1) Ask (3) questions from the chapter that you'd really like answered.
2) Write a response, choosing a line and explaining it's significance to you. Please remember: no plot re-cap! Share your analysis, make connections to the world, ask questions, and deepen your thinking.
3) Don't forget to respond to someone else's post!
3) Don't forget to respond to someone else's post!
"That white woman don't belong here."(pg.231)
ReplyDelete-This stood out to me because it shows just how segregated everyoneand that time was. I feel like the black woman who had punched Ruth in the face had all this anger against white people because they had been treated differently.
1) Why did Ruth say,"It's about god and don't let anyone tell you different?
(pg.233)
2) Why does Dennis like to meditate?
3) After Ruths' mother died a few months after in 1942 , Ruth stated " I want to accept Jesus Christ into my life and join the church." (pg.235) - Why did she wait after her mother had passed away to accept Jesus Christ in her life?
I agree, and this part also made me think about how Ruth wasn't accepted by whites or blacks. Marrying a black man and being Jewish turned into this concoction where both sides detested her and she experienced discrimination all around for her actions. And to answer question 1, I think Ruth took the Christian faith so seriously because Judaism was so rough for her and Christianity was the opposite.
DeleteYeah i agree. And ruth accepted jesus christ into her life after her mother died because she was feeling very alone and sad. Her mother was the only person that loved her and the only person that she really loved in her jewish family. Going to the church brought her a lot of comfort.
DeleteI agree with you, when I read that line I felt how the blacks and white had anger towards each other. And to answer the 3rd question, I think that she didn't want to disrespect her family's religion, so when her mother passed it didn't matter to her anymore.
Delete"When Jews say kaddish, they're not responsible for you anymore. You're dead to them. Saying kaddish and sitting shiva, that absolves them of any responsibility for you." pg. 246
ReplyDeleteThis line stood out to me because it made me think about how strongly Ruth's family alienated themselves from her. They mourned her as if she were dead, I think, so they wouldn't have to realize what exactly they had done and take responsibilty for the whole thing. They mourned as a defense mechanism to relieve themselves from Ruth and blame her actions on her, not on her awful father or the restrictive religion that they practice. I think another factor in Ruth's rebellion was how strict the religion was. She could only eat if the food was kosher, which down south in Suffolk is probably hard to find, and she couldn't do anything on the Sabbath at all. Also, the fact that her father hated blacks so much made her marry and fall in love with multiple black men. Sitting shiva and saying kaddish turned the blame unto Ruth, and to no one else.
Questions:
1) Why did Dee-Dee's husband reject Ruth after Dee-Dee was going to possibly accept her?
2) Why did Ruth keep having kids she was unable to support?
3) Why was Ruth so hell-bent on never returning to Judaism?
I agree. They needed someone to blame, but I also think that Ruth had a reason to be blamed by Dee-Dee. She basically ruined her life and broke a promise. While Dee-Dee had a reason to blame Ruth, maybe she could have followed her lead and led her own life.
DeleteI know we talked about this in class, but was it really Ruth's fault for leaving Dee-Dee for a better life for herself? I agree that it may have not been the nicest thing to do, but I don't think it was entirely her fault. In the beginning of the book, Ruth says that Dee-Dee was always the favored child; by her father and by everyone else. Although it is really sad that Dee-Dee was left with nobody, I don't think that we can necessarily blame Ruth for leaving and making a better life for herself.
Delete"I looked out there, and there was a blackness that came over me. A sinking feeling like I was going right down into blackness. pg.244
ReplyDeleteThis quote really shows how crushed ruth was when dennis dies. He was everything to her. They had a perfect life together and now that is all gone. I feel so bad for ruth. She said the 16 years she was with him were the happiest in her entire life. It must have also been hard for the kids too. They loved dennis a lot.
Questions:
1) Did ruth marry again just for financial stability or did she actually love the guy.
2) Why did ruth have so many kids if she knew she didnt have enough money to support them on her own.
