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Great-Aunt Mary
Jolene Gondiwindi is a middle-aged Aboriginal Australian woman who is imprisoned for the majority of the novel. She is August and Jedda’s mother and Mark Shawn’s wife. Elsie and Albert are Jolene’s parents, and Missy and Nicki are her sisters. Since her imprisonment, Jolene has had no contact with her daughters, though August clings to what happy memories she can recall. At the novel’s end, Jolene is released from prison at last and reunites with August.
Jolene Gondiwindi Quotes in The Yield
The The Yield quotes below are all either spoken by Jolene Gondiwindi or refer to Jolene Gondiwindi. 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:
).
Chapter 16 Quotes
I was buried by scripture, but buoyed by hope, and so when we got our second spring, having two little daughters again in Jedda and August, we opened up Prosperous for all the people. The bula and I would go for long walks up to Kengal Rock. I’d explain how the old people walked up there through those same pastures, used their stone axe before White men brought their own metal axe, where lovers met and they left marks on trees […] Bula would look up at me at those times, eyes wide, all the wonder in the world bustling in their minds. They are my fondest memories, showing bula what great people they came from long ago.
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In his dictionary, Albert reflects on the time he and Elsie spent caring for Jedda and August after their parents’ arrest. Jedda and August’s arrival led Albert and Elsie to “open[] up Prosperous for all the people.” In later passages, he talks about welcoming strangers to the property who remembered growing up there when it was a Mission and a Station. In this way, Albert associates caring for his bula (“pair”) of granddaughters with his desire to connect with the living Aboriginal Australian community in a deeper way. Albert enjoyed showing Jedda and August the property and the ways their Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo minus tempore. Nostrum dolor asperiores. Ut aliquam officiis. Unde enim nesciunt. Commodi necessitatibus voluptas. Accusamus eaque omnis. Velit eaque error. Possimus corrupti soluta. Qui aut a. Rerum voluptas debitis. Voluptatem accusantium est. Mollitia eaque ipsa. Perferendis consectetur et. Dicta impedit ut. Ducimus possimus quo. Non inventore in. Eligendi atque placeat. Molestiae earum eum. Libero sit beatae. At a deserunt. Sint aperiam
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Jolene Gondiwindi Character Timeline in The Yield
The timeline below shows where the character Jolene Gondiwindi appears in The Yield. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Chapter 2
...was only aware of her family’s poverty at lunchtime. Before her grandparents packed her leftovers, her mother ’s lunches drew mockery from other kids. Once, she packed August plastic play food.
(full context)
Chapter 4
...long absence. Finding the scrutiny unbearable, August asks about the dog and whether her mother (Jolene) is coming to the funeral. Elsie thinks August’s mother will qualify for a day’s release,...
(full context)
Chapter 8
August flashes back to living with her parents, Jolene Gondiwindi and Mark Shawn. Her family was so impoverished that August began compulsively eating anything...
(full context)
Chapter 11
...well looked-after. Still, the girls faced cruelty at school and missed their parents—Mark died, and Jolene remained in prison. After a year in Massacre Plains, August turned nine and everything changed...
(full context)
Chapter 14
...she leaves. On High Street, new and old constructions have merged. She thinks of visiting Jolene in prison but decides against it. A council worker trims grass around a bronze statue...
(full context)
Chapter 17
...was writing about. August wonders why her grandparents were so good together while her mother’s (Jolene’s) life went so wrong. More family is coming tomorrow, including Uncle Fred, who cut off...
(full context)
Chapter 20
...where Aunt Missy is telling Eddie about how Albert used to take her and her sisters—Jolene and Nicki—eel fishing. She remembers Jolene catching a gigantic eel which somehow got hold of...
(full context)
Chapter 26
...next day. Thinking of Eddie, she tries to masturbate but can’t, thinking of Jedda and Jolene. On Monday, August wakes and goes through the old wardrobe in search of Poppy Albert’s...
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Downstairs, August finds the house empty. She considers driving six hours to visit Jolene in prison but decides against it. Feeling more at home than before, she finds a...
(full context)
Chapter 28
...(“geebung”). When the subject turns to his own family, Albert becomes sorrowful. He thinks putting Jolene and Joey in ngunba-ngidala (“jail”) is an overcorrection designed to intimidate Aboriginal people. Albert believes...
(full context)
Chapter 29
Eddie asks if August really expected Jolene to show up for Albert’s funeral. August has realized that prison must be more of...
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Chapter 41
...and belonging she was looking for and has grown comfortable carrying the past with her. Jolene is finally released from prison. She and August say goodbye to Jedda together. August and...
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