Previously, the book portrayed Martine as cold and distant from Sophie. What I liked about this part of the reading was the change in her character.

When Martine walked towards Sophie instead it seemed like a humble act to me. After two years of ignoring her daughter, probably being face to face with her made her finally cave. She finally met her granddaughter who she seemed to love ever before meeting her – after all she did keep every picture Sophie sent.

“You and I, we started wrong, you are now a woman, with your own house. We are allowed to start again.”  Even though Martine didn’t say ‘sorry’ outright, I think she really did regret everything that happened between herself and Sophie and wanted to be a part of her daughter’s life again.

In this reading section the repercussions of Sophie’s actions seem to catch up to her.

What shocked me however was the fact that her mother was still holding a grudge. Ignoring Sophie’s calls and letters not even making an effort to see her first grandchild. I understand that Sophie did a hurtful thing but after missing so much years of Sophie’s life already I think Martine could’ve at least made an effort to amend the situation as time passed. Her grandmother and Tante Atie always says that all 4 women are “cut from the same cloth” because of their similarities but Martine is nowhere as close to forgiving or compassionate as her mother and sister.

Another part that stood out to me was when they mentioned that Joseph couldn’t understand why Sophie would do such a thing. I could not explain to him that it was like breaking manacles, an act of freedom. I think this was referring to much more than being tested for Sophie. It was everything her mother forced her into – from being hauled to New York, placed into that French speaking school, told she was becoming a doctor and barely being able to make eye contact with Joseph. The testing, which was like the ultimate control was the last straw for Sophie.

What stood out to me the most in the reading was Sophie’s rebellion. She faked the one thing she knew would crush her mother. Yes, her retaliation was obviously due to the fact that her mother had began “checking her” but, she didn’t even really lose her virginity – that act seemed selfish and spiteful. Especially after all her mother did and sacrificed for her.

Knowing what her mother went through, knowing how she came into this world it should’ve been obvious that Martine would’ve gone to extreme lengths to protect her. And yes those lengths were invasive and humiliating but Sophie retaliation was just as extreme. The man that Sophie seemed to be risking it all for was her mother’s age and the first male she seemed to ever really have feelings for, and she threw everything away for him so easy.

In this section Sophie meets her mother. What stood out to me was the way she described her mother. Before this meeting, all Sophie knew about her physical appearance was based on that picture.

When she first saw her Sophie realized that She did not look like the picture Tante Atie had on her night table. She mentally described her as tired and drawn, going as far as say “It was as though she had never stopped working in the cane fields after all.” When her mother asked “Am I the mother you imagined?”, she really wasn’t. Sophie thought that she would be the epitome of women, not just physically perfect but also someone who lived in a lavish and also perfect environment – New York. It might have been a disappointment per se, but Sophie definitely had another predefined image of the woman. Her mother was supposed to move to New York for a better life but it wasn’t as good as Sophie thought.

The part that stood out to me was her reluctance to join her mother. Plenty of times people have left Caribbean countries and ventured to New York to better their lives and that of their loved ones. Sometimes It takes years before seeing or living with each other again so I can understand why she wouldn’t want to leave. Yes she may be leaving to be with her biological mother, but Atie was the mother she knew, the woman who nurtured and raised her. They shared a bond with each other over the time spent together, a bond she yet had with her mother. Atie probably saw her as a daughter as well but didn’t want to impose on the relationship she could have with her real mother.

Tituba has never been shy when it came to intercourse and normally spoke about it openly enough. To her it was natural and there was no shame in fulfilling her desires – at least that’s what she thought until meeting Christopher.Unlike John Indian, every other man Tituba has been with seemed to have needed her for something, whether it be to communicate with their passed loved ones or to make them invincible. Their relationships were like bartering – grant their wishes for her pleasure.

Christopher was ready to fulfil her desires when he thought she could help him. But the minute she revealed to him that she couldn’t his attitude and treatment towards her changed and he referred to her as a “common Negress”. The moment she couldn’t help he made it clear that she wasn’t valued.

Here Tituba meets Christopher who asks her if she is a witch.

By this time in the text, Tituba had heard herself referred to as ‘witch’ on numerous occasions, and as the text progressed the word seemed to stop affecting her as much. I liked her response to Christopher, it was very accurate -she didn’t deny or agree, but she simply replied honestly. “Everyone believes they can fashion a witch to his way of thinking so that she will satisfy his ambitions, dreams and desires..”. Whenever people thought that Tituba and her powers were able to help grant their wishes, her power was all good but the moment she couldn’t help them or refused to, she was either weak or evil.

So the definition of a witch as Tituba said: “Everyone gives the word a different meaning”.

Here Tituba meets Hester.

Hester’s character is very interesting and Tituba obviously bonds with her. What makes her so different is the fact that Hester defies all of the constraints of society with her rebellious personality. She’s goes as far as saying “Its not her society”, and calls herself an outcast. Although her outcast title comes from the fact that she had a mind of her own and was very opinionated, she was an outcast none the less just like Tituba.

Of course adultery is an extreme act, especially in those days, but Hester doesn’t cower in the face of her punishment. She also seems to despise men – saying that their gender seems to give them special privileges, which was true. Her ways may seem like feminism, and even though mentioned in the book, her ‘feminsm’ then is normal rights for women today. And can you really blame Hester for her thought process? Because she seemed to be raised in a family that thought women and men should be equals – which was something very different for the times.

This reading continues with them in the village of Salem. The village’s atmosphere was often described as gloomy and dark. And being there had already started to take effect on Tituba, not just physically, but her entire disposition – so I can only imagine how those who lived there before were affected.

The scene in the forest when Tituba encountered Sarah who begged her for “help” perfectly portrays this.Without a thought at first, Tituba obviously refused, but as she thought it over she realised she too was thinking the same way – wanting the same thing as Sarah did.

“Knowledge must adapt itself to society…who are set on destroying us.” Sarah’s words, although harsh, provided a  sort of justification for the thoughts and feelings Tituba was having. That she too was adjusting to the darkness and hatred that existed in Salem in order to not just to survive but to function.