3) Why is Ruth's jewish family so strict about people leaving and not being accpeted back
I agree with you that Ruth entered almost like a dark realm of her sadness when Dennis dies. But even though Dennis dies, she's able to push through it somehow by finding Hunter and not completely failing her kids.
DeleteI found this part really moving. Up until this I did not believe that Ruth truly loved him. The way she talked about him showed so little emotion/ love. I completely took that back when I read this quote. Ruth loves Denis so much. I think that is one of the reasons she had so many children; she wanted to bring children into the world who, no matter how poor they were, would never suffer as much as she did as a child.
Delete"But i you feel you want to go to Africa to find your roots I won't stop you. I'll still be your mother when you come back. And you'll still be my son." (232)
ReplyDeleteThis quote really stood out to me. It showed me how different Ruth really was from her parents. It also showed how she changed towards her openness about James' heritage. When he was a young kid, she woud have never told him he was "from Africa." I wonder what made her change? Why did she switch around to being so open about who he was? I also found it interesting because she didn't mention that he could find his Jewish roots. Is she still keeping that a secret from him? Why is she open about his father's race and not her own? This also stands out to me because she feels the need to tell him that she won't stop loving him if he goes to find his roots. This is the opposite of what Ruth's family did to her.
"Well, I'm a mother of black children, and nobody will ever deny me of my children..." (page 232)
ReplyDeleteThis line stood out to me because when James was a child, Ruth refused to acknowledge that he was black and she was white. Here she is plainly saying that she has black children. Up until this point in the book, she has been sheltering herself and her children from the fact that they are different. She has been completely non-confrontational about race with her children, which caused them to grow up with some type of "color confusion." In the family that Ruth grew up in, Judaism was forced upon the children. They knew exactly what they were supposed to be and what race their parents were, leaving room for little freedom.
Questions:
1. Did Ruth purposely not answer any of her children's questions about race because her race was so forced upon her?
2. What made Ruth suddenly admit that her children are black and she is white to James?
3. Why is Ruth opening up to James so much as he grows older?
I agree. Ruth wasn't very thorough about race to her children growing up. However, it could have been because she was afraid they would see her differently, since she saw herself as one of them. Ruth growing up wasn't encouraged to express individuality and she wants her children to choose who they want to be.
Delete"My world expanded because of Dennis." (page 234)
ReplyDeleteThis quote stood out to me because it signified why Ruth left home in the first place. Ruth leaves because she wants to be a part of a loving and happy family environment. Dennis was able to provide her with that even though they didn't have a lot of money, like Ruth said they had love and God to help them get through. Ruth found Dennis at a low point in her life, thats why she said a part of her died when Dennis died. When you lose a person who's responsible for turning your life around, you often find that you've lost yourself along with them. Dennis introduced Ruth to a new way of life were there was happiness, generosity and forgiveness and she couldn't have been more thankful to him for that.
1) Why does Ruth go back to her old family members for help when she knows they no longer accept her?
2) Why does Ruth find marriage important all of the sudden when she already considered themselves husband and wife?
3) Why did Ruth's friend, Lily, no longer communicated with her?
I agree. It was as if he gave her life significance and he kept her going all these years. She really felt loved by him and if she had stayed with her family, rather than leaving and marrying him, she would still be in Virgina.
DeleteGreat analysis! I agree! (note: "When you lose a person who's responsible for turning your life around, you often find that you've lost yourself along with them" is a super amazing thesis statement idea) Ruth's accepting love and strong compassion towards Dennis opened her eyes a lot more and experience a happy moment of her life. However, I think Dennis's death made Ruth a much stronger person because she was able to feel loved and was slowly able to turn her hatred into strength.
DeletePamela Yiadom
ReplyDelete"See, a marriage needs love. And God. And a little money.That's all. The rest you can deal with. It's not about black or white".(pg.233)
Questions:
1.Why was Dennis and Ruth still hanging on to their marriage, when the world is against them?
2.I still don't understand how come Ruth would stay on the black side, when there is so much risks?
