Windflower by Gabrielle Roy Essay -- essays research papers

WindflowerGabrielle Roy, the author of Windflower, shows us through her maincharacter, Elsa Kumachuck, that closing off can have unfortunate effects on anindividual and the people around them. We, as readers, are in the beginning abandoned the impression that Elsa is a fit mother who is responsible and knows howto raise her child properly. Later on though, we realize that its theinfluence of other people in her bearing and the experience of closing off later onthat lead her to make the decisions that she does.Elsa Kumachuck was at one time just a carefree teenager, going to thetheater to watch movies, laughing with her friends, and discussing sex. Her full-page life changes in one night though, when Elsa is raped by a GI soldier, andas a result, gets pregnant. Elsa experiences a very dramatic change in herself,both physically and emotionally, and seems to lose all interest in the thingsthat she used to enjoy. When her baby, Jimmy, is born however, she appears tobe herself again. Sh e snaps out of her depression as she observes the littleboy she has given birth to. The unique little boy with blond hair and blue eyestakes her breath away. It seemed that in giving life to her child she hadrestored her own life to herself.Although Jimmy is a joy and a blessing to Elsa, he also creates aconflict for her. She does not know whether she should raise him as an Eskimolike herself, or white...