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Declan
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Mar 17, 2020 11:05AM
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Lovely Question - maybe to add structure...Main ingredients: theme
Extra spices: rhetorical devices
Garnish: motifs
BTW anyone start cooking now that we are home-bound? Anyone try pout one of her recipes? (totally a curiosity question - not rhetorical ;)
I feel that with the past two threads I've covered themes shoehorned in all throughout the novel, so for this thread I wanted to talk about rhetorical devices used by Acevedo as they are the spices that really bring out the flavor in her writing. She uses an abundance of metaphors that really get the reader to understand how Emoni feels in certain instances. One of my favorite examples is after the Winter Dinner is completed, where Emoni states that leaving the kitchen “feels strange...as if I’m naked” (221). Acevedo uses this metaphor to show the strength of Emoni's emotional connection to the kitchen. In addition to metaphors, Acevedo's use of repetition in some cases help demonstrate the true power of Emoni's emotions. For example, after finishing speaking to Tyrone's mother, Emoni states "She's off before I can wave back. Before I can say thank you. Before I can say I always have plenty of Children's Tylenol. Before I can ask her why Tyrone wasn't the one to pick up Babygirl, or why I'm accused of being the irresponsible one but he's so often excused from having to be as much of a father as I am a mother" (257). Repeating the "before I can" shows how Mrs. Palmer's abrupt departure fueled Emoni's flaming ball of rage that she keeps to herself, which the reader can easily pick up on. Any other examples of metaphors or repetition or even other rhetorical devices?
Brigid wrote: "Lovely Question - maybe to add structure...Main ingredients: theme
Extra spices: rhetorical devices
Garnish: motifs
BTW anyone start cooking now that we are home-bound? Anyone try pout one of he..."
I've been baking and cooking many different things that I have either found on social media or old recipes my mom and grandma used to make. However, I remembered there were recipes in the book so I tried out "No use crying over spilled strawberry milk" since I had leftover strawberries from a dessert I made. I thought it turned out alright, but my brother absolutely loved it!
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Jonathan wrote: "I feel that with the past two threads I've covered themes shoehorned in all throughout the novel, so for this thread I wanted to talk about rhetorical devices used by Acevedo as they are the spices..."creates that tempo of an anger building within
Kyla wrote: "Brigid wrote: "Lovely Question - maybe to add structure...Main ingredients: theme
Extra spices: rhetorical devices
Garnish: motifs
BTW anyone start cooking now that we are home-bound? Anyone try..."
very cool - I want to try that first one (lemon something) I don't have my book at home though.
Throughout the novel we are taken through Emoni's coming of age journey, portrayed through many themes such as perseverance, the strength and importance of family bonds and believing in yourself. These themes serve as the main ingredients in Emoni's life. However, cooking, even though it may seem like a key "ingredient", is really an extra spice, serving as a metaphor to understanding and navigating life with its many twists, turns, and challenges. Acevedo utilizes metaphors and similes to describe her food, as well as life, by it being either sour, bittersweet or savory. Tyrone left a sour taste on Emoni's pallet, making her nervous to even give Malachi the time of day. However, as cooking class progressed, similarly to Malachi and Emoni's friendship, her life became bittersweet. Emoni loved spending time with Malachi, however it became an issue with Tyrone who was angry about other guys being around his daughter (Acevedo 190). Despite this, Emoni feels pure joy after the Winter Dinner, raising enough money to place the deposit for the class trip to Spain and lower the cost every student had to pay in order to go (223). The savory feeling of visiting Spain, being able to get an internship at a restaurant and cook the special on her first day adds more meaning to the metaphor of Emoni's life. Through all her hardships: losing her job, not having parents in her life, and being a single mother as a high school senior, Emoni still finds joy and peace in her life and in cooking, while being able to overcome her fears, one of them being, dating Malachi (370).
