“If you were to take that balloon and fly away, would you take me and the boy?” (Danticat 237). Edwidge Danticat’s short story “A Wall of Fire Rising” is about Guy, a Haitian man who is fascinated with a hot-air balloon. To Guy, the hot-air balloon serves as a symbol of freedom and an escape from his life of poverty. Guy’s inability to provide for his family and sustain a job creates conflict within himself and ultimately makes him frustrated with his life. Over the course of the story, Danticat uses symbolism by heavily focusing on the sugar mill, Dutty Boukman, and the hot-air balloon. All of which that add depth and various meanings to the story and its characters.
First, the sugar mill serves as a symbol of hope. Garry struggles to provide for his family due to the lack of job opportunities. The sugar mill …show more content…
Boukman is a leader of the Haitian Revolution of 1791. The Haitian Revolution occurs as Boukman leads a group of slaves to build a wall of fire—hence the title of the selection a wall of rising fire— that will destroy many of France’s plantations in the colony of Saint-Domingue. This uprising lasts fourteen years and leads to the discovery of the state which becomes both free from slavery and rule by a non-white former captive. Dutty Boukman serves as a symbol for the freedom that Little Guy shouts in his reciting lines. “‘Freedom is on my mind!’ yelled the boy.” (Danticat 228). “I call on everyone and anyone so that we shall all let out one piercing cry that we may either live freely or we should die” (Danticat 239). Dutty Boukman and his constant preaching of freedom and invincibility against the French fuels Guy’s desire for freedom and to live a more meaningful life. It’s important to understand who Dutty Boukman is and how he fits into Haiti’s history. Boukman serves as a symbol of freedom because his work and persistence lead Haiti to its