Indian Picture - "Shania"

The picture of an "Indian warrior" (3) hanging above Shania's parents' bed in "Shania" is a symbol of the ways in which the narrator finds Shania interesting and appealing because she is different from the narrator herself. One of the most obvious ways in which she is different is that she is Native American, as the narrator notes from the outset: "On the day we met, she told me she was named after the sexiest country music star alive. And that she knew how to fire a gun. And that she was one hundred percent Cherokee" (1). The picture of the Indian over the bed adds to Shania's mystique.

House - "Mind Craft"

The house Maddy's boyfriend is obsessed with in "Mind Craft" is a symbol of Maddy's ongoing trauma related to her mother's absence. She is upset that her boyfriend will not take her...