Author: Sabrina Bramwell

Following the plot of N.K Jemisin’s trilogy has been a task I was only able to cope with by writing things down. Being aware of my forgetful habits, I realized  very early on the semester that I needed to find a method of staying organized. Well…at least that was my intention. What was to be a structured arsenal of literary evidence quickly became a playground for whimsical cartoons and occasional freakouts. The more I wrote, the less it became about hoping I didn’t forget and instead focused on replicating my emotions on paper. So when I read The Stone Sky and came across Alabaster’s own record-keeping, I started making some connections with my own, and I wrote them down.

Continue reading “Becoming Alabaster: A Call to Blankness”

In the Acknowledgements of The Stone Sky, N.K. Jemisin leaves readers with insight on the journey that she has endured in writing this trilogy. Of all the moving things she said I was most impacted by the assertion she makes on page 416:

“Where there is pain in this book, it is real pain; where there is anger, it is real anger; where there is love, it is real love.”

Without realizing it, I began creating a mental checklist on these emotions and how they revealed themselves throughout the trilogy. It was easy to pinpoint instances that enticed rage or pain, but I seemed to stumble when I considered love.  Then finally (finally) it hit me.

Continue reading “The Type of Love that Writes A Trilogy”

The presence of Father Earth—over the commonly known Greek-originated Mother Earth—is one of the most pressing reminders of the influence of Ancient Egyptian mythology in the Broken Earth trilogy. I soon realized that other influences did exist but just required a bit more digging. I accepted this challenge and found evidence that links one of the core (pun intended) decisions made by Jemisin’s Father Earth to the role of the Egyptian parallel, the god Geb.

Continue reading “Weighing Father Earth’s Heart”

Do you know that awkward (maybe infuriating based on frequency) moment when someone mispronounces your name? Or when the Starbucks employee spells “Sabrina” “Sabreena”, “Dominique” becomes “Domanic” or “Melisha” is ‘corrected’ to say “Melissa”? Though these instances are not intentional Jemisin has taught me that misplaced intention should never excuse closer investigation. In The Stone Sky—and throughout Jemisin’s trilogy—where we are reminded that “Names have power” (239) and it is here that Jemisin challenges me to think about the processes of renaming.

(Sorry folks, this is a lengthy one)

Continue reading “Heavy Names”

A couple classes ago when Professor McCoy made mention of Jemisin’s interest in Marvel Comics and the influence that this interest might have had in the creation of the Ring system within the Fulcrum—as a Marvel fan—I couldn’t help but do my research. My discoveries about Marvel’s installment of the ten-ring system only fueled my growing need to better understand the world that Jemisin has created, considering the intentional decisions she makes. So to get things going let’s start with some Marvel History! Continue reading “Marvel and Jemisin: The 10 Rings”

During our class this past Friday, while Dr. Giorgis was providing a response to a question, he made mention that there exists a powerlessness in admitting the influence that the earth has on society.  I began to question why this was. Why was it difficult to acknowledge that the earth is a living thing separate from us as human beings?

When I say the earth is living, I mean that (as morbid as this may sound) without the influence of human beings, the planet Earth would still exist. Continue reading “The Earth is Living”