Genre
Coming-of-age story
Setting and Context
Set in the Caribbean Community in London, Bristol and Jamaica in the 1980s.
Narrator and Point of View
Third person narrative
Tone and Mood
The tone is ambivalent, and the mood is optimistic.
Protagonist and Antagonist
The central character is Yamaye, and the antagonists are the police.
Major Conflict
There is a major conflict between the police and Yamaye's Caribbean community. The community is discriminated against and mistreated by the police.
Climax
The climax comes when Yamaye arrives in Jamaica and meets the granny, who tells her everything about her past.
Foreshadowing
The Caribbean music beats foreshadow Yamaye’s reconnection with her ancestors.
Understatement
Yamaye understates Monassa's behavior when she says he is a loving man.
Allusions
The story alludes to Gilbert King's (2012) novel "Devil in the Grove" which highlights the specific impacts of racism against minority groups in Western countries.
Imagery
The sense of sight is depicted when the narrator describes the Tombstone estate where she lives. The description depicts the suffering and misery because the estate has poor infrastructure and inadequate social amenities.
Paradox
The main paradox is that Yamaye knows Monassa is violent, but she decides to live with him.
Parallelism
n/a
Metonymy and Synecdoche
n/a
Personification
The narrator personifies music when she says that music gives her life, hope, and the strength to face her challenges. Consequently, the narrator says that music is her number one companion.
