Also, look at the poem "Little Boy Blue" ( referred to in Chapter 1 of A Tree Grows in Brooklyn) and respond to what strikes you; why do you think this is the reference she uses?
Little
Boy Blue
by Eugene Field (1850-1895)
by Eugene Field (1850-1895)
The little toy dog is covered with dust,
But sturdy and stanch he stands;
And the little toy soldier is red with rust,
And his musket moulds in his hands.
Time was when the little toy dog was new,
And the soldier was passing fair;
And that was the time when our Little Boy Blue
Kissed them and put them there.
"Now, don't you go till I come," he said,
"And don't you make any noise!"
So, toddling off to his trundle-bed,
He dreamt of the pretty toys;
And, as he was dreaming, an angel song
Awakened our Little Boy Blue---
Oh! the years are many, the years are long,
But the little toy friends are true!
"And don't you make any noise!"
So, toddling off to his trundle-bed,
He dreamt of the pretty toys;
And, as he was dreaming, an angel song
Awakened our Little Boy Blue---
Oh! the years are many, the years are long,
But the little toy friends are true!
Ay, faithful to Little Boy Blue they stand,
Each in the same old place---
Awaiting the touch of a little hand,
The smile of a little face;
And they wonder, as waiting the long years through
In the dust of that little chair,
What has become of our Little Boy Blue,
Since he kissed them and put them there.
Each in the same old place---
Awaiting the touch of a little hand,
The smile of a little face;
And they wonder, as waiting the long years through
In the dust of that little chair,
What has become of our Little Boy Blue,
Since he kissed them and put them there.
Write thoughtfully about your feelings about the first chapter and the poem.
Have fun with it! We will do more creative assignments as we go forward!
Just hit new post when you want to write.
In the first chapter of "A Tree Grows in Brooklyn," the author provides a brief glimpse of her struggles in her coming of age. Francie and her brother, Neeley, would collect rags, paper, metal, rubber and other junk to recycle every Saturday for a less than diminutive few pennies (or nickel if lucky.) Francie's mother scrubbed floors for a living, further demonstrating how impoverished her family and she was.
ReplyDeleteThe poem above can relate to Francie such that both Little Boy Blue and Francie are depicted to be growing up in each other their respective texts. In the poem, it is left to question what Little Boy Blue has become as he grows older, but it is given to the reader that his little loyal toy soldier starts to grow red with rust.
The Tree of Heaven is described as one that "grew in boarded-up lots and out of neglected rubbish heaps."
The Tree of Heaven in "A Tree Grows in Brooklyn" is metaphorical for hope and the strength to endure. Wherever languidness stood, whether in be in board-up lots or in neglected rubbish heaps, the Tree of Heaven would flourish to counteract the seeming loss of hope and perseverance.