3. why would Ruth risk her life and Dennis's because of marriage,why is marriage so important to her?
This quote stands out to me because it shocked me. I didn't understand why Ruth and Dennis will go through all this for marriage. I know it's because of Love, but I think it's too much. They are literally putting their life at risk. And it seems they want to prove to people that they are going to stay together no matter what. when Ruth said that " the rest you can deal with" she made it seem like the risks against them was nothing. A lot of people are like Ruth and Dennis; they don't want to see the day when the others who are against them prove their selves right.
I agree with what you're saying. I had the same feelings when reading this quote. I think they stayed together because they knew that they had something really special together that they weren't going to find with anybody else, and they had the faith in God that everything was going to be okay in the end.
Delete"She hit me so hard I fell to the floor...Dennis went to speak to her when he got home from work. "That white woman don't belong here."'
ReplyDeletep.231
1) Why when they say kaddish, your cut off from the Jewish religion?
2)How could people chase down others sinply for their skin color and cause a riot?
3)Why was Lily so hypocritical to Ruth when she was in the exact same spot as Ruth?
These lines were significant to me because they showed real racism back then. And it also shows that it wasn't just the Jewish people who were racist but also black people. And to me, it shows Ruth's resilience to what other people think because she is so strong.
i definetly agree with what you're saying, i think that to add to you about Ruth that it may show that her strength was a reslut of the harsh conditions or experiences she grew up with, maybe it's a message that in order to grow stronger you have to suffer through weakness.
DeleteI agree, i think this shows another level of Ruth's character. She was able to grow from the experience and not be taken by this woman. She went on with her morals and didn't let this experience effect her. I think this shows how strong of a character Ruth really is.
Delete"Me and Dennis caused a riot on 105th street once.A bunch of white men chased up the street and surrounded Dennis and tried to kill him,throwing bottles and hitting and kicking him until one of them made the rest of them stop." (page 232)
ReplyDelete1. How could people be so racist back then where it became violent?
2. Why does the Jewish community shun Ruth because of her dating a black man?
3. What influenced change in equality of race during that time period?
This quote stood out to me because it really introduced the extremes people would go to because of thought on race. Also how Ruth continued to date Dennis even though people were so violent to them, it really showed that she was an independent person who kept her beliefs.
"I was so desprete i went back to my jewish family to ask for help." (page 246)
ReplyDeleteIn this quote Ruth seeks help from thought who have harmed her. This shows extreme desperation and longing for change. Ruth goes back to the past in hope to find her self, a person lost in untraceable memories. This makes us ask is it worth it to find yourself if it causes you pain to seek.
"In 1942, a few months after my mother died, I told Dennis, 'I want to accept Jesus Christ into my life and join the church.'" (Pg.235)
ReplyDeleteThis line seemed significant to me because Ruth decided to switch religions only after her mother died. I don't think it makes a difference whether her mother is dead, it is still disrespectful. To wait until death makes me think she was trying to hid this from her mother, which isn't right. If her mother was still alive, i think she might be hurt by this, but content with Ruth's honesty. There is no right way to go about this situation, either way her mother would have felt hurt. I think Ruth waited so her mother didn't have to go through feeling abounded and disappointed.
1. What was the first thought Ruth had that made her switch religions?
2. Ruth seems to feel more accepted in Christianity, did she think it was going to be this way?
3. How many of Ruth's decisions affect her kids?
I disagree, I believe Ruth only converted when her mother died because she finally realized who she was. She wasn't trying to disrespect her mother or her mother's religion, but trying to embrace who she was.
DeleteI disagree with you Gila, and I agree with you Steph because, Ruth converting, is her way of getting rid of the last bits of her past, and moving away from it. When her mother was alive, i think Ruth stayed Jewish so that he mother wouldn't be completely alone, and as a sign of respect towards her mother. And once her mother passed Ruth had nothing tying her back to that religion and decided, I have nothing to prove to anyone, so I will convert.
