Camilo's Mother's Plants

The plants in the garden that have historically been tended by Camilo's mother function as a symbol of the slow withering and collapse not only of the family's dynamics but also of the principles that they are built on. At the beginning of the novel, Joana points out to Camilo that their mother has not watered her garden in months. This image of decay and negligence is a powerful indicator that the military dictatorship and its cultural values are beginning to lose their proverbial shine by 1976, the year in which the novel begins.

Ox Tongue

The ox tongue that Maria Aína and Paulina frequently prepare for Camilo and his family comes to serve as a symbol of one's belonging within the family and within the neighborhood of Queím. Indeed, Camilo is disturbed when Cosme eventually begins eating Maria Aína's ox tongue...