Inspiration in "Her Head a Village"

Essay by NorthieCollege, UndergraduateA-, March 2006

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"Her head blazed; her tiny, tight braids were like coals on fire. The villagers stayed in her head, shouting and laughing. She tried to closing her eyes and massaging her forehead. With her eyes still closed, she eased her body onto the couch. Familiar footsteps sounded at the side of her head. Maddie appeared. 'All this shouting and hollering won't solve anything - it will only make us tired and enemies. We all have to live together in this village.' Not one villager joked about her two dresses, pants and sweater. Not one villager had anything to say about the pencil stuck in her hair, a pencil she never used. Maddie spoke for a long time, putting the villagers to sleep."

The theme of inspiration is found in many pieces of writing. What inspired the author to write about the things that they did? What inspired the main character to take the actions that he did? What inspired the author to give his characters their own individual inspirations that make up who they are? Every piece of literature is filled with underlying inspirations.

This passage from Makeda Silvera's short story, "Her Head a Village" and its uses of various voices attempting to inspire the antagonist shows the story's central theme, which is that inspiration can come from anywhere.

The main character in "Her Head a Village" remains nameless throughout the entire story, yet the reader still learns a lot about her in a short period of time. First of all, she is to write an essay to present at an international forum for Third World women. We quickly learn that many different thoughts inside her head are pulling at her conscious self, begging for attention in the essay. These thoughts are personified by the author in the image of...