Book of negroes essay

Hill uses effective Imagery to emphasize the fact that often loss Is worse than death itself. This is shown through the book when Amanita loses her parents, her child and her home. These losses are worse than death itself. Malta losing her own parents shows how losing them Is worse than dying herself. Watching her own baa die tears her world apart. She is still alive in this scene, but a little part of her died inside, along with the death of her mother. She might not be physically hurt but mentally, she Is dying.Amanita thinks, â€Å"But another man Intercepted her, raised high a big, thick club and brought It swinging down against he back of her head. Mama dropped. I saw her blood in the moonlight, angry and dark and spilling fast†¦ I struggled against the leash to look back over my shoulder, and saw that Mama was still on the ground, not moving† (26). The use of Imagery Is strong In this scene to emphasize what Malta endures while her baa Is killed. It paints a mental picture in the reader's head of all the emotions being exposed in this scene; fear, angry, and sadness.This part in the novel is an example of visual Imagery, allowing the reader to visualize the event Like they are actually there, seeing your own mother's. In this quote, the use of the words; blood in the moonlight, angry and dark and spilling fast, creates a very vivid picture. These words are striking to the reader and show how much detail there is in this scene, which causes the reader to have empathy for Amanita. Having to watch her own mother die will leave mental scars that will last her whole life.The reader can see that Malta is not severely hurt, but having to go through the pain of witnessing her mother's gruesome death is eating her on the inside. Effective imagery shows the loss of parents is worse than death itself. Malta losing Amanda hinders the fact that loss Is worse than dying herself. Her baby is taken from her without her consent. â€Å"And my baby disappeared into darkness as fast as a falling star†¦ Bring back my baby! I shouted. He laughed in my face. Bring him back! Too late. He's sold. Only got me five pounds†¦I never before wanted to kill a man. But I would have killed Robinson†¦ My heart and my body were screaming for Amanda. But my baby was gone. Sold, sold, sold. Appleby would not say where†¦ Appleby beat me, but I would 1 OFF due to the fact that Amanita wanted to kill Appleby if that is what it took to obtain her baby back. Amanita saying she would have killed Robinson shows how significant losing a child is since it is not like her to wish death upon someone. Hill creates this overwhelming scene to show what Amanita is going through.This scene causes the reader to feel sympathy for Amanita. At the same time, Amanita has already lost her parents and she does not want her baby to lose his. It is difficult enough for parents to send their child off to university or college, let alone having one's child stolen and sold. Having Appleby laugh in Mantis's face as her baby is taken, illustrates how the main Amanita when has inside her is as worse than death. As the reader envisions Appleby beating Amanita for not working, this shows how physical abuse is nothing compared to the pain of losing her son.The loss a child leads to pains that are worse than death. The loss of home causes an individual to feel like death would be easier to deal with. Amanita is captured and taken from her home. Not being able to return home is like having a part dying inside Amanita. â€Å"l knew in that moment that I would never make it back home†¦ I let go of my greatest desire. I would never go back home† (439 – 442). This is as worse as death because losing a home leads to depression and from the effects of depression can lead to death.Hill uses this situation to cause the reader to visualize how Amanita felt as she left her home, the place she grew up her entire life. At the same time, causes the reader to feel empathetic toward Amanita. It pains Amanita to think of having nowhere to go. If she did try to travel back, she would only be sold back to the slave market. People will say there is no place like home, but for Amanita, there is no place to call home anymore. Losing a place to call home is worse than death itself. In conclusion, personal losses have and always will have a huge impact on an individual's life.Hill's use of imagery throughout the novel keeps the reader occupied with visualizing all the losses that affect Amanita and making their own personal connection with every loss that Amanita experiences throughout the novel. The novel shows how personal losses like parents, one's child and home emphasize the fact these losses could be worse than dying. As a person loses things around or a part of them, they start to lose themselves, and once you lose who you are as a person a large piece of who you are dies as well