Analysis Of Who Ate The Plums By David Seadaris

Childhood Memories

When we were children, we were very idealistic. Most of us saw life as black and white and see the path as straight and predictable. It is why the kids in the elementary school will still want to become a scientist, he or she cannot see the reasons why and they will not be dissuaded. The optimism and vivacity of youth is what keeps one going at that time. In the essay “Who Ate the Plums” by David Seadaris. The author writes about the time he was little boy and always thought he knew the type of poems he wanted to write. The author’s persona is that he has a comfortable adulthood, but he still looks back to his childhood with a reminder of regret.

Looking at the story, he reminisces about poems. The author starts by talking about the death of his mother and the box of knickknacks that she had left for him. In the box, there are letters from camp and college. He ships it around as he moves until he finds himself in Normandy. It is here that he opens the box and finds two poems in which he wrote in the fifth grade. These poems then lead him to the reflection and deep introspection.

First, the author creates a persona who seems to be ill at ease with himself.

Throughout the story, he seems to be facing contradictions and conflicts on who he is. For example, he talks about the love of reading books and the love of audio books. He admits that they provide different feelings, and he wants to experience both of them. He listens to podcasts while sitting down and reading books. It is a persona who might want the best of both worlds and will not settle with one or the other. He speaks of the self-righteous indignation in the ‘War’ poem being unforgivable. When he reminisce on the poem, he wishes that he is still the boy he once was. The boy that was conscious of the world and not who he has

become.
Second, during the time of writing the poem in his childhood, he was very creative and combative. Going back to when he was a child, he speaks of going to places that their parents thought were safe for them. Both he and his sister would get into the wicked crevices in the house without batting an eye. He also talks about the crawl space above the carport. This space would have scared any little boy because it was dark, cramped and there were pieces in it that the author says made it seem like a tomb. They would climb up and poke around. He claims that the space had changed him. His persona of being adventurous is also present in how he adapted to moving around. At no point in time does he complain about the journeys that he took up until he moved to Normandy.
Lastly, the author has also presented the persona of a person who is always willing to learn. This is something that has from his childhood, which is serving him well. This is shown when he speaks about the podcasts because he is open to learning and he appreciates the lessons that he acquires while listening to them. Throughout the entire story, he is fascinated by the poets he listens to. He listens to the poems and has the patience to listen to and appreciate the insights of the experts. From the sound of it, it is as if he is reliving her childhood. He says, “Poetry, I think. Where has it been all my life . . .” (page xix) he is like a child in a rhyme-filled candy store. He had let go of his childhood but his mother made him reminds from the grave. When he is in the world of the podcasts, he is back there writing poems and reading them in class.
In conclusion, the author has created a persona who is unstable. He lives in the present and the past. He was writing poems in fifth-grade but somewhere along the line, he stopped. He loves to read, but at the same time, he wants to listen to his podcasts. He compares the two and says that reading a book is akin to going into that world while audio books bring the world of the book to ours. They are different feelings, and he wants them both. This is a persona who is not afraid to look at his past and see both the good and the bad things. He is honest, and it makes him appreciate his new hobby. As he continues to immerse into poetry again, he may be able to regain conscienceless and become the person he once was.