Summary Of Nomi In Their Eyes Were Watching God

Nomi, the protagonist, lives in a highly religious Mennonite town called East Village. A few years ago, her mother and sister left her and Ray, her father, for reasons not yet known.
More information is given regarding Trudie, Nomi’s mother, and Tash, Nomi’s sister. Trudie seems to be a woman who wants to defy the roles her town has put upon her. Nomi’s sister is portrayed as this rebellious teenager who doesn’t want to be defined and oppressed by the atmosphere of the town.

Reflection: There is a metaphorical brick wall built around Nomi’s town. The older generation does not know much about the outside world except for what they were told from their parents and relatives.The church forbid the people of East Village to take part in self
Nomi’s dad, Ray, is one of the more poignant characters in the novel so far. When he comes into the story, it is as though there is a dark cloud behind him. When Nomi describes her dad, she uses soft and sad words such as “quiet” and “alone”. This man was in at a crossroads before his wife had left. A crossroads between choosing his religion, which he loves, and the woman he loves. At the end, his decision was made for him. But no matter what, he would have still been in a state of sadness, it was a lose lose situation for him. In this section, I noticed many metaphors coming through as her story progresses. The more positive metaphors are mentioned at a moment when she is writing about a time where her family was together and happy. The negative metaphors came into play when the reader was brought back to the present time. She described herself and everyone around her as “little islands of grief.” (Pg 37) Islands stand alone usually don't have any connections to other pieces of land. This could be Nomi’s way of explaining her feeling of isolation. She lives in a town where everyone knows everyone but no one knows anyone at the same time. People deal with their problems themselves and for a 16 year old girl, having lost her mother and sister, that is alot to deal with. Although her family is not dead, grief is usually an emotion that comes through once someone passes away. This just proves how intense this loss is for
The picture is taken while the bonnet is still on fire.
Travis suggests there was no love between Nomi's mother and father as they sit in his truck outside The Golden Comb's trailer to buy drugs from him. He has been excommunicated from the church for drinking.
As Nomi thinks about her brand of cigarettes, she remembers the order they bring to her life. She has tried to quit smoking before and has not been successful. She decides she will quit smoking when she turns 40 but then says that she doesn't think she will live past 40 anyway.
Reflection:
Similar to the Wake by Anna Hope there is a frame narrative being developed throughout this section and the novel. In Wake however, the narrative focused on three women and how they lived their lives for five days. A Complicated Kindness on the other hand focused on the present, past, and the future. The tenses changed a lot as well according to the time period it was in. There were stories which included her family, some with her friends, her boyfriend, her teacher etc. The fact that this novel is all over the place fits in perfectly with Nomi. Throughout this section, her head was all over the place as well. She would discover something new about herself or the people in her life and then that was it. Her mindset about a particular person or situation would change. In this section, the flow of time is sometimes difficult to keep track of in