Symbolism In Jeanette C. Armstrong's 'Blue Against White'

Prince Salehi

NBE3U1.60

Ms. Tasneem

17 May 2023

What Is Behind The Blue Door?

Imagine a world without a “blue door”, where everyone’s voice is trapped shut. Without that spark in the world we have nothing really to look upon at. In this paper symbolism and theme will be mentioned based on “Blue Against White” by Jeannette C. Armstrong. In this essay there will be mentions talking about what the blue door highlights and symbolizes. Meanwhile the second argument will be about the importance of accepting your identity. This leaves the last argument to be about the meaning of the blue door. In “Blue Against White”, Jeanette C. Armstrong reveals how the blue door represents a presentation of symbolism. Creating a theme to show that one must never

Lena compares her house to the other white houses in the text, wishing to be comparable to other western families, but throughout the text she creates meaning and understanding of the blue door. Their blue door is a symbol for Lena, meaning something more than the usual eye understands for when she comes back she understands “[a] blue barrier against the cold north wind. A cold blue shield [blue door] against the summer heat” (Armstrong, 240). This quote is able to give an understanding of what the blue door means when comparing against the western peoples. The door acting as a shield and something to hold their ground with. A shield to be protected from the western community. Without this blue door Lena would not have understood who she is, maybe not now at least but this blue door creates an understanding of how she feels as well. For example even coming close to the blue door “[Lena] felt light, weightless and somehow insubstantial like the last fluffseeds still clinging shakily to the milkweeds that lined the narrow dirt road gutted with deep, dry ruts” (Armstrong, 240). When Lena is around the blue door not only does she feel light but this could also relate to a spiritual meaning as well. As Lena feels light relating to water, or the sky. This could also be another way of how Lena could think of other Indigenous people that accepted who they are. This has multiple understandings and hidden meanings, but throughout the story Lena has created even more meaning of what the blue door is able to