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Emil Buckendorf
Sister Mary Anita Buckendorf is a nun and a teacher at Evelina and Corwin’s Catholic middle school. Mary Anita has a “prognathic jaw,” which means that her chin protrudes below her face—a visual that makes her the subject of mockery for students like Evelina and Corwin. After Evelina draws Sister Mary Anita as “Sister Godzilla,” Mary Anita asks Evelina to apologize, and Evelina finds herself newly compelled by her teacher (thinking she might even be “in love” with the nun). When Evelina learns that Mary Anita is a direct descendant of Emil Buckendorf, one of the men who led the 1911 lynchings, Evelina’s world is shattered, and she becomes obsessed with tracing the lineages of everyone who lives in Pluto. Later, Mary Anita tells Evelina that Mooshum bears some culpability in the hangings and gives Evelina Holy Track’s boots. Mary Anita thus epitomizes the novel’s questions about ancestry and responsibility, as she and Evelina together try to come to terms with the burdens of their separate familial histories.
Sister Mary Anita Buckendorf Quotes in The Plague of Doves
The The Plague of Doves quotes below are all either spoken by Sister Mary Anita Buckendorf or refer to Sister Mary Anita Buckendorf. 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:
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15. Shamengwa Quotes
In spite of my conviction that he was probably incorrigible, I was intrigued by Corwin’s unusual treatment of the instrument. I could not help thinking of his ancestors, the Peace brothers, Henri and Lafayette. Perhaps there was a dormant talent. And perhaps as they had saved my grandfather, I was meant to rescue their descendant. These sorts of complications are simply part of tribal justice. I decided to take advantage of my prerogative to use tribally based traditions in sentencing and to set precedent. First, I cleared my decision with Shamengwa. Then I sentenced Corwin to apprentice himself […] He would either learn to play the violin, or he would do time. In truth, I didn’t know who was being punished, the boy or the old man. But now at least, from the house we began to hear the violin.
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16. The Reptile Garden Quotes
“To live my life atoning for another person’s sin?” She said at last, her voice scratchy and faint. “I wouldn’t have had the strength. But then again, the hanging undoubtedly had something to do with my decision, growing up and finding out. Knowing one could be capable.”
“One could be?”
“Anyone, perhaps. My father said that his grandfather was very kind, the kindest one of all. And yet he always knew he’d been one of the lynching party. My father was never able to put him there, in his thoughts. A couple of times he said he spoke of it. He spoke of your grandfather.”
“Mooshum?”
I leaned forward and waited […]
“I believe your grandfather used to drink in those days. Your Mooshum told Eugene Wildstrand that he and the others were at the farmhouse. Mooshum told how they had found that poor family.”
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Mooshum knotted the laces, handed the boots to me. I threw them up. It took three times to catch them on a branch.
“This is sentiment instead of justice,” I said to Mooshum.
The truth is, all the way there I’d thought about saying just this thing.
Mooshum nodded, peering into the film of green on the black twigs, blinking, “Awee, my girl. The doves are still up there.”
I stared up and didn’t have anything to say about the doves, but I hated the gentle swaying of those boots.
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Sister Mary Anita Buckendorf Character Timeline in The Plague of Doves
The timeline below shows where the character Sister Mary Anita Buckendorf appears in The Plague of Doves. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
4. Sister Godzilla
...at odds personally, they agree on one thing: their new teacher, a Franciscan nun named Mary Anita Buckendorf, is tremendously ugly. Still, privately, Evelina notices the elegant grace of her teacher’s hands,...
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One day, Evelina entertains herself in class by drawing a picture of Sister Mary Anita as a dinosaur. Evelina is so caught up in her work that she at first...
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As soon as Evelina and Mary Anita are alone together, Evelina bursts into tears, sobbing and apologizing. Mary Anita admits that she...
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...tree bark. The best way he finds to get to Evelina is by teasing Sister Mary Anita , calling her “Godzilla” until the other kids join in. This mockery makes Evelina burn...
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...presentation on snakes when Corwin raises his hand and politely asks a question about Godzilla. Mary Anita laughs it off, and the other kids join in, but Evelina feels nauseous. She punches...
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Evelina writes letters and tears them up, all of which ask Sister Mary Anita to come live with her at her BIA house. One day, Evelina’s feelings grow so...
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5. Holy Track
Evelina continues to feel obsessed with Sister Mary Anita , talking about her constantly at home. One day, Clemence asks Evelina what Sister Mary...
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16. The Reptile Garden
...sleep, she hears the fluttering of dove wings. She wonders if she should pay Sister Mary Anita a visit.
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A few days later, Evelina goes to visit Sister Mary Anita at the convent. At first, Evelina does not plan to tell Mary Anita about her...
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Evelina finally asks Mary Anita if she became a nun because of what her ancestors did in the hanging. Her...
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Before Evelina goes, Mary Anita promises to pray for her. The nun then gives Evelina a rumpled paper bag. When...
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