Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in The Farming of Bones, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
The Power of Memory
Dreams vs. Reality
Language and Identity
Death, Grief, and Hope
Home, Family, and Belonging
Summary
Analysis
Amabelle describes the hierarchy of the Haitian community in the Dominican Republic. She explains that there are Haitians “whose families had been in Alegría for generations” and have steady occupations. She emphasizes that some of these Haitians have “Dominican spouses,” and that many “had been born in Alégría.” To the cane cutters and domestic workers, these stable and wealthy people seem to have “their destinies in hand.”
Amabelle explains the layers of the Haitian community, emphasizing the ways in which Haitians have integrated their culture into the Dominican Republic. Through family, marriage, and time, Haitians have grown to accept the Dominican Republic as their home, illustrating how a sense of belonging can evolve. This gradual evolution challenges cultural prejudices, and provides an example of how one nationality can combine with another despite societal boundaries.
Themes
Amabelle overhears conversations between these Haitians. One woman talks in a mix of Haitian Creole and Spanish, a “tangled language” that illustrates how she exists “between two nearly native tongues.” She describes being born in the Dominican Republic, and having children in the Dominican Republic as well; she then emphasizes that she has never been to Haiti. Despite this lineage, she has not been given “birth papers” by the state, which means her son can’t go to school.
One Haitian woman’s speech combines both languages, a symbol of the union between Dominican and Haitian culture. Furthermore, she emphasizes that she was born in the Dominican Republic and has never visited Haiti. She clearly does not consider herself Haitian, but still considers Haitian Creole a native language. This woman’s story is a perfect illustration of how one’s home and identity are mutable, and cannot be defined by simple labels, birthplace, or national borders.
Themes
Another woman recounts recent rumors, claiming that anyone not working in the cane mills will be sent back to Haiti. In response, the Dominican-born woman who speaks both Haitian Creole and Spanish once again emphasizes how she has no birth papers to prove her identity. Amabelle, too, realizes she has no documentation proving that she “belonged either here or in Haiti.” Amabelle is saddened to hear that even the more stable, wealthier Haitians are “unsure of their place.”
The novel frequently emphasizes that cultural labels and definitions of identity can often be unstable. In this scene, the emphasis on having documentation proving one’s origin illustrates how identity can depend on external validation; often, cultural labels are reinforced by society and laws, not by an individual’s own choice. Due to these external forces, one’s sense of belonging can feel precarious, as Amabelle’s does here.
Themes
Amabelle notes that even Don Gilbert and Doña Sabine, who form one of the wealthiest Haitian families in the town, are acting wary. Amabelle describes how their wealth was generated from a “rum enterprise” that was located first on “Haitian soil.” This land soon became “Dominican soil” during the countries’ various “land exchanges.”
Amabelle emphasizes that the wealth of a higher-class Haitian family has come from land that has been traded between Haiti and the Dominican Republic for years. This constant change of borders illustrates that national and cultural boundaries are porous and flexible, despite the Dominican Republic’s firm stance on separating Haitians and Dominicans by class and nationality.
Themes
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Amabelle then runs into Father Romain, a local priest, who is heavily invested in Haitian culture. She claims that talking with him is similar to “returning home.” Father Romain, and other people like him, leave “imprints of themselves in each other’s memory” when they discuss their pasts. They talk and reminisce in the hopes that these “imprints” will be taken back to Haiti.
Father Romain and his congregants embody the act of remembering through telling stories: they constantly reminisce to deepen their recollections of their past. Their memory preserves their sense of home and strengthens their connection to their culture, even when they are far away from Haiti. Father Romain and these congregants illustrate how memory can safeguard identity and community in a county that is often oppressive and prejudicial.
Themes
Amabelle emphasizes that Father Romain’s speeches and sermons are meant to remind “everyone of common ties: language, foods, history, carnival, songs, tales, and prayers.” According to the priest, memory and the act of remembering “can make you strong,” even when it is sometimes “painful.”
