Hot-Air Balloon “A Wall of Fire Rising” written by Edwidge Danticat tells about the man named Guy and his indefatigable desire for freedom and a better life. Guy is the head of poor Haitian family which includes his wife Lili and their seven-year-old son Little Guy. The story takes place in post-revolutionary Haiti, where poverty and hunger still flourished. As most families, Guy’s family goes through a lot of struggles because there is no food and decent job; “a few hours work” that Guy finds at the sugar mill is not enough to support his family (Danticat 240). This feeling of hopelessness that Guy constantly experiences, weighs on his neck like a heavy load; thus, he saves himself thinking of the hot-air balloon which belongs to the …show more content…
Although he does not have a name in this story and does not play a major part in it, he is the one who brought this balloon to the shantytown. The owner of the balloon is a member of the Assad family which owns the sugar mill, and this family of “eccentric Arabs” is well-known among the shantytown people (238). To be more specific, it is known because of the young Assad whose interests are “odd”, and who likes to bring very unusual and interesting things to Haiti from America, like the hot-air balloon (238). When Guy flies on the balloon over the sugar mill, the young Assad like everyone else watches him at the skies. All the thoughts that are going through his mind at that moment can be seen on his face; He is worried about what can happen to his balloon and is confused how Guy managed to fly it by himself (246). As Guy lands on the sugar mill, the young Assad runs towards the body and starts to examine it. For the moment, the reader may think that the young Assad feels that he is responsible for this tragedy; however, right after confirming Guy’s death, he follows the balloon which still is floating somewhere hoping to find it. In the end, the balloon, which first was an entertainment for the young Assad, becomes the reason for Guy’s