The Red Reaper Raven
"The Little Seamstress's hair wasn't tied back into her usual long, thick pigtail, and as she ran, her hair floated out over her shoulders like wings. I scanned the mountainside for the red-beaked rave, and when my eyes returned to my friends, the Little Seamstress had vanished" (116-117).
Sijie uses the symbol of the red beaked raven to portray impending doom and to foreshadow the threat of the Little Seamstress. The red beaked raven appears when the narrator and Luo are heading towards the Little Seamstress's home, and the narrator takes notice to this, while Luo completely ignores this. The narrator also has a dream where he sees the raven flying across the mountain heralding the death of the Little Seamstress in his dream. The correlation of the appearance of the raven with the Little Seamstress in both real life and in his dream add a prescient credence to the dreams. The writer makes a connection between the Little Seamstress and the raven as one. For instance, in the novel, the Little Seamstress's hair is compared to the wings of the raven. This foreshadows what may happen in the future of the Little Seamstress. Since the Seamstress is described as the ravel and the raven is a symbol of doom, something that ties to the theme of loss may occur later in story. The raven connects to loss through the threat of something happening to the Seamstress.
Despite the threat of the raven's mark, the narrator is still jealous of Luo and his destiny and position with the Seamstress and the opportunity to have an impact on her fate. The red raven represents a possible threat to the Little Seamstress. Due to Luo's closeness to the Seamstress, the narrator feels that he has an a big hand in her destiny, which he covets. He desires to be important in the Seamstress's story, despite the risks that may come with it. This shows that the narrator more so values the idea of being influential, rather than being safe. It also shows that he wishes to steal the spotlight from Luo, although he tries to curb these emotions towards Luo.
Was the impending doom a physical threat of having to cross this dangerous bridge or was it a symbol of the dangers of having these two friends fight for the little seamstress?
ReplyDeleteI like your connection between the raven and the Little Seamstress. It is very insightful because they are two very different characters; however, they do share a similarity. I think this also connects to jealousy because the narrator takes notice in more details, like the raven and the Little Seamstress, rather than Luo in this instance. It shows that he does have deep feelings for her, but he tries to cover it up for the sake of loyalty to Luo.
ReplyDeleteThe red-beaked ravens are also something that is noted by the miller in his perspective. Do you think the ravens' purpose change in this context or do they still represent the threat of the Little Seamstress? Also, I can see a connection with this symbol and hope, rather the lack of hope that the ravens represent.
ReplyDeleteGreat connection and insight on both quotes! Do you believe that the Narrator has the amount of drive to do something about wanting to influence The Little Seamstress? Also, why do you think the author used the Raven as a symbol of death? There are several ways to represent that theme.
ReplyDeleteIs the raven relative to the Little Seamstress or another character?
ReplyDeleteI do believe that the raven foreshadows a misgiving, however, I do not believe it is directly connected to the Little Seamstress. It follows Luo in many scenes, and he is not often mentioned in the present, but rather in the past when the characters are retelling their stories.
Why is it that the narrator was more perceptive to their surroundings than Luo was, despite making the trip numerous times himself? Through this symbol, I see a connection to loss, and the narrator's fear of losing the people that he cares about.
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