Orphan Train Literary Elements

A novel

The story unfolds in the beginning of the 20th century until the middle of the 20th century and the beginning of the 21st century – to be more precise 2010s – in Ireland and the USA.

This story has two narrators. Niamh Power’s part is told from the first person point of view by Niamph whilst Molly Ayer’s story is told from the third person point of view by an omniscient narrator.

Because of the heart-wrenching events described in the novel, tone oscillates between anger and wariness on the part of Molly and sadness/despair/agitation and finally peacefulness on Niamh/Vivian’s part. Mood changes from irritated, sarcastic and gloomy to a happy one.

Molly Ayer and Niamh Power are protagonists of the novel while Dina Thibodeaus and Wilma and Gerald Grote are antagonists. However, one may rightfully assume that almost all foster parents of Molly and Niamh could be considered antagonists.

There are two major conflicts. It is man vs. self, for Molly learns how to be herself and stop being passive aggressive, she fights with her distrust of other people. The second one is man vs. society, for being orphans both Molly and Niamh have to fight against prejudices against them.

The nasty quarrel between Molly and Dina after which Molly decides to leave the house and her foster family is the climax of the story.

When Niamh starts her story by mentioning that she is “ninety-one years old” and that “almost everyone who was once in my life is now a ghost”, it becomes clear that readers are going to learn about her past more.

Mr. Grote thinks that if he drags mattresses out to the porch and pours boiling water over them it is going to kill the bugs. “I have half a mind to do