Preview

The Memory Keeper's Daughter Analysis

Better Essays
Open Document
Open Document
1172 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
The Memory Keeper's Daughter Analysis
Critical Overview The Memory Keeper’s Daughter

The novel The Memory Keeper’s Daughter, by Kim Edwards, is a story of sadness and despair. Throughout the story the reasons and examples for why this happened are clear. Selfishness and lying prove to cause great pain and suffering throughout the story. These two also prove to be the cost of Dr. Henry’s death as he struggles with the decision whether to tell the secret of leaving his daughter for an orphanage.
The book The Memory Keeper’s Daughter, by Kim Edwards, is based off of a true story. However, it is not directly related to the author. The author, Kim Edwards was influenced because of a story told to her by her pastor about a man he knew whose brother had down syndrome. This man's brother
…show more content…
Born in May of 1958, in the town of Killeen, Texas, she was born to be a writer. She began her collegiate studies at Auburn University. In 1981, she received her bachelor's degree from Colgate University. Following this, she received a master's degree from the University of Iowa’s Writers’ Workshop. After this, she furthered her pedigree by earning her second master's degree in linguistics which also came from the University of Iowa. In 1998, her work was an alternate for the PEN/Hemingway Award, and also won a Whiting Award and the Nelson. The novel, The Memory Keeper’s Daughter, won Book of the Year in 2006, which is also what this paper is about. The content mentioned in paragraph one clearly illustrates why she wrote the book, and how it influenced her life. She not only made her name solidified in the field of writing, but also she wrote the book for the right reasons. The story told by the pastor influenced her although it did not come full circle until she went to a writing workshop and saw those who were disabled. She then began to think that she could make the novel work. She started writing the book and finished the first chapter rapidly, and then finished at a slower pace. Thus it is clear that through the events in paragraph one she learned more about down syndrome, following this thus influenced her life in a positive

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    Most memoirs are written with the intention of telling the author’s significant experiences, each conveying their individual purpose. In both Jeannette Walls’, The Glass Castle, and Mary Karr’s, The Liars Club, the authors utilize their dysfunctional childhoods to achieve their independent purposes. Walls uses numerous strategies to achieve her purpose of the memoir being a way to accept the past and to not let the past define oneself. Unlike Walls, Karr also uses her strategies to show the endurance of love and family through thick and thin. Together both novels are able to tell their own individual stories and get through to the readers utilizing contrasting strategies.…

    • 969 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Salvage the Bones11

    • 671 Words
    • 2 Pages

    The novel Salvage the Bones by Jesmyn Ward tell us a story about a 15-year-old African American girl named Esch. She lives with her father and 3 brothers in small bayou town called Bois Sauvage in Mississippi. Unfortunately, Esch is living an unhappy and poor family. Her father has problems with alcohol, and her mother died after her last pregnancy when Esch was only 8 years old. Even though Esch’s mother is dead, her presence is obvious from the very beginning of the story, and she stays present throughout the whole book. Esch constantly compares the present with the past, when her mother was alive. Mama is the only woman that Esch can refer to about feminine issues, among all males surrounding her. Therefore, the most tender memories that Esch keeps in her head are connected with her mother. Mama is an invisible guardian whose lessons still continue to guide and protect all of her children.…

    • 671 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    Most of The Memory Keeper's Daughter is told through the experience of David Henry, the orthopedic surgeon and husband of Norah. This is only fair, since it is David's lie about his daughter, Phoebe, which drives the story and eventually destroys his marriage. David came from a dirt-poor family, all of whom are dead by the time the novel opens. David is scarred by this poverty and determined to provide his family with all the luxuries they might ever crave. This leads him down the path of a workaholic. He is also a perfectionist, who is constantly reading medical journals. David also has a fatal flaw, one other part of his personality that is a result of his family background.…

    • 884 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Better Essays

    Analysis of I Am the Grass

    • 1714 Words
    • 7 Pages

    Daly Walker has written a story about a doctor who is haunted by the shame and guilt he carries with him from the atrocious acts he committed while serving in the army; acts so horrible that he cannot speak of them. The story depends on his use of three literary elements: setting, plot and symbolism.…

