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Innocence In Maxine Clair's 'Cherry Bomb'

502 Words3 Pages

This excerpt from Maxine Clair’s “Cherry Bomb” is a prime representation of an adult character reminiscing in memories of youth and innocence. Through the description of her “box of private things” and the cherry bomb incident, she uses appropriate diction, figurative language, and imagery while reflecting on past summers where time wasn’t consumed by school, capturing the pure moments of childhood. To begin with, the persona’s younger self picks up the “lofty” saying ‘I am in this world, but not of it’ without a clear understanding of what the message truly entails. She chooses it based on the fact that it seems to sound important. This reflection of her past shows a sense of immaturity, and is supported by other various examples of forward diction that tie back into her young personality at the time. Phrases like …show more content…

A trail of memories is formed when the persona incepts the closet scene with an even further recollection of her father describing the women on the island as being “as fine as wine in the summertime”. After the cherry bomb episode, Eddy had a scar “like a piece of twine”; both of these uncomplicated similes allow the reader to dive into the young girl’s mind and relive her memories with that same level of ease. Just like with any child, the young girl is particularly wordy with her descriptions of these different memories, producing potent imagery. She goes off on a tangent, rattling off directions one would take in her father’s “cave-dark” closet to reach her private box and diary. The persona turns the memory into a game. Placing “one foot in front of the other” and closing one’s eyes are just two rules on her detailed list. The picture the reader envisions is one of a clumsy kid crawling around, feeling every tangible object until finally stumbling upon the “strong-smelling cigar

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