Essays on Suffolk

1. The book begins with a historical portrait of Ruth McBride Jordan. The author reveals that Ruth has had some name changes. Explain each name change and its significance. The change of Ruth’s name indicates the changes that she has undergone since her birth. She was born in Poland as Rachel Dwanra Zylska and as the name indicates she was born into an orthodox Jewish family. The first name change happens in her second year when her family immigrates to America. It is here that she gets her second name Rachel Deborah Zylska, which was ‘an American version ...

1) Ruth’s original name is Rachel Deborah Shilsky, a Jewish name – when she converted to Christianity after her mother’s death, she gave up that name, which “had to die in order to for me, the rest of me, to live,” most notably to avoid anti-Jew prejudice against her (McBride 2). 2) In this metaphor, Ruth likens her father to a fox – an animal that is extremely crafty and smart. By calling him ‘a fox, especially when it came to money,’ Ruth compliments her father for his intelligence and craftiness, presumably being extremely fiscally responsible and able to ...

The book titled The Color of Water by James McBride is an autobiographical affair which describes the life and happenings of the author’s mother, Ruth. The book is also a tribute to Ruth’s life and all that she goes through in the course of life. Ruth is presented as a strong woman with great ambition and strength. The book is not only representative of her journey and struggles; it is also her development as a person, a Christian, and a woman during the course of her life. She is the central figure in the novel and her ...