Claire Billingsley English I honors Mrs. Harlin April 4th, 2023 Salt to the Sea Essay In this essay there will be three different character archetypes discussed. There will be one character archetype, hunting group of companions, this will include the characters Florian, Joana, Klaus, Emilia, Ingrid, and the Poet. There will also be one situational archetype, death and rebirth, this is talking about Emilia and Halinka. Lastly, there will be one symbolic archetype, light vs darkness, this represents the difference between the darkness of the war and the light that radiates from Klaus and Halinka. One character archetype that is present in Salt to the Sea is a hunting group of companions. These are loyal friends who are willing to go through …show more content…
This is the parallel between nature and life, death and birth. This archetype appears in the form of Emilia and her baby. The significance of adding this archetype is to show that good can come from horrible places. The cycle of death and rebirth represents how you can lose everything and everyone but you will always find a good thing, a light at the end of the tunnel. On page 336 Florian takes the baby from Emilia, “I took the baby from the Polish girl and climbed down into the boat” (Sepetys 336). This situation shows the cycle of death and rebirth happening very quickly. Emilia dies so that her child can get a chance to live and live a good life at that. Emilia sacrifices her one chance at survival so her child can live on instead. Halinka gave her and everyone around her hope and Emilia wouldn’t let that hope die. Another instance of death and rebirth with Emilia and Halinka is on page 261, “He kissed her head and leaned down to whisper in my ear. ‘She is Poland’” (Sepetys 260). Halinka is living on for not only Emilia but for all of Poland and all of the people who were lost. She is living in spite of all the tragedy and loss she had faced. Halinka started a fire burning inside of everyone’s heart and Emilia knew she could not let that hope that fire be burnt out. So, even though Emilia was lost, the fire raged on. Emilia and Halinka show the cycle of death and rebirth by Emilia dying but Halinka living and thriving for