    • 1714 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    In her letter wirtten in response to an American woman, Marian Evans Lewes utilizes an array of rhetorical strategies to convey her belief that the development of a writer is an ongoin process which is pressed on by "some force." Instead of having a condescending tone, Lewes puts herself on the same level as the woman, taking a pathological route in addressing the woman. By using words such as "us" and "we", Lewes sympathizes with the woman and reassures her that she has been in the same position. This sympathetic approach not only informs the woman that what she is goin through is normal, but it lets her realize that no matter what status; well-known novelist or unknown woman; everyone goes through difficult times, and "the only hope is to try and unite the utmost activity with the utmost resignation." Supporting this pathological route, Lewes utilizes first-person enriched syntax to illuminate her experiences and her beliefs on the developmental process of the reader. By stating how she "began writing [works] with no great glory at all" and then flourished into the reknowened novelist she is now provides insight to the woman that, quite frankly, you go to start somewhere. This gives the woman "hope", which is a necessity to all writers. Moreover, Lewes uses chronological syntax to illuminate that the development of a writer is ideed a time consuming matter. Stating the she "entered [with] struggles", the "began writing" and the wrote "ficiton which has been thought a great deal of" conveys her belief that the development of a writer is not a mere overnight happening, but is a long, drawn-out process. In her response to Melusia Fay Pierce, Marian Evans Lewes illuminates the fact that the development of a wirter is not ephemeral, but , just like her synatax, chronological, and time consuming, and to be successful, on must have "hope".…

    • 314 Words
    • 9 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    She returned to New York when she was ten years old during the height of the Great Depression, a severe economic shortage, therefor life was not easy for her and her seven brothers, so she attended to the New York Public School, where she did it well. Then she assisted to the Girls’ High School. But because of the economic hardship the country was affronting she lost tuition scholarships that she had won to several distinguished colleges…

    • 686 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    Traumatized, regretful, and full of guilt; Dally Walker writes about a doctor who returns from the Vietnam war with memories so horrific, he is not able to talk to his wife or family about it. From the day of his arrival home, he returns feeling disgusted with himself and his actions. Twenty two years have passed since his arrival from the war he continues to think of everything that happened.…

    • 553 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    Grandparents can be more lenient with their grandchild then they were with their own child or children. This creates a pattern and family bonds for each passing generation. This ‘tender tale of the touching relationship between a grandmother and granddaughter is a tribute to the everlasting bonds of deep family ties’ (Booklist). The strong relationship between a grandmother and granddaughter relates to readers in a way of showing a grandmother’s love and how it affects a young child’s life. “My Grandmother Asked me to tell you she’s Sorry” also relates to readers in the theme of embracing differences and how important human compassion is towards those who are labeled as different in the views of modern society. One of Fredrik Backman’s greatest writing qualities is the way he incorporates stories into human life and how heroes are around in everyday life. “Childhood folklore and life experiences fuse together in unexpected ways” (Library Journal). This makes readers reflect on their own lives and maybe consider someone whom they may have misjudged in the past. “My Grandmother asked me to tell you she’s Sorry” by Fredrik Backman captures the heroism inside of a young girl and illustrates how life can be filled with hidden heroes “not all heroes wear…

    • 1415 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Bobbie Ann Masion

    • 1431 Words
    • 6 Pages

    Bobbie Ann Mason is famous for writing war stories that are enriched with love and romance. She was born and raised in western Kentucky; her family did not have much money when she was growing up. They lived and worked on a Dairy Farm. After graduating high school, she went to the University of Kentucky and graduated in 1962 with a Bachelor in English. After accepting her Bachelor’s degree, she went to the State University of New York at Binghamton and received her Master’s, in 1966. Finally, she went to the University of Connecticut and received her PhD in 1972. Having all that schooling under her belt she wrote her first story, Shilo and Other Stories, in 1982. Mason realized that she has a passion for writing. Wanting to pursue this more, she wrote many books including, a Memoir called Clear Spring in 1999 and a Biography of Elvis Presley in 2002. She has received many awards for all the books she has published, including being a finalist for a Pulitzer Prize for her memoir Clear Spring. Also, Shiloh and Other Stories, PEN Hemingway Award for first fiction, and it was nominated for the PEN Faulkner Award, the National Book Critics Circle Award, and the American Book Award which was published in 1982. Among many other awards she received a Southern Book Critics Circle Award for "Feather Crowns" and "Zigzagging Down a Wild Trail". Her first book In Country was turned in to a Norman Jewison film starring Bruce Willis and Emily Lloyd. These are only a few awards that she has been awarded for her wonderful works of art. Among her many books my two favorites are In Country, which takes place in Kentucky involving the Vietnam War, and The Girl in the Blue Beret, which is a flashback to World War II in Europe Inspired by the experience of her late father-in-law, an American World War II pilot shot down in Occupied Europe. Being that each book is about a different war, taking…