Kyla wrote: "Throughout the novel we are taken through Emoni's coming of age journey, portrayed through many themes such as perseverance, the strength and importance of family bonds and believing in yourself. T..."I like how you demonstrated Emoni's development in the story in a smooth fashion, going from a poor taste to a great one, and honestly I agree with most of what you had to say. However, when Acevedo was labeling the parts of the book, she actually had the "Savory" and "Bittersweet" section titles swapped. Though I agree with the way you organized it, why do you think Acevedo named these last 2 parts this way?
I believe that in Emonis recipes in the beginning of each part, at the top it says what the recipe serves, for example, on page three it states “ Serves: Your heart when you are missing someone you love” and on 365 it says “ Serves: Your strength when you feel alone”. I thought Acevedo’s choice to include these things at the top of each recipe was a really good choice to emphasize the power of Emonis cooking. Clearly an ongoing theme of the novel is the food Emoni cooks, is not just food, many people state throughout the book that Emoni has a gift. Emonis food has the power to make people feel, it’s nit just good tasting, it brings people back to a certain memory or make them think of a certain person. For example, in Spain, Don Alberto explains that he wasn’t having the best day but after eating Emonis hen, he was reminded of his aunt and memories he had of her (294). Once again I think the authors choice to show what the recipe is meant to serve at the beginning of each part, does a great job of really allowing the reader to understand the gift Emoni has when it comes to her cooking. What do you guys think ?
Mod
I agree with you. The fact that each part starts with a recipe and the recipe serves a purpose as you said. On page 141 it says "Serves: Your ego when you're full of regret." This marks the start of Part 2 and in this part you begin to see relations worsen with Tyrone and his family and Pretty Leslie. The quote you chose from Part 3 could possibly have something to do with Emoni gaining experience and confidence and eventually her job with Chef Williams at her restaurant (385).
Jonathan wrote: "Kyla wrote: "Throughout the novel we are taken through Emoni's coming of age journey, portrayed through many themes such as perseverance, the strength and importance of family bonds and believing i..."I believe Acevedo organized the book this way because the end of the novel was truly bittersweet, meanwhile the middle was savory and full of happiness. Spain was an eyeopening experience for Emoni, where she learned valuable lessons, cooked the Monday special at Chef Amadí's restaurant (Acevedo 291) and even got very close to Malachi (318). 'Buela has fallen in love with Mr. Jagoda (354), which is amazing for both 'Buela and Emoni who is happy for her grandmother. The last part of the novel is bittersweet though since graduating high school is already a huge change in someone's life and can bring about feelings of happiness and sadness. Additionally, Tyrone wants extended visitation with Emma ( 371). Bitter because Emoni would never want to lose time with her daughter, however, sweet because she will be able to focus more on work and her own life.
Kyla wrote: "Jonathan wrote: "Kyla wrote: "Throughout the novel we are taken through Emoni's coming of age journey, portrayed through many themes such as perseverance, the strength and importance of family bond..."I agree that the author had a purpose in the sections that she organized the book. In the beginning of the book we saw her struggle of whether or not she wanted to take the cooking class and then once taking it having to go through somebody telling her exactly how to prep her meals which she has never gone through before. “‘Trash it’” he says... “ It’s not the recipe I gave you. It doesn’t have the same ingredients, and the cut on these is wrong “ ( 129). But we do see Emoni blossom and start to understand that there is rules when it comes to cooking. After the journey Emoni takes of putting every ounce of energy she could into raising money to go to Spain but still not knowing if she’d have enough to go, it was definitely a bitter sweet moment for her to get to go to Spain. She got to experience her dream but at the same time she had never been away from her ‘Buela and Babygirl for that long and she had never been this “excited and scared” since the birth of Emma (276).
