A Wall of Rising Fire

A Wall of Rising Fire is a short story set in Haiti that follows the life of a three-member family. Man, his wife Lili, and their seven-year-old son Little Guy live in a single-roomed dilapidated structure in Haiti's shanty towns. The story depicts Guy's sacrifices in order to care for his family and his determination to provide a better life for them. It demonstrates his wish for his son to have a different life than he did as a child. The family is depicted as being close and tight shares all things amongst themselves evidenced by Guy telling his wife that she knows all of his secrets(Danticat, p. 149). After eating, the family finds its own entertainment at the sugar field near a hot air balloon owned by a wealthy family in the neighborhood.

The writer uses a lot of literary devices in the story such as imagery, alliteration, metaphors, similes, and symbolism. Probably the most outstanding device applied is symbolism which is applied throughout the story. It is the representation of a certain deeper meaning through the use of objects or qualities. Several objects and characters are used symbolically in the story. Some of them are, the hot air balloon(Danticat, p. 148), the moon, fire, the sky, the political situation and Guy himself among others. This paper will focus on the use of symbolism in the story, A Wall of Rising Fire.

The hot air balloon represents hope for a better life, escape, freedom and the potential to do better. The balloon floats high in the sky and goes on without being hindered. This shows freedom in that there are no obstacles. It is depicted as being unrestricted adding more to its signifying freedom. The guy is seen as seeing himself flying free as a bird. At the end of the story, the balloon is described as floating away to better shores. It shows that the balloon is free just as Guy wishes to be away from the problems he faces and have the liberty to provide a better life for his family. Guy eventually uses the balloon as a means to escape his problems(Danticat, p. 156). This is seen when he sneaks in and flies the balloon over the town but eventually falls off or jumps out of it to his death. He is then free of his responsibilities to his family as well as the bondage of having stress over his inability to sufficiently provide for his family. It is a sign of freedom from his view of himself as a letdown.

The balloon is also a representation of hope for a better life. Guy wishes that he can provide for his family a better life rather than live in a shanty single room. And high rates of poverty that they experience. He sees the balloon as a way out of his troubles and a vehicle towards his better future. According to Danticat, the balloon is owned by a rich person thus a representation of a good life with abundance (p.151). The balloon shows class and self-indulgence as a result of having a surplus in life meaning that it is possible for people to have more.

The problems that the family face are a source of great tribulation to Guy. He tries his best to find a job at the sugar mill but fails to add more to his feelings of failing his family. He constantly goes to the field near the balloon to relax. He wishes to go to a better place where he can build a house as seen in Danticat (p.155). He tells his wife that he can fly the balloon and asks her to imagine what it would be like to fly it to a place where he would build the said house.

It is important to note that the balloon also represents a life of affluence which is unreachable to Guy. Despite the balloon being a symbol of hope, it also represents a dream that is too far to reach for some. In Danticat, it is locked away in a fenced field out of reach of the people from the of the shanty town (p.153). The exclusion from the rest of the people as well as its unavailability to everyone is an indication that dreams are not always attainable. Some dreams no matter how valid they are can be locked away and unachievable in certain circumstances. Guy’s dream to provide a good life for his family is unattainable to him because he does not have a constant source of income. The only person who flies it is Assad who is the owner. This is also another indication that despite it being a possible way of flying out of problems, it also far and out of reach.

Additionally, the balloon is held down by stakes to ensure that it does not float away. This is symbolic of the good life that Guy wishes and its unattainability. He wants to be a better father to his son in terms of providing a better life but that proves to be hard because he needs a source of income to provide the same. He, however, lacks any constant flow of money and his family has to sometimes depend on his wife for food after she buys goods on credit from the market and sells them at a profit. The hardships in life are symbolized here by the stakes that hold down the balloon(Danticat, p.153).

Lili and Little Guy also view the balloon as a way to financial freedom and father respectively. Though Lili does view the balloon as a way that could get them out of poverty, she does so through her husband by showing her support and loyalty to him. She does not object to Guy’s wish for a better life although she worries that he does not have her and their son in mind when making his plans for a better future. At one time while at the sugar field, she tells him that she has hope that he has included them in his plans as well. The stakes that hold the balloon to the ground area close sign of how she feels trapped in the life that they live although she has accepted it and seems content in it. When Little Guy points that the balloon he refers to it as ‘papa’ since his father is flying it. This in a way shows that he relates the balloon more to his father than anything else probably because it was something that his father was obsessed with.