Delete"He came from a home where kindness was a way of life. I wanted to be in this kind of family." (Pg. 236)
ReplyDeleteDenis is a very kind person. And I believe he wasn't born that way, but his family in the South taught him to always be kind and how to live a simpler life. Ruth's family barely showed any emotion for each other. Their emotions were in the store and only there. So Ruth starved for love and emotion her entire childhood and life until she met Denis, who was really kind to her. My three questions are; how was Denis's life in the South? How did he learn to be so kindhearted? And, was he kind like he was now, or did he change?
I think this theme with Denis just translates to her entire love for the African-American race. She feels loved and protected with them, and Denis was just someone she thought embodied these ideals she loved.
Delete"...a marriage needs love. And God. And a little money.That's all. The rest you can deal with. It's not about black or white." p.233
ReplyDelete1.) Where does Ruth get her affection and hunger for love from, when her parents never showed her that, or expresses it amongst themselves?
2.) Does Ruth have a fear of being alone, given that she is always looking for love and marriage?
3.) Why does Ruth keep falling in love with black men, when all the odds are against her and her marriage?
This quote stood out to me because it shows me how far Ruth is willing to go, to get away from her jewish family's lifestyle. Ruth didn't grow up taking risk, because in the novel, her family tries so hard to maintain a picture perfect lifestyle so that nothing seems out of the ordinary, but Ruth grows up to goes against society, and there way of living, at that time, and marry's a black men and has a dozen children, which isn't normal for the time in which she lived. This quote also stood out to me because it shows me how much of a fighter Ruth is, and wants to be. She marry's a black man which she knows is unexpectable and unknown to the world that she lives in, but she continues to go along because Ruth had to fight all her life snd that is all she knews, therfore it is all she does. I came to this prediction because when Ruth gets the call form Eddie from Virginia she seems defenseless and caught of gaurd because she begins to cry. She doesnt seem to like that "weak" side of herself, so I think that her wanting love and affection and almost a " whole family" shows me that she does want to be calm and live her life "unknown", but she doesnt know how, because she is used to having to fight to get out of situations, not, having the situatin dealt with for her.
"Part of me had died when Dennis died"
ReplyDeleteI choose this quote because Dennis was the only person in her life that she loved and trusted besides her mother. Everyone she loves seems to die on her. She doesn't like to get close to people which is why she runs away from her problems. She doesn't want to see the people she loves get hurt which is why she runs from them. Her life has been filled with sorrow and it continues when her children rebel and when Hunter dies. Ruth has gone through so much that she can't take anymore so instead of facing her problems she runs from them. Dennis was the only person Ruth felt love from. No one else in her family really showed her what love was. This was like the first time Ruth actually felt the impact of the loss of a loved one.
1) How did James feel not growing up with a father until Hunter?
2)How did this effect her children growing up?
3) What happened to Lily?
"But i you feel you want to go to Africa to find your roots I won't stop you. I'll still be your mother when you come back. And you'll still be my son." (232)
ReplyDeleteI chose this quote because it shows how Ruth will be there for James no matter what. She wants to let him find himself like her father never let her to do. I think this quote demonstrates how Ruth parents her children's differently from how she was rasied. Through out the book we mostly see how Ruth raises her children in a similar way she was raised. Now we can see how Ruth wants better for children and wants her children to be able to find themselves and be free.
Questions:
1.) Why do Ruth's children always at certain age feel trapped and have to have a "revolution" to find themselves?"
2.) Why doesn't Ruth show more emotions toward her children ?
How did Ruth ignore the remarks from people in the hospital and stay so strong?
ReplyDeleteHow could the hospital staff be so heartless to not tell Ruth that Dennis had cancer until he died?
Did Ruth understand why her sister didn't want her in her life anymore?
