The Ceremony and Helen Jean

This past week we did close analysis of some important parts of the novel. One important part was the healing ceremony performed by Betonie. This is where Tayo turns around from trying to drink away his problems to start real healing. He understands how he will never get better unless changes are made. Betonie relays the belief of a great evil to Tayo, saying that the Indians created the white culture which has swept over the earth. One important symbol of Tayo's healing is the cattle. He is always chasing them, and although they seem out of reach, the closer he gets indicates further healing.

The other section we wrote about is about Helen Jean and the experiences they have together in the bar. Tayo has an interesting link to Helen Jean, both seeing himself in her and seeing his mother Laura in her. She has been through racist discrimination like Tayo has. When she got an awful wage doing dirty work at a theater, it is similar to Tayo not being treated like any other white person. She also remind Tayo of his mother. He has vivid memories of when he was a kid, how she would bring men home. He realizes that he is becoming those men, with Helen Jean being his mother in the situation. Another connection he sees is with Harley and Emo, and how they represent the great evil Betonie warned him of. They are trying to take him down with them by pressuring him to drink away his sorrows like they always have since the war. We see how much Better Tayo is getting, however, when he refuses the take part. It almost disgusts him when they get drunk and puke everywhere which shows that he is capable of reaching a new level of healing.