“I’m trying to read by the oil lamp, but the sound of the words are not coming together over the sound of the wind and the rain relentlessly bearing down on the house; they are fragments. Jason has remarried, and Medea is wailing. An exile, oh God, oh God, alone. And then: By death, oh, by death, shall the conflict be decided. Life’s little day ended. I shut the book, don’t even mark my place, and sit on it. I am cold.” (225)

In this passage, Ward is creating a parallel between Esch’s life and the book she is reading. Esch is experiencing her own exile (to the living room) at the same time that Medea is experiencing an exile in the book, and she is also facing the imminent possibility of death at the hands of Katrina. When Esch says that “the sound of the words are not coming together over the sound of the wind and the rain…” she is saying that her own problems at the moment are louder than the problems Medea is facing in the story. The parallel shown in this passage is important at this time in the book because it shows how strongly Esch relates to Medea at that time. In addition, it shows that she is feeling desperate, like Medea was. It also reflects on the central theme of desperation by showing the climax of the mythological allusions; it shows that Esch’s feelings of heartache and anxiety are peaking at this moment.

This image is of a quilt made by Marilyn Belford. It is titled “Medea Escaping” and depicts Medea making her escape at the end of the myth. At this point, she has already been betrayed, and she has exacted her revenge on Jason’s new love. She has also already killed her two sons, so that they would not have to die at the hands of anyone else. This image shows the amount of power that Medea has, and that she cannot be controlled by anyone. She is surrounded by fire to show all the hardships she went through, but she is in control of the dragon, which shows that she is still as powerful as ever.

This image represents Esch at the end of the book to me because I see Esch’s spirit as being similar to a fire. Sometimes, it rages, and she is strong and powerful, like she is at the end of the book. Other times throughout the novel, her inner fire is weak and it is reduced to only coals. However, her fire never goes out, it only fades. By the end of the book, Esch has gained fuel and strength from her impending motherhood; from the experience of the hurricane; and from being surrounded by people who care about her (Randall, Big Henry, Junior). This picture shows Esch's inner fire burning bright at the end of the book.