After her husband dies, and she is struggling with eight children as a single mother, she gets so desperate that she goes a back to her Jewish family. "When I knocked on the door of her apartment, Aunt Betts opened the door, saw who I was, and slammed the door in my face..." "...Then I called my sister Gladys, who was living in Queens. 'You promised you wouldn't leave ' " (246). I thought that this was very interesting because all of the people off the Jewish side that she knew or had a relationship with, helped her. Her black side, even though they weren't related to her but her late husband, even the white men who gave Dennis his pay check every month. She received nothing but sympathy and support until she asked for help from the only two living people in her family that had ever treated her with kindness, her sister, Gladys, and her aunt, Betsy. They both shut her out and didn't even consider helping her. I didn't really understand why her Aunt Betsy was so harsh. She didn't even say "I don't want to talk to you anymore," she simply slammed the door in her face. I also felt really bad for Gladys. The first thing she said to Ruth when she got the phone call was, "You promised you wouldn't leave." This angered me and I lost a lot of respect and pity for Ruth. I feel that she was really selfish and I think that the fact that this was the first thing that Gladys said to her, just shows how helpless she was and how much she needed her older sister to stay and help her and her mother. Ruth promised, she broke that promise, and that was a promise that simply couldn't be broken.
I also found this quote interesting and found that it agreed with her statement that she couldn't go back to her family because to them, she was gone and dead. It's a shame that Ruth, someone who needs so much outside help, to raise 12 kids while not making very much money, was alone in thisuntil her second husband.
Delete"Now that's what I call power." (Page 278)
ReplyDeleteI really thought this quote summed up Ruth's life in the simplest way possible. The passage before this describes how even though her family grew up and went in completely different ways with their life, they still act as they did as kids. She's still in control, maintaining this order she had since her first kid. I feel like this is how she was her whole life. Always taking control of her life. It was just nice to see that, even though her life fell apart over and over again, and the constant change she saw from sending her kids off to college and always moving, she never truly lost her grip. She remains in control, as the queen of the house, no matter where she lives. It's just interesting as she is one of the main constants in James's side of the story in terms of how she acts towards her kids.
1) Were any kids not very successful?
2) Which is James's favorite career?
3) Does Ruth disprove of his musical career?
"I stayed on the black side because that was the only place I COULD stay." Page 232
ReplyDeleteThis quote really stood out to me. It made me wonder if Ruth would have returned to her family if they had accepted her. I thought she would never want to go back, but maybe a part of her still did. She was never accepted with in her own family and she was deeply unhappy when she was with them but some part of her still would have liked to have the option of going back to them. I think the people who you grew up with shape who you are so they will always be with you. Her family was a mess, and she passed on a bit of that to the family she raised as an adult.
I think that Ruth wants to go back to her family, but knows she can't because they wouldn't accept her husband, even though he loved her for who she was. I think that all she really wants is acceptance from the world because she is a white woman married to a black man. If her husband was a white then I think she would have moved back to her family because she knows that they will be better off living around/with them. She never gained that acceptance, so she never accepted that she was white,and didn't want her kids to see race, but who the person really is.
DeleteI know it says the kids cried, but what was their reaction to Dennis' death?
ReplyDeleteDoes James feel a connection even though he didn't know his father?
Did Ruth ever yell at anyone for being racist?
"You'll come back and still be my son."
I thought this quote was interesting because it was a very different view than Ruth has had about digging up one's past. She didn't especially like James digging up her past, and tries to get away from her past and her history as much as possible. I thought it was interesting that it was OK for James to go through his past all the way to Africa and not hers. Also she brought up the point that we were making in class, about how it won't change you if you go through your past because you are still yourself and your ancestors have nothing to do with you. I agree with Ruth on this but at the same time I was confused by her contradiction of her actions in the beginning of this book.
"I was so desperate I went back to my Jewish family to ask for help"-pg. 246.
ReplyDeleteI was a bit puzzled by this quote because on (245) "I opened up our mailbox and found it full of checks and money orders and cash in envelopes from people in the projects who knew us". So, since Ruth technically had a good amount of resources, she still went back to the family she so desperately wanted to get away from. I feel that Ruth just wanted to see what was happening with her family because she called Gladys (I noticed she didn't call her Dee-Dee which was interesting), but she was obviously mad about the promise Ruth failed to keep and cut off further contact with her. However,maybe she was blinded by the hurt, grief, and anger that her true love died and left her with 8 young kids. Maybe Ruth wasn't thinking when she reached out to her family and suffered from her consequences.