Kyla wrote: "Jonathan wrote: "Kyla wrote: "Throughout the novel we are taken through Emoni's coming of age journey, portrayed through many themes such as perseverance, the strength and importance of family bond..."See, that's more or less what I was thinking. In the beginning of the novel, we can totally agree that life was a bit rough on Emoni, one example being her poor relationship with her manager at the burger joint, a job she didn't even like (75). In Part 2 of the book, we see Emoni's character develop to learn important characteristics that end up treating her well, like self-discipline when she's preparing the winter dinner and stops herself from putting her own spin on the dish, telling herself "that's not the recipe" (220). This action helps her and her classmates earn a trip to Spain, forming that savory feeling in her. And towards the end of the story, many impactful changes come into Emoni's life bringing her on a roller coaster of emotions. This can be seen the night before Emoni's graduation, because even though graduation is usually a great feeling of relief, she is also clearly feeling the stress of officially entering adulthood, and it is preventing her from sleeping (376). Things like this are most likely why Acevedo decided to title the last section of the book as "Bittersweet".
Declan wrote: "Throughout the whole book Acevedo has and develops the theme of perseverance. Emoni said "I've known since I was little that we had to learn to treat money like a rubber band and stretch that dawn ..."I agree with you, and I also believe that the theme of perseverance can go even deeper then money, I think it could be a theme of the entire book. Emoni is a very determined and persistent person. Being a mother of a two year old and a senior in high school is so much to take on let alone doing extracurriculars and a job. On page 216 Emoni talks about how tired she is from constantly working, with school, work fundraising and her daughter. Despite being absolutely exhausted, Emoni preserves. It’s easy for Emoni to have given up after being pregnant her first year of high school, for her to think that her chances of being successful were over, but yet she didn’t, she stayed strong and persevered and I believe that moment that she got accepted into Drexel really showed it was all worth it. “‘ Mi niña, mi niña, is going to college. “(351).
Acevedo starts each different section with a recipe that I believe is to serve as a reminder for readers that food can be good for the soul. I think that this concept can be characterized as a motif due to its occurrence throughout the novel. Emoni expresses that food is her passion, the only thing she feels that she is really talented at. Due to her situation with Babygirl, poor grades and financial restraints, Emoni worries about her future. However, demonstrated throughout the book, food has the ability to bring people together and ease the stress regarding certain situations. While talking to Abuela, Malachi reveals that he only learned how to cook to take care of his brother, "...'I really do like the [culinary] class. I did a lot of the cooking growing up because my mother worked late and I was the oldest. So I was the one making sure my brother was well fed' " (157). Cooking for his brother most likely created a strong sense of responsibility and protectiveness in Malachi for his brother. In another section, Angelica becomes increasingly worried about a date with her girlfriend Laura and wants to make her a special dinner, with Emoni's help. While telling Emoni the details of the date, Laura says " 'I've had your cooking a dozen times, but there was one point where Laura and I both put our forks down and just grinned like little kids because we were so happy' " (183). On page 272, Emoni feels anxious because her hours at work have been reduced and Tyrone is taking Babygirl for the weekend and is desperate to do anything to take her mind off of things, "I think about calling Malachi, or seeing if I can bribe Angelica with food....But instead, I go into the kitchen and take ingredients out of the fridge" (272-273). IIn the third part of the book, "Bittersweet", Emoni feels overwhelmed, "...all I want tod o is snuggle in 'Buela's lap and ask her to fix my life for me. To make the decisions...I...walk downstairs into the kitchen. Set the oven to 350 degrees. Grab flour. Butter. Salt..." (376). These situations display the idea that food has the ability to make light of circumstances and make people closer.
Abby wrote: "I believe that in Emonis recipes in the beginning of each part, at the top it says what the recipe serves, for example, on page three it states “ Serves: Your heart when you are missing someone you..."I completely agree, going back to what I said about Angelica and Laura's date, it was so successful partly because of Emoni's soulful cooking. Also, I think it is clear that Emoni inspired and showed such a great passion for cooking through her emails with Aunt Sarah that it impacted her to send Emoni money for the trip. Even though they've barely met and Emoni never knew her money, she was able to make a connection through their sharing of recipes.
