"You were there, Tabitha. You were there with me then and I believe you are with me now. Just as I once pictured my mother walking to me in her dress the color of a pregnant sun, I now take solace in imagining you descending an escalator in your pink shirt, you heart-shaped face overtaken by a magnificent smile as everything around you ceases moving. "( 363 Eggers).
Eggers portrays the acceptance stage of grief as calm and soothing, much like the settling of snow. Throughout the novel What is the What, Valentino Deng experiences the observance of violent death reapeatedly as he travels across Sudan in the midst of genocide. Yet, Tabitha's death receives more attention and more sentiment than any of the previous tumult that Valentino has encountered, understandably because of their love for each other. The realness of their relationship, which grows out of their admiration for the seemingly insignificant characteristics of each other, is made even more powerful by the circumstances of the world around them. There is proof of freudian psychology in Valentino's thoughts as well, as he is reminded of Tabitha's memory in a similar way to his mother's. Thus, the grief of Tabitha's death is imprinted in Valentino's mind with a warm and vivid type of rememberance.
Eggers authored the autobiographical novel What is the What. The book is about the life of Sudanese Lost Boy, Valentino Achak Deng.
1 comment:
Very appropriate to cite a quote of his relationship with Tabitha. It did create a tone of sentimentality and hopelessness that, ironically enough, does not usually permeate the book!
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