I agree that Ruth wasn't thinking when she reached out to her family. I don't think she thought about how much she had hurt them, especially Dee Dee. She probably thought they would forgive her even after she left but that didn't happened so she had to deal with more grief. It made her realize the consequences of her risks.
Delete"But If you feel you want to go to Africa to find your roots I won't stop you. I'll still be your mother when you come back. And you'll still be my son." p. 232
ReplyDeleteI found this quote interesting because Ruth hid her children's identity from them their whole lives, and and here she was freely allowing him to seek the answers he's wanted to find his entire life. The fact that Ruth was able to finally let go or this fear of her children knowing their true past shows how much she does truly love them. This is significant because it seemed that Ruth never really showed physical affection for her children, or told them that she loved them.
1) What ultimately happens to Ruth's sister?
2) How did Ruth's father treat her sister after Ruth left?
3) Does James ever further pursue his music career?
“...and when I told Grandma Etta I was thinking of marrying again, she said, “God bless you, Ruth, because you're our daughter now. Marry that man.” (274)
ReplyDeleteI think that Ruth stays with black people because they don't care about her race or religion, they look at her for what she is. Dennis's parents are so kind to her and she respects them so much that she tells them that she wants to marry again and they give her their blessing. It's like Dennis's parents are her parents, she really loves them and they really do care for her.She says “I would have never even thought about marrying a white man,”(274) I think this is because back then the whites where very judgmental and didn't care about Ruth as a person with thoughts and feelings, but as another human. “That's why I never veered from the black side.”(274)
Questions:
What do Aunt Betts and Ruth's sisters husbands think about eight mixed kids? Do the kids ever get to have a relationship with their grand aunt and aunt? Did Ruth turn James's stepfather down three times because she wasn't ready to marry again because of Dennis or was there another reason?
Oscar Belkin-Sessler
ReplyDelete12/17/12
The Color Of Water
Blog #8
“That’s how black folks lived back then. That’s why I never veered from the black side. I would have never thought of marrying a white man” (247)
One the biggest questions for me throughout this whole book was: Why does Ruth possess this fondness for black people. Is it because she can connect to the feelings of segregation because she is Jewish? Or is it because when she was pushed away from society, blacks were the people that accepted her? I think it was a mix of both and other things. Her childhood was ruined by her Jewish father and at an early age she discovered the division of blacks and white. Unlike many Caucasian people, she accepted blacks as members of the human race. She was disgusted by the things her race did. Once she had spent enough time with black people I think she felt that she was one of them. After that, marrying a white man was never an option.
I agree with you. I think that Ruth go the worst of white people and the best of black people. Even though she is a very reasonable lady it seems like she has permanent anti-white stereotypes. Even though they aren't necessarily bad stereotypes, the fact that she wouldn't ever marry a white man is pretty crazy. I think that her going to the black people is her trying to get away more and more from her white past.
DeleteThree Questions:
ReplyDelete1)Does Ruth's sister ever forgive her?
2)Does Ruth’s personality change as she gets older?
3)Does Ruth ever regret leaving behind her Jewish side?
“Watching all these weddings made me long for my own.” Pg. 235
This quote stood out to me because it showed how important marriage was to Ruth. I think she desperately wanted to marry Dennis even though there were many risks involved because it was her way of saying that she wasn’t going to run away from her problems anymore. She didn’t care if society disagreed with her decision to marry a black man and she was willing to put up with the hatred people felt towards her. I feel like seeing other people get married motivated Ruth to get married herself because she wanted the commitment.
"'That white woman don't belong here,' she said." P. 231
ReplyDeleteRuth is being ignored and abused for being white. She faces tough times in the black community she lives in. It isn't easy living in a place where most people think you are different. In the 1940's, interracial couples were unknown and Ruth was part of one. It called for a lot of attention and prejudice. She also blames Christianity in a way since she is actually following the religion the best she can and these incidents are happening to her.
