Dreaming in Cuban

by

Cristina García

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Shells Symbol Icon

Seashells symbolize the unavoidability of fate. Early on in Felicia’s life, she’s obsessed with collecting seashells. Then, during her childhood, a tidal wave nearly destroys the del Pino home—and after the wave dissipates, the house is full of shells. After this, Celia dreams of a little girl (presumably Felicia) filling her pockets with shells, heedless of the tidal wave that’s about to hit. This leads Celia to believe that shells are bad luck, establishing Felicia’s natural association with misfortune from an early age. Indeed, Felicia goes on to suffer from mental illness, domestic abuse, and general bad luck in spite of her mother’s warnings.

As an adult, a santero (high priest of Santería) uses seashells in a divination ceremony and predicts unavoidable misfortune for Felicia: “water cannot be carried in a basket,” he tells her. The use of shells represents the idea that bad luck is following Felicia despite her better efforts, and the santero’s reading suggests that Felicia won’t be able to hold onto anyone she loves—they will fall away like water in a woven basket. Again, despite this warning, Felicia goes on to suffer more loss and fall deeper into her illness, reaffirming the idea that people’s fate is determined early on (as symbolized by Felicia’s childhood affinity for seashells) and is unavoidable and unchangeable. Later, when Felicia is dying, Celia stomps on the divination shells that Felicia’s friends have brought, as if blaming them for her daughter’s ill fortune. The recurrence of shells throughout Felicia’s life suggests that she was destined to suffer misfortune and to die before her mother, no matter what she knew ahead of time or what anyone else did to protect her.

Shells Quotes in Dreaming in Cuban

The Dreaming in Cuban quotes below all refer to the symbol of Shells. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
Passion, Romance, and Marriage Theme Icon
).
God’s Will Quotes

Celia overturned the tureen with the sacred stones and crushed Felicia's seashells under the heels of her leather pumps. Suddenly, she removed her shoes and began stamping on the shells in her bare feet, slowly at first, then faster and faster in a mad flamenco, her arms thrown up in the air.

Then just as suddenly she stopped. She made no sound as she wept, as she bent to kiss Felicia's eyes, her forehead, her swollen, hairless skull. Celia lay with her torn, bleeding feet beside her daughter and held her, rocking and rocking her in the blue gypsy dusk until she died.

Related Characters: Herminia Delgado (speaker), Celia del Pino, Felicia del Pino
Related Symbols: Shells
Page Number: 190
Explanation and Analysis:
Get the entire Dreaming in Cuban LitChart as a printable PDF.
Dreaming in Cuban PDF

Shells Symbol Timeline in Dreaming in Cuban

The timeline below shows where the symbol Shells appears in Dreaming in Cuban. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Ocean Blue
Obsession and Devotion Theme Icon
...the tidal wave in 1944, when Felicia was six. Felicia had picked up a beautiful shell on the beach, but Celia, hastily packing their valuables in a suitcase, scolded her for... (full context)
Religious Diversity Theme Icon
...and incense. Shrines of various gods crowd the room. The god Elleguá inhabits eggs with cowrie-shell faces. Four “mulatta” women are praying before the shrines, and a Yoruban man stands quietly.... (full context)
The House on Palmas Street
Obsession and Devotion Theme Icon
Celia has a recurring dream of a young girl filling her pockets with shells. The girl ignores warnings that a tidal wave is coming. When the wave comes, she... (full context)
Baskets of Water
Religious Diversity Theme Icon
Obsession and Devotion Theme Icon
...she visits a santero who’s known for his divination skill. Though the santero casts the shells repeatedly, he gets repeated predictions of misfortune. He tells Felicia that “water cannot be carried... (full context)
God’s Will
Religious Diversity Theme Icon
...Delgado (1980). Herminia and Felicia met when they were six years old. Felicia was collecting shells on the beach. Herminia told Felicia that shells could be used to predict the future.... (full context)
Intergenerational Conflict Theme Icon
Religious Diversity Theme Icon
Obsession and Devotion Theme Icon
...Felicia’s house, Celia shows up and orders the “witch doctors” out, stomping on the divination shells in her bare feet. Then she held Felicia and wept over her until she died. (full context)
Six Days in April
Intergenerational Conflict Theme Icon
Religious Diversity Theme Icon
...Celia is going through Felicia’s old belongings. She recalls Felicia as a little girl, collecting shells on the beach before the tidal wave. Her daughter had been buried as a santera,... (full context)