Metaphor for a Cynical Outlook upon life
It is clear that the titular black dog is a symbol of the harsh realities of life but beyond that it is also a metaphor for a deeply cynical outlook upon life. Death is a constant, especially for individuals like the author’s grandmother that have lived through such a horrific event. Beyond being an immutable reality however, death, as the author’s older relatives were so frequently reminded, is also an ugly, ignominious matter that one hardly had the luxury of choosing how one passed on.
Metaphor for Hope and Survival
America is more than just a country where the Balakian clan escapes to; it is a near tangible metaphor for hope and survival. The author is a second generation migrant who grows up largely unaware of the horrors that his older relatives had to endure both in the “old country” and when they reach the shores of America. America, despite the promise of safety and wide-open opportunities is unfamiliar territory for poor Armenian refugees. This too is a harsh reality that the family must deal with and overcome.
Metaphor for the author’s Armenian Heritage
The author’s maternal grandmother, Nafina Aroosian, does not talk about the Armenian Genocide directly because many of the memories associated with this event are too horrible to bring up. She does however share snippets of that dark chapter in their collective history through ambiguous folktales and Armenian proverbs. Grandma Nafina also imparts as much practical wisdom as she can to her grandson, eventually sharing—albeit sparingly—bitter memories she is willing to recall for the sake of her grandson’s memoir. Nafina, because of her experiences and predisposition for share her experiences, serves as a metaphor for the author’s Armenian heritage and a connection to his past.
Metaphor for Truth
Balakian’s book, in addition to being an homage to his Armenian roots, is also his attempt to unearth his family’s past and, by extension, the Armenian Genocide. In doing this the book itself becomes a metaphor for truth. The memoir, by its very nature, is a chronicle of one family’s recollection of a horribly dark chapter in history that many would try to gloss over and forget.
Metaphor for Sugar Coating the Bitter Realities of Life
Standing in direct contrast to the horrid offering is the spring lamb stuffed with delicacies presented by a lovely maiden. The cryptic symbol is a metaphor for the knowledge gap in his family history, a gap created primarily by well-meaning family members who sought to “protect him” from the bitterness of their collective experience. Whenever he tried to press his family to tell him the truth of genocide they’d either clam up or dissuade him from pursuing the matter further. This act of denial within his family of such a harrowing collective tragedy is also sadly paralleled by the world at large as many Turkish citizens are content to seemingly forget that wholesale murder occurred right under their noses.
