Themes Seen in Beka Lamb

Many themes were introduced in the first six chapters of Beka Lamb. Some of the major themes were Poverty, Death, Success and Failure, as well as Maturity and Development. The theme of Poverty is seen throughout these chapters. Miss Eila's inability to keep a wake for Toycie's shows the state of the majority of people living in Belize at this point in time. Also we see the excitement of Beka and Toycie as they go for walks at Fort George 'where the wealthier elements of the community lived.' However we see the disappointment as the girls go back to their homes, out of their 'world of fantasy' and back to the 'staler, dirtier noisier and altogether less pleasant place than the lovely areas they had just left.' Zee Edgell also uses many descriptive literary devices in order to portray a setting of poverty, depression and stagnation. Some of these phrases are 'rusty zinc rooftops of the town,' and 'on top pinewood posts of varying heights.'

Death is another major theme seen in this novel. We see the different ways in which people deal with Death. Beka deals with the death of Toycie by keeping her own personal vigil in which she recaps and comes to term with the death of her beloved friend. The polar bear also shows death, hopelessness, depression and poverty. We also sadness as they speak of the issue of Brain Drain.

Success and Failure is also a major issue in the novel. Zee Edgell uses the dream, in chapter two, as a technique to symbolise Beka's transition from childhood to young adulthood. The dream shows what is going on in Beka's life. In the dream, Beka is crying out for help yet no one comes to her aid. In reality it shows that Beka is voiceless. In the dream, Beka is on a bridge and the bridge is moving. the bridge stands as a symbol of change and transformation. It shows that Beka is on a journey but she is still not quite there yet. However Beka is looking down at the filthy creek which represents failure. There are people urging her to jump but if she falls off, she will fail. Ultimately Beka is afraid of failure. Her fear is that when she makes this jump (transition), she will fail.

This also ties in with the theme of Maturity. As the novel develops, we see Beka changing. This change began when her father cut down her bougainvillea plant as a symbol of the removal of Beka's " flash and phoneyness." From this point on we see Beka developing and taking responsibility of her actions. She does a lot of cleaning to show to her parents that she is growing into a young woman but in the end Beka realises that it will take more than some cleaning in order to prove that she is trying to change. We also see a symbiotic transformation in which Beka is developing and maturing while the political system in Belize is changing. It may also be noted that there is great political turmoil in Belize simultaneously occurring as Beka is experiencing internal conflict.

Thus far, this novel is presenting many themes and issues which not only affect Beka but issues which are seen daily by adolescents.