Mock Trials Details

Everyone to return to class by 5:30 pm Case 1: Defendants Officer A  & Officer B: charged with the murders of Riley and Brotherman Case  2: Defendants: Caliban & Ariel Defendant A: Caliban charged with violation of restraining order; indecent conduct with a minor; sexual assault; harassment; and disorderly conduct Defendant B: Ariel charged with battery…

Why Sycorax? – Shift

Nalo Hopkinson uses the characters of Caliban, Ariel, and Sycorax from Shakespeare’s The Tempest to portray the central themes of heritage and cultural identity in her short story, Shift. However, while in the original play Caliban is enslaved by Prospero, a man who was exiled to Caliban’s island and forced him into servitude, Hopkinson chooses…

Are Names Important?

The first thing that is noticed when reading Gorilla, My Love is the use of nicknames for almost every character in the story. Peaches/Precious, Baby Jason, Big Brood, and Hunca Bubba to name some, are nicknames for the main character, Hazel, and her close family. All these characters are on the younger side, save for…

Cultural Contrast and Tradition in “Shift”

Cultural traditions appear evidently in Nalo Hopkinson’s “Shift.” Although Hopkinson does not follow the traditions exactly, she is still able to stay loyal and represent her culture effectively. She raises themes and questions focusing on racial and cultural contrasts. Specifically, the protagonist Caliban is derived from William Shakespeare’s English work and reclaiming it in the…

Heads of the colored people

In the text Heads of the colored people by Nafissa Thompson Spires, a formal textual element visible was when the journal was showing a picture of Riley with cornrows at a throwback party, as well as a mugshot of Brother Man explaining a crime he committed five years ago after their death. Riley’s mother and…

The Significance of the Vernacular in Hopkinson’s “Shift”

In Nalo Hopkinson’s short story “Shift”, the author utilizes the juxtaposition of Ariel’s and Caliban’s diction to emphasize the contrast between their perspectives on their shared heritage. The narrative continuously switches accounts from Caliban’s second person view to Ariel’s first person view until the two characters come into conflict and share direct dialogue. In protest…