Three questions:
1) Does Ruth ever find someone she can relate to?
2)Why does Ruth only try to be with black men?
3)Does Ruth have any family in New York?
I agree that it isn't easy for Ruth because of racial discrimination from both whites and blacks, but i disagree with you that she blames Christianity. I think her belief is the only thing that is holding her together, and without life would be much worse. However, I think that just because of her actions, and thoughts, but if you look at the events that take place, it does seem like she could blame Christianity for all the bad things that happen to her.
Delete"a few months after my mother died, I told Dennis "I want to accept Jesus christ into my life and join the church." (235)
ReplyDeleteI find this quote interesting because one would think that you would try to respect the dead by emulating what they do since they can't anymore. Ruth is doing the exact opposite by going against the religion that her mom was a part of. Ruth is doing this as a way to distance herself from her old life in my opinion. Since her mom died she has no real reason to go back and take part in her old life so she separates herself from it as much as she can. She wants to become a total part of this new community so she continues to change herself so she can become a art of it and leave her old life behind her in the dust.
Does Ruth still dislike white people in her old age?
How did the older siblings originally react to Ruth getting remarried?
How does James feel about his father now that he knows so much about him?
I agree with you, that Ruth is doing this to distance herself from her past. But I also feel like her horrible childhood ruined experience of Judaism. Ruth still wants a religion, or something to believe in, in her life, so she turns to Christianity.
Delete"In 1942, a few months after my mother died, I told Dennis, 'I want to accept Jesus Christ into my life and join the church.'" (Pg.235)
ReplyDeleteThis line stood out to me because it seems clear that Ruth has given up on Judaism because she never really believed in it, and it was linked with her family- specifically her father- who she didn’t want to be attached to. Then when he mother died, it was like her last straw. She needed something to believe in, and she couldn’t believe in Judaism so she became a Christian. However, I find it even more interesting that later in the book she doesn’t run away from Christianity when her first husband dies, or her second husband. I think this was because although when her mom died she ran from Judaism because it reminded her from her past, and kept her from her future. There was also nothing that connected to her to it. But with Christianity, she did truly believe in it, because she believes it saved her from her past life. But why is Ruth so dependent on Religion? Is everyone as desperate as she was to find something to believe in? Do all her children become dependent on religion too? In the same ways, or different ways?
I agree with you. Ruth has faith in Christianity because it reminds her of Dennis and the good times that he brought her. Dennis taught her the ways of Christianity when she had nothing else to believe in. Religion is something that has always stuck by Ruth no matter what. It has always been in her life.
Delete"I never missed my home or my family after I got married. My soul was full." Page 240.
ReplyDeleteI think that this quote shows how Ruth has moved on from her past life. She has found happiness in her marriage and in her newfound life. In the past Ruth was never content. Nobody ever taught her how to love until Dennis, her husband, came along. Color didn't matter to Ruth because nobody ever made her feel the way Dennis did and that's all that mattered to her. A lot of people in this world can relate to this because marriage makes people happy. Knowing that they've found the person that they love makes them feel pleasure and feel like they have a home. Just like it does for Ruth.
1) How would Ruth act if she met her father now?
2) Why didn't she every find shelter in a Jewish God? Wouldn't that have given her just as much faith as the Christian God and Jesus?
3) What does James think about his Jewish family?
“That’s why I never veered from the black side. I would have never thought of marrying a white man” (247)
ReplyDeleteThis quote stood out to me because it showed explained why Ruth only married black men, and felt a strong connection to the black community throughout her life. She felt closer to the black people in town she grew up in because, being Jewish, they both were victims of persecution. Also, the white people in the town treated her horribly, so she doesn't like them either.
Three Questions:
1.How would Ruth react if she met her father now?
2. Why is Jame's so interested in his Jewish heritage?
3. Will Ruth's sister ever forgive her?