying a bag that seemed a little heavy. She didn't say anything except when we asked if she'd seen you and she just smiled at us. Something like a smile. . . I offered to help her or carry the bag but she wouldn't have it" (88). For some reason this bag she was carrying reminded me of the bag Ama had the panther in. It could be this, or even part of the panther, like the head.

Then, I suspected more when Omishto is being questioned by the elders. The old man says "Did you know you were to bring it to us if one was killed?" Ama says yes and "Janie Soto and Annie Hide exchange a glance. The oldest, Janie, shifts her weight. She is the woman who told Ama about the cat, the stories. This is the woman who has watched Ama all her life" (166). This secret glance between Janie and Annie seems uncomfortable, as if they know something the old man doesn't. Maybe im just making my own story here, but it could be. Since Janie has known Ama so long, maybe she felt like she needed to help her hide the panther, or protect her in some way.

What do you think?

Another quick thing i found that was interesting is a video from YouTube that shows pictures of the Florida Panthers wearing the tracking collars. I imagined the panther as black in the book! But these panthers it shows are more brown. Interesting. (The video wont load right now there's an error so i'll try again later).

Omishto's relationship with Ama

By reading the first part of Power, we see that Omishto has a strong relationship with Ama. But what we also find is that she has an internal struggle with herself between the old, tribal, magical ways and the new, American ways. Because she goes to school, she knows things like logic and reason. She learns not to believe in magic. But I still think she's holding onto the old ways. This is where her relationship with Ama comes in. Ama never went to high school, so she wasn't taught things like reason that is forced on Omishto. But Ama is not completely "old world" either. Omishto says that Ama claims there needs to be a balance in between the old ways and the new ways. I think this is part of the connection that Omishto feels with Ama. She is not ready to completely give up the ways of her tribe, and Ama represents a way to be in the middle. Omishto also says how her mother is completely Americanized even to the point that she converted to Christianity. Omishto seems to resent this and says that she doesn not want to be like her mother. Maybe her connection to Ama is that Ama has not completely let go of her culture, and Omishto respects that because it is different from her mother. Ama becomes a new mother figure because Omishto has a strained relationship with her own.

Lucy's relationship with Peggy

From what can tell from the reading, Lucy is attracted to Peggy as a friend because she is different. Peggy is the polar opposite of Mariah in the way that she looks and acts. This leads me to think that there is a connection between Lucy's past relationships and the new ones she decides to make in the United States. From what we get in the novel from Lucy about her past, her relationship with her mother has caused her a lot of pain and frustration. Then, when she meets Mariah, she sees her as a mother figure. She notes that Mariah is very different from the women in her country, but she recognizes the same motherly qualities in her. I think this is one of the biggest things about Mariah that make her reject getting close with her for most of the novel. Therefore, I feel like this is part of the reason she gets along with Peggy. Peggy is not anything like either of the motherly figures in her life. Lucy even says they have nothing in common, so it must be something else that keeps them together as friends. Does anyone else think that Lucy has some type of obsession with anything that is outside of the ordinary?