Guide to note-taking on aspects of a Close Reading

Themes: 1. wistful and magical quality of memory
2. connection to the land
3. history of Ceylon (Sri Lanka)

How do these themes relate to others outside the immediate passage?

This story is a prose nonfiction work that, through childhood memories, interweaves the history of the Ondaatje family with the history of the land. The historical aspects of Ceylon are brought to the fore via the lens of the narrator’s imagination as he views an old map of his homeland and wistfully recounts its various political and sociological changes down through the years.

Gender: The passage constructs gender through the use of the noun “pendant,” comparing Ceylon to a “pendant off the ear of India,” and I take that to mean something valuable and precious, like an expensive piece of jewelry; and since this part of the world is known for its sapphires and rubies, I envision the author comparing Ceylon to a beautiful, exquisite, exotic woman.

History: A history of the land is narrated through the markings and drawings on the edges of a map on Ondaatje’s brother’s wall in Toronto. This “mantling” depicts Ceylon’s history through a “white queen” representative of European colonization and “a Moorish king” who represents the introduction of Islam to the island nation.