Kyla wrote: "Throughout the novel we are taken through Emoni's coming of age journey, portrayed through many themes such as perseverance, the strength and importance of family bonds and believing in yourself. T..."I really like how you narrowed down Acevedo's use of metaphors to sour, bittersweet and savory. I wasn't even thinking about making that connection, I think that was really clever.
Each part of the book starts off with a recipe. Each recipe states what it serves for. Acevedo adds this into her writing to show what emotions Emoni is going through. With all the stress of keeping up with school and a child; her future is also very important to her. Cooking is where she goes to relieve her stress, it has the ability to make people feel something. All the ingredients do not have exact measurements. For example, "As many strawberries as you can find, sugar to taste"(141). This shows how Emoni takes risk and that in her life not everything is perfect, and there are challenges in the way.
Abby wrote: "I believe that in Emoni's recipes in the beginning of each part, at the top it says what the recipe serves, for example, on page three it states “ Serves: Your heart when you are missing someone you..."I agree, the author does do a good job portraying Emoni's gift of cooking by using imagery. When she cooked for the fundraiser, "These are the skewers of winter veggies and single-serve portions of herbed stuffing..."(220). I think that cooking is a huge part of her life. As you mentioned, her cooking has the power to make people feel. "The food was good and everybody looked happy. They all cleaned their plates. I could taste you in the sweet potato..."(225).
Abby wrote: "Declan wrote: "Throughout the whole book Acevedo has and develops the theme of perseverance. Emoni said "I've known since I was little that we had to learn to treat money like a rubber band and str..."Absolutely, her determination is what helps her get through all the challenges. I liked how you added how she could have gave up after having babygirl. That didn't stop her from her dream. You can see the dedication and time she puts forth for the fundraiser in order to go on the trip. She spends most of her time"working afternoons at the Burger Joint"(264). In order to make enough money for the trip. on top of work she has a child and school.
Mod
I agree with you Sage, the way Acevedo chose certain adjectives that describe food and relates it to the situation is astounding. For example on page 304 "He scoops my hand in his..." The "scoop" is usually used in describing the quantity of a measurement in a recipe.
Sage wrote: "Kyla wrote: "Throughout the novel we are taken through Emoni's coming of age journey, portrayed through many themes such as perseverance, the strength and importance of family bonds and believing i..."Thank you! I took the idea from the names of each section of the book though so it wasn't that clever but I appreciate it.
Brigid wrote: "Lovely Question - maybe to add structure...Main ingredients: theme
Extra spices: rhetorical devices
Garnish: motifs
BTW anyone start cooking now that we are home-bound? Anyone try pout one of he..."
I tried to make Annie's boxed mac and cheese because I'm not an amazing chef. I let my sister have some (even though I can easily eat the whole thing myself) and she said I overcooked the macaroni! She thought it was too soft but I thought it wasn't bad, I was also starving so I would've eaten anything but still!
Throughout the novel Emoni's character really develops into a place where she can love herself and everything she does. As the book opens Emoni lays out her priorities, almost all of them centered around Babygirl. In order to abide by her commitments, she has very little free time to enjoy herself and limits her own happiness in the process. She puts herself in a mental cage that she can no longer even let herself see other boys because she doesn't think that its whats best for Babygirl and she is afraid to indulge herself. When she meets Malachi she keeps him at an arm's length and when he makes genuine efforts to get to know her such as when they went to get water ices after school she constantly reminds him that they "aren't friends". As the story continues she begins to make more "selfish" decisions such as taking the cooking class at school and eventually begins dating Malachi. Despite these changes her character undergoes, some of her traits remain static such as her great work ethic. This is demonstrated when she is working on raising money for her school trip to Spain where she picks up extra shifts in the school kitchen and organizes the catering at the school dance.
