In the opening paragraph the writer illustred the relationship between his parents and the role of protagonist’s mother. This paragraph is connected with the novel because it is an explanation about the place in which the protagonist lived and her role. Its effect is to draw the attention to her mother behavior and the role of protagonist because it is an unusual way to start a novel.

The writer entitled the eight chapters of the novel as the first eight chapter of the Old Testament. The title of the first chapter is related to the Genesis of the Bible because in this there is the explanation about God creatation of the world, living beings and humans and then the story continued with the early origins of humans and the people of Israel. In the novel the Genesis is the description of protagonist’s mother, it was presented the relation between mother and father and the role of the protagonist and life in the family. Jeanette’s mother was obsessed by religion and she wanted to carry out her mission to disseminate religious principles as a missionary. Jeanette mother was againist sex and for this reason she adopted Jeanette. Also her mother divided the world in enemies and friends according to religion. The name of the chapter suggested a relation with the Bible and the presence of religious principles in the novel.

Jeanette’s mother was so religious, determinated, obstinate, she divided world into friends an emenies, she hates sex. The role of the mother was fundamental in the early years of Jeanette’s life. Her mother was a reference point and she can be compared with God. The mother of Jeanette educated her daughter with religious principles. Jeanette didin’t know the real world but just her mother one. I think that Jeanette mother was a person who didn’t accept the real world but only the religious one and she had just an only objective to promote Christian principles and for this reason she had adopted a little girl. In the first chapter seven paragraphs began with “My mother”. This is a way to underline the important role of the mother in Jeanette’s life and how they were united.

In this early stage I know that Jeanette was adopted by religious woman. This woman wouldn’t have sex and she adopted a daughter to realize her mission to begin a missionary of Christian principles. Jeanette didn’t attend school because she studied with her mother religious books. Jeanette lived in the world of her mother regulated by Christian laws. Her mother was a reference point, a guide. I think Jeanette is a naïve and innocent, but her mother tried to change her personality in the novel. The first person narrative is more effective way to tell a story. In this mode is more easy to understand and to envolve the reader.

The story of the gipsy and the palm reading can mean that it is an anticipation of Jeanette’s story.  I suppose Jeanette is attracted to the gipsy fair because it is different and interesting to the world of the mother and it seems an unreal world. 

The story of the princess is a metaphore of the Jeanette’s life. In fact the relation is that Jeanette was to become a guide in the Christian religion as the princess for the village. But this is an ambition of Jeanette’s mother.

In the novel there are other “fair stories” and they have the same role, to explain some thought of the writer.