Once again, Father Romain makes explicit that memory is vital to preserving history. He prompts his community to recollect shared traditions, so that they do not forget their heritage in a different country. Furthermore, the priest acknowledges that memory can be painful, illustrating a lesson that is central to Amabelle’s life. Amabelle consistently remembers her traumatic past, despite the psychological damage it causes her, but in doing so, she protects her past and life story from being forgotten or revised.
Themes
Amabelle returns to Señora Valencia’s house, and sees Beatriz arrive to greet Don Ignacio. Beatriz asks him what he is writing in a notebook, and he replies that he is trying to capture the details of his life. Don Ignacio replies that the notebook is only for his grandchildren, and admits that his memory is potentially failing: he does not know what he “will or won’t retain” in the upcoming years.
Don Ignacio’s notebook is a physical manifestation of the process of memory: it is a record of his experiences that will be passed on to future generations and will keep his story alive. Still, he confesses that his memory is failing, and thereby illustrates that memory is not always perfect. Don Ignacio’s notebook and his fallible recollections complicate the idea of memory: it is not always capable of perfectly preserving the past and is subject to error.
Themes
Beatriz asks Don Ignacio about his youth, and wonders if he enjoyed being “an officer in the Spanish army.” He claims that Spain was in a “splendid little war,” and that he fled “bloody battles” to settle in the Dominican Republic. He also claims, however, that he would always have left his country, even in times of peace. Beatriz asks if he enjoys the Dominican Republic, and at first, Don Ignacio only answers that he “married here” and “raised [his] daughter here.”
Don Ignacio allows a new listener to hear his story, and thereby guarantees that his past will be remembered and carried into the future after his death. Don Ignacio then admits that he was destined to leave his home country no matter what happened, illustrating how one’s birthplace does not always produce a sense of belonging. By dodging Beatriz’s question, he also subtly reveals that the Dominican Republic feels foreign to him. Don Ignacio’s lack of attachment to either country proves that home is not always connected to a physical location.
Themes
Beatriz persists, asking Don Ignacio once again if he likes living in the Dominican Republic. He admits that he does not like it, as “everything” is “run by military men” and there is an unhealthy “worship of uniforms.” Beatriz then asks if Don Ignacio has killed anyone in his military past, and he refuses to answer, claiming it won’t do any good to know what “evil things” he may or may not have done.
Don Ignacio criticizes the Dominican Republic’s emphasis on national pride and military strength, and doing so allows him to move beyond simple cultural labels that divide people in the Dominican Republic. Although he belongs to an upper-class Dominican family, he does not fully embrace that identity. He then objects to discussing his past, hinting that the violence he has participated in has left him grief-stricken. Don Ignacio’s unwillingness to discuss the matter illustrates how profound an impact death can have, especially for those who cause it: years after his encounters with death, he is still unable to discuss the topic.
Themes
Don Ignacio then tells Beatriz that he is writing about his father, who was a baker. Amabelle realizes that Don Ignacio, like the Haitians, has been “displaced from his native land.” She thinks this is why he is often kinder to the Haitians, who, like him, have not always considered the Dominican Republic their home.
Don Ignacio’s kind treatment of Haitians results from a shared sense of displacement. Both he and the Haitians are far from their home countries, and feel similarly unsettled. This shared empathy overcomes the strict societal boundaries between Dominicans and Haitians, and Don Ignacio steps outside his expected role as a Dominican aristocrat to show how he and the Haitians share common traits.
Themes
After overhearing this discussion, Amabelle runs into Doctor Javier. He asks if she has thought about returning to Haiti as a midwife, and says she will earn a small wage. Amabelle thinks about Sebastien, who is working “too hard” to “save a few pesos,” and wonders if she is waiting for a sign to find “another life,” one that would “fully” belong to her. She thinks that this might be a chance she should seize, but only if Sebastien will come with her.
Amabelle is tempted to return to Haiti, realizing that her home in the Dominican Republic is not as welcoming as she once believed. Amabelle’s increased interest in returning to Haiti reveals how her conception of home has changed over time; she once felt like she belonged with the señora’s family, but now she yearns for a new life. Amabelle’s comments about Sebastien working hard for little pay further reveals her lack of attachment to the Dominican Republic; she does not feel as if she and Sebastien are truly valued members of society.
Themes