It is also important to note that the origin of the balloon is also symbolic of economic and political freedom and hope for one’s ability to live on their own terms. According to Danticat, the balloon is imported from America which is seen as having freedom in terms of political matters and stability as well as financial well-being owing to the fact that its economy is stable as placed very high on the global map (p.151). The poverty levels of people in America is also very low and people generally have better living standards.

The role of Boukman played by Little Guy is another case which shows symbolism. Little Guy is given the role of Boukman in his school play where he recites lines on freedom(Danticat, p.148). The role is symbolic especially because Boukman was a leader who brought about change to the people of Haiti by leading them to defy the rules of their masters. This can be interpreted to mean that Little Guy will defy the norm and tradition in his family to become better and have a better life than his dad and grandfather. The possibility of Little Guy becoming better in life is enhanced by his mother’s effort in ensuring that he masters all the line for his role in the play and her refusal towards against Little Guy’s name being put down on the waiting list for work at the sugar mill(Danticat, p.154). It is also important to note that the role that Little Guy plays is the lead role which shows that he is a leader even at a small age. He is enthusiastic to carry out his duties and is very passionate about learning his lines. This is seen in the way he keeps reciting them to ensure that he does not forget them. At one point he screams in his sleep because of a dream about forgetting his lines which shows that it is something that is on his young mind constantly(Danticat, p.153).

Boukman also represents freedom to the people. Through his leadership, Haiti gets freedom and he is seen as a hero of his land. The lines that Little Guy recites on freedom are very moving and bring his father to tears(Danticat, p.149). They reflect the freedom that he wishes to attain for himself and his family away from the stress and pressure of failure and poverty. He becomes emotional because he cannot seem to achieve the dreams that he has for himself and his family and sees himself as having let down his family. At the end, there is no difference between him and his father yet he hoped to be different from him.

The use of fire in the story also symbolizes freedom and destruction. In his play speeches, Little Guy tells of fire rising which symbolizes the fire that was lit up in the sugar farms at the start of the revolution in the fight for freedom. The fire shows the destruction of lives that were lost in the fight by the Haitians. It also signifies the freedom that they acquire after they emerge victorious from the revolution(Danticat, p.149). The fire balloon uses fire to rise and keep afloat. The fire is a means of the balloon getting to float free as a bird. Another interesting use of symbolism is the use of the moon floating on its way to brighter shores. This shores that through freedom, one is able to acquire a better life.

The political situation in Haiti at the time in which the story is set is a show of the feeling that Guy has in his heart due to his feeling of enslavement to his trouble and a family man. The political situation shows a situation where the government is unable to provide employment of even better the standards of his people just as Guy cannot provide his family with their needs efficiently. Another important use of symbolism is Guy letting go of his wife’s and son’s hands whenever he goes near the balloon(Danticat, p.151). It shows that his priorities have shifted and the balloon is more important to him than having his family. Lili’s fears of his increasing obsession with the balloon and her consequently asking him to stay away from it are an indication that she sees that he is more focused on the balloon that he is on his family.

The sky is also used symbolism to show freedom. Guy loves to look at the sky which is evidenced by Lili refusing to have his eyes closed after his death saying that he loved to look at the sky (Danticat. p157). Clear skies are an indication of endless possibilities and Guy looking at it shows that he contemplated the different possibilities that could come out of life. The barbed wire that surrounds the field where the balloon is kept when not in use is a symbol that signifies the challenges and obstacles that prevent Guy from achieving his goals. He is seen extending his hands through the fence to try and touch the balloon just like he struggles to overcome challenges in life to no avail. In conclusion, symbolism is effectively used in the story in different instances to bring out more meaning of the author's words. This is seen throughout the story with different items used to represent the same thing and one item used to symbolize several things.



















Work cited

Danticat, Edwidge. Krik? Krak! 2015. Print.