    • 1431 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    Sara was eventually adopted by a little woman who was desperate for a cute, little child of her own. The woman's name was Helen and she had lost 2 of her own children in childbirth and her husband had recently passed away. Under the woman's tutelage Sara learned to walk, talk and read. The old woman was quite poor but made up for the lack of money through affection, and kindly raised Sara as if she was her own. Little by little, Sara forgot her parents until all she had ever known was the woman who brought her up. As a small child, around 6, Helen lavished her attentions on Sara, buying her toys and clothes when she could afford it, talking to her, playing with her, sending her to school and helping her with homework, everything a good parent should do.…

    • 1264 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    An individual can be drawn to a given novel for multiple reasons. Kim Edwards draws in her readers with her deeply moving page turners. Edwards includes psychological detail in her works, making connection to readers easy. When reading the descriptions of her novels, one quickly finds themselves eager to start reading. Her first novel, The Memory Keeper’s Daughter delves into the fear of loss. Every person on this earth fears losing something. A common fear for parents is the fear of losing their child. In the book The Memory Keeper’s Daughter, secrets are constantly being revealed. In her second novel, The Lake of Dreams, Edwards focuses on personal revelations. The Lake of Dreams is a story set in the past. When a writer visits a character’s…

    • 325 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    A Good Man Is Hard to Find

    • 1466 Words
    • 6 Pages

    Flannery O’Connor’s story, A Good Man is Hard to Find, brings a story in which she connects her experience as a victim of lupus erythematosus with her writings. The story begins with an ordinary family that embarks on a journey that becomes the last of their lives as the journey approaches to an end, as well as their imminent death, yet something astounding happens with the main character. The main character, the Grandmother, changes her heart by the cruel ways of the “Misfit”, who is a criminal that escaped from the penitentiary. One might think that Grandmothers are sweet and loving, and often innocent due to their advanced age and condition. We, as society, think of them as great examples of people that radiate love, mentors, and defenders of morality and good manners. However, this is not the case in A Good Man Is Hard to Find, by Flannery O’Connor. As the story unfolds, her personality reflects that hidden evil we all carry inside and how detouring on a route takes a whole family to face disastrous consequences, yet one person finds redemption from that evil. A Good Man Is Hard to Find is a story that symbolizes redemption, because there is a sinner, there is a journey, and there is redemption.…

    • 1466 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    In the Memory Keeper’s Daughter written by Kim Edward, the main character, David Henry, made a decision that has impacted not only his life but the rest of his family also. David was a very confusing character. Henry’s character played an important role because the decision of giving his daughter up changed his whole life and broke his family apart. When his wife went into labor he delivered the twin babies, Paul and Phoebe. When Phoebe entered the world he noticed she has defects in her face and hands that lead him to diagnose her with autism. He decided to give up his daughter, because he was afraid of what society would think and was afraid that an abnormal child would destroy his current family; just like his sister did during his childhood. Due to the result of giving up his daughter, one very major secret has stood in the middle of their family. Deception, secrets, and regrets have shaped the family and caused major problems throughout their life.…

    • 829 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Throughout her life, she had to go through poverty, drugs use, infertility, which explains her 3 miscarriages, and her mental disorders. She also said in an interview “I kinda got to the point where I was like, you know, if you don’t laugh at it, you’re gonna cry. So you might as well enjoy the good and the bad and the mortifying and the book is all about the mortifying.” In short, her whole life is what inspired her to change her way of thinking about all the drama she endured and accept herself the way she is now because of those events, which lead to the writing of this…

    • 111 Words
    • 1 Page
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    The best part of this game is that the mom-to-be doesn't have a clue what's going on. (It'll be a little tricky to keep it from her, but you'll manage!) When each guest arrives, have her write down on a piece of paper her name and the number of times she thinks the mom-to-be will say "baby" during the shower.…

    • 521 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays