A Wall of Fire Rising Symbolism Essay

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Analyzing a Wall of Fire Rising by Edwidge Danticat
The story by Edwidge presents a family caught in the conflict between the reality and a fantasy. The story tells of a man determined in his search for freedom from all that that is holding him back. The Guy in the story is dissatisfied with his present life and wishes to break free from it while his wife Lili tries to convince him to stick to reality and accept the normal life they have. Despite their different views and perspectives about their life, they see some hope in the form of their young boy Little Guy. Interestingly, their struggles do not set them apart but instead, help them to stick together and stand by each other’s side until the end. Edwidge Danticat’s “A Wall of Fire Rising” represents family as an individual’s strongest support group despite any struggles or conflicts within the family.
From the story, it is evident that parents can support their child in everything even when they themselves have different stands and perceptions about life. Lili and her husband Guy have different perceptions whereby she is satisfied with their current state because she knows that they can only afford such a life. Guy on the other hand believes in his fantasy that he can make things much better. Despite all these, they still find a common ground, which is their child. Guy openly shows an interest in his son’s life by inquiring about his play. He even asks him, “Tell me, what is your part in your play?”(Danticat 235). Together with his wife, Guy gave his boy a big applause after his wonderful performance as a show of their support and pride in him. Their support for their child was driven by their love towards him. Notably, their son’s presentation “left them feeling much more love than they ever knew that they could add to their feeling for their son,” (236). As a family, they also visited the sugar mill where the father got to spend some alone time with his wife and later on played Lago with his child (239). The Guy also discussed with his wife Lili about the work he got at the sugar mill (240). The wife appreciates and supports him in this since it meant that their lives would improve slightly. This was important since it showed a determination on Guy’s part to give his family, and particularly his child, a good and different life from what they were used to. Their enthusiasm about supporting their son is largely because the little guy is a symbol for their hope. He represents all their desires and ambitions that would come in the near future.
Apart from the mentioned, the story also makes it clear that being a family means sticking around when things get hard and not just when everything is fine. The father in Edwidge’s story has been without work for a period of about four months before finally getting some work at the sugar mill. As a parent and as the expected breadwinner of the family being out of work can really frustrate a family’s financial situation. As evidenced from the story, there were days when the Guy’s family had to make do with only sweet sugarcane tea as the available food due to lack of finances to buy food. Througho...