Draft:Green (short story)

• Comment: The whole section "Characterization of the narrator" feels like a high school analysis essay failing WP:NOT instead of what a Wikipedia article needs to be, which is summary of secondary coverage independent from the subject, sufficient to demonstrate notability. Consider reviewing Help:Your first article. Bobby Cohn (talk) 15:22, 7 January 2025 (UTC)

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Green is a short story written by Sefi Atta and published in the year 2009 in "News from Home: Short Stories". The short story deals with the way a nine-year-old narrator perceives the process of her parents getting a Green Card. The following character analysis is of the narrator of the story, the narrators thoughts and perception navigate the reader through the story and are therefore significant for the meaning of the story.

Synopsis

The short story "Green" follows a nine-year-old narrator who accompanies her Nigerian immigrant parents to an immigration office to get their green cards. For the parents that is a huge milestone, representing stability and freedom, therefore they are really excited. For the narrator is the time she has to spend with her parents at the immigration office a inconvenience. She has to support her parents and be there with them because she has a American passport. However she is eager to leave and return in time for her soccer game. At the immigration office the narrator reflects on her surroundings, the other people at the immigration office, her parents and in general her own life. After the parents get their green cards the family is able to be back in time for the soccer game. The story ends with the narrator playing her soccer game and experiencing a special moment of family unity and feeling of belonging.

Characterization of the narrator

The narrator is described as a alert, perceptive nine-year-old US citizen with immigrant parents. She describes “Green” through her observations. She has roots in Nigeria since thats where her parents are originally from and her grandparents still live. She still goes to school and has friends there. In her free time she plays soccer. The author makes it quite clear that she loves doing so. From the very beginning, it is clear: she is not happy or excited about the Green Card appointment and wishes instead to focus on her soccer game. This emphasizes her portrayal as a young girl who is conflicted with her sense of belonging and the serious realities of her families struggles.

The narrators close family contains of her father and mother, eventhough she has Grandparents the story implies that she does not really know them since they still live in Nigeria. While there is clear affection and respect, each member of the family has different priorities and ways of dealing with their life in the US. This is sometimes annoying or confusing for the narrator.

The narrator experiences her mother as a person who is protective and often comes across as strict. One example of this is when the narrator asks to get a book from the car, but her mother forbids it. This objectively trivial situation has a greater meaning in the story, it demonstrates the mothers controlling but caring nature. It also shows that the mothers priorities lie with the immigration process. The narrator feels frustration, but shows understanding for the motivations of her mothers actions. This scene reflects on the mothers caring but restrictive attitude, which limits the narrators freedom, but comes from a place of concern and a sense for what is important at the moment. However, the narrator experiences moments of irritation, especially when her mothers behavior or opinion clashes with her own desire to fit in. For example when they talk about the presidential election at the narrators school. The narrator voted for the president everyone at her school voted for. The mother than lectures her about sticking up for what you believe in. Thereupon the narrator thinks "First of all, it was her ground not mine. Number B, I believe in fitting in."

The narrators relationship with her father is depicted as a combination of respect and distance. The father had to make sacrifices such as staying in the US during his own fathers funeral, because he and his wife have a uncertain immigration status. Instead of going back to his home country he chooses to stay in the US for the sake of his family. The narrator respects that, though she does not excacly acknowledges it in the story. However the relationship is also characterized by a certain distance. The father is often occupied with his own thoughts and opinions. He loves to talk about political topics, especially the president and sociatiel problems. The narrators finds his behavior predictable, that she finds both familiar and exhausting. His approach to politics is confusing for the narrator. Because he says things and has opinions about certain topics but acts contrary. For example the father gets mad about the president but nevertheless wants him to win the elections.

The relationship between the narrator and the parents is indicative for the narrators struggles with her sense of belonging. Her parents approach to food, is representiv example ,it is a point of embarrassment and lack of understanding for the narrator. Particularly the retrospect in which the mother eats traditional African dishes with her hands and the father laughs about it. This moment reflects the narrators desire to distance herself from the traditions the parents embrace. Overall the relationship with the parents shows the narrators understanding towards her family, but also her conflict with their culturally different behavior and her being American.

The narrators interactions with her school friends is another big part of her identity revealing tension between her cultural heritage and her desire to fit in with American society. Her friend Celeste, for example, is a reflection of the kind of American girl the narrator both envies and feels distant from. Celestes interest in boys especially her crush on the narrators friend creates a conflict between the two. The narrators feelings are complicated by her mothers advice that "if two women are fighting over a man, they've already lost." While this advice reflects her mothers pragmatic view on relationships, it also shows the pressure the narrator feels in navigating her friendships.

The narrators classmates as well as the people in the waiting room for the Green Card reflect a range of cultural backgrounds, the narrators tendency to categorize them by their appearance demonstrates a developing awareness of cultural identity in general. The way her mother reacts to these observations shows the challenges the narrator faces in her own understanding of identity. She is learning to navigate herself through complexity of cultural diversity but she is still figuring out how to do it for herself as a young African-American girl with the desire to fit in.

One way shown for the narrator to feel like she belongs is to play soccer. She loves to play it and feels integrated by participating in this sport. Throughout the story she is eager to get back in time to Mississippi for her soccer game. That she has to be with her parents in order for them to get their Green Card and will maybe miss her soccer game upsets her. She does understand that the Green Cards are very important but it is still inconvenient and ennerving for her. The parents do not really care about the soccer game until the narrator convinces them that it is part of her life as a American. This situation highlights the characers conflict between creating a sense of belonging for herself and her familys struggles. In the end they are able to be there in time. The soccer game becomes a bridge between the narrators and her parents. The parents are able to be a part of the american life, whilst being there for their daugther. The narrator actually feels like she and her parents are a part of the American life.

Since the short story is told from the narrators perspective, it is possible to deduce some of her personality traits. The narrator is quiet observant, she is telling her story with many details. She has the ability to notice many things and analyze them such as appearances behaviors, and emotions of those around her. She is also really curious she questions her environment and the people that surround her. For example in the beginning she questions why the rules in the immigration office are written in different languages. She is also imaginative and creative with her words and thoughts. She compares the green cards with hidden treasure. Even though not openly, she often makes humorous comments on different things. That illustrates the narrators wit and sarcasm. For the story important is also the fact that she is opinionated. Though only in her mind and only with topics concerning the parents. When it comes to her friends or in general the narrators peers, she wants to fit in and be like the others. Towards her parents, she carries the opinion that it is better to fit in instead of sticking up for what you believe in.