'Blossom' traces the story of the Trinidadian immigrant in the city of Toronto and how she negotiates with the different ruses of the migrant experience in the metropolis. Unlike the two other stories, this is a story of success, albeit a painful one. The author focuses on the space of the metropolis and how it is inflected by the outsider/migrant. There seems to be a parallelism between the act of walking or dwelling in a city and the gradual development of her identity vis a vis the urban spacce. This is marked in the parade of Blossom, Peg and Betty with placards saying that Dr so and so is a white rapist. This small act of resistance is in fact an assertion of their citizenship. It is an instance of making claim of the space. This spectacle of power was strong enough to displace the Doctor's family altogether.
What is striking about the story is the inscription of the myth of the African goddess Oya in the urban space of toronto. "At first she did not know who it is, and is then she realize that the scream was coming from she and she couldn't stop it" -- this is the moment which transforms her. It is only after this momentary loss of sanity or reality that "she feel sheself flying around the earth and raging around the world and then, not just this earth but earth deep in the blackness beyond sea."
What follows is a struggle between suffering and Blossom in which Blossom dances to re integrate herself. "So she roll and dance, she grain-self into a hate so hard, she chisel sheself into a sharp hot prickle and fly in suffering face."
In this hyper real state, Blossom gains her identity which the real world denied her. Thus empowered with the counter-myth of goddess Oya, who presides over winds, storms and waterfalls. (I am describing the myth of Oya as a counter-myth because it challenges the myth of the Canadian metropolis vis a vis its claim of a multicultural city and the myth of the new break which permeates the consciousness of the Caribbean people.) This recourse to the counter myth enables Blossom to set up her own small business in toronto. In this way, Blossom forms her own subculture in the city with the other migrants, some kind of an esoteric society whose significance could only be grasped by those who have similar experience. This bar cum temple is not only a site of resistance but a site of rejuvenation for Blossom as well as other migrants which defends them from destabilising effect of migrancy, the place in fact is a place of re-rooting.
Drishadwati Bargi
PG I
What is striking about the story is the inscription of the myth of the African goddess Oya in the urban space of toronto. "At first she did not know who it is, and is then she realize that the scream was coming from she and she couldn't stop it" -- this is the moment which transforms her. It is only after this momentary loss of sanity or reality that "she feel sheself flying around the earth and raging around the world and then, not just this earth but earth deep in the blackness beyond sea."
What follows is a struggle between suffering and Blossom in which Blossom dances to re integrate herself. "So she roll and dance, she grain-self into a hate so hard, she chisel sheself into a sharp hot prickle and fly in suffering face."
In this hyper real state, Blossom gains her identity which the real world denied her. Thus empowered with the counter-myth of goddess Oya, who presides over winds, storms and waterfalls. (I am describing the myth of Oya as a counter-myth because it challenges the myth of the Canadian metropolis vis a vis its claim of a multicultural city and the myth of the new break which permeates the consciousness of the Caribbean people.) This recourse to the counter myth enables Blossom to set up her own small business in toronto. In this way, Blossom forms her own subculture in the city with the other migrants, some kind of an esoteric society whose significance could only be grasped by those who have similar experience. This bar cum temple is not only a site of resistance but a site of rejuvenation for Blossom as well as other migrants which defends them from destabilising effect of migrancy, the place in fact is a place of re-rooting.
Drishadwati Bargi
PG I
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