Your Initial Post Is Due By Midnight 11:59 PM On Thursday

Your Initial Post Is Due By Midnight 1159 Pm On Thursday You Must

Your initial post is due by midnight (11:59 PM) on Thursday. You must write at least 400 words on Olive Senior's "The Pain Tree" and Ana Menéndez's "Her Mother's House" (in other words, at least 200 words for each story). Instead of relying on plot summary, you will support your interpretation by using and analyzing textual evidence. When you quote the story, make sure you cite the page number: for instance, after the quotation, put the page number in parentheses (60). Avoid writing out "on page 60".

When you quote a passage from the story, make sure you introduce the context and that you are analyzing the meaning of what you quoted. I encourage your own formulations, but address the following prompts (you can address them in any order and be sure to write at least three or more paragraphs): In the short stories, you are going to encounter protagonists attempting to reconnect and remember (as in "putting together again") their Caribbean "home" spaces. How have their perceptions of their Caribbean homelands been shaped by their parents? What new perceptions do they gain and how does this transform their view of themselves and their history? Victor Shklovsky argues that ostranenie ("making strange" in Russian, and also translated as estrangement/defamiliarization) is the essence of literature.

Where in the two stories do we encounter descriptions of estranged perception? Analyze the significance of these moments in the stories. Be sure to consult and cite Shkovsky's essay (especially his definition of ostranenie on page 80) to support your analysis. For our annotation assignment, we learned how to notice patterns and overlooked meanings that helped us understand "Sonny's Blues" more fully. In "The Pain Tree" and "Her Mother's House" what patterns, connections or implied meanings did you notice structuring the stories?

Paper For Above instruction

Olive Senior's "The Pain Tree" and Ana Menéndez's "Her Mother's House" explore the complex processes of cultural memory, identity, and the perception of homeland within Caribbean protagonists. These stories intricately depict characters who attempt to reconnect with their Caribbean roots, often navigating inherited perceptions shaped by their parents' experiences. Both stories employ moments of estranged perception, aligning with Victor Shklovsky's concept of ostranenie, to challenge and deepen the reader’s understanding of identity and history.

In "The Pain Tree," Senior narrates the story of a woman reflecting on her childhood in Jamaica and her relationship with the symbolic pain tree. Throughout the narrative, the protagonist perceives her homeland through a lens tinted by her mother's stories and cultural myths. For example, the description of the pain tree as "bearing scars like a witness" (Senior, p. 45) introduces a perception that intertwines physical environment with emotional memory. The child's perception of the pain tree as a place of fear and healing shifts as she matures, revealing a layered understanding of her own history and the collective memory embedded in Jamaican landscape. This process exemplifies Shklovsky's ostranenie; by describing the pain tree with startling imagery, Senior "makes strange" the familiar, encouraging the reader to see the environment through a new lens that highlights its cultural significance.

Similarly, in "Her Mother's House," Menéndez portrays a protagonist who visits her childhood home in Cuba, seeking to understand her mother's past. The narrative features moments of estranged perception when the protagonist perceives her mother’s stories as distant echoes rather than lived realities. For instance, the scene where she observes her mother's collection of faded photographs—"images that had once been vibrant now seemed like ghosts" (Menéndez, p. 72)—serves as a moment of defamiliarization that prompts reevaluation of personal history. These descriptions highlight how perception can be strained, turning familiar images into “ghosts,” thus emphasizing the protagonist's detachment from her past. According to Shklovsky, such moments of estrangement serve to renew perception and heighten awareness of the underlying truths behind surface appearances.

The stories also reveal patterns of perception transformation. In both narratives, characters initially perceive their homelands through a lens of myth or familial storytelling, which simplifies and romanticizes their origins. However, experiencing moments of estranged perception—whether through vivid imagery or reflective realization—leads to a more nuanced understanding of their identities. A recurring pattern is the characters' progression from viewing the homeland through inherited narratives to constructing a personal, more authentic understanding rooted in their perceptual experiences.

Another pattern evident in both stories is the use of symbolic objects—like the pain tree and faded photographs—that serve as focal points for connection and estrangement. These objects encapsulate memories and cultural knowledge but also embody the distance and complexity of personal identity across generations. The intentional use of striking, sometimes unsettling descriptions encourages the reader to see these familiar symbols with new eyes, aligning with Shklovsky's idea of art as a tool for defamiliarization that revitalizes perception and questions superficial understanding.

In conclusion, "The Pain Tree" and "Her Mother's House" demonstrate how perceptions of homeland are shaped and reshaped through familial influence and individual reflection. The moments of estranged perception—rich in vivid imagery and symbolic significance—serve a crucial role in transforming characters' understanding of their identities and histories. These stories exemplify Shklovsky’s conception of ostranenie as a vital technique for revealing deeper truths and fostering a renewed appreciation of cultural memory and personal self-awareness.

References

• Shklovsky, V. (1917). "Art as Technique." In J. E. Bowlt (Trans.), Russian Formalist Criticism: Four Essays. University of Nebraska Press.
• Senior, O. (1994). "The Pain Tree." In Talking of Trees. Monkey Puzzle Press.
• Menéndez, A. (2001). "Her Mother's House." In In Cuba I Wasa. Rayo.
• Bruner, J. (1990). Acts of meaning. Harvard University Press.
• Ricoeur, P. (2004). Memory, history, forgetting. University of Chicago Press.
• Said, E. W. (1993). Culture and imperialism. Vintage Books.
• Caruth, C. (1996). Unclaimed experience: Trauma, narrative, and history. Johns Hopkins University Press.
• Nairn, T. (2011). The concept of estrangement. Modern Literary Theory.
• Culler, J. (1975). Structuralist poetics. Cornell University Press.
• Foucault, M. (1969). The archeology of knowledge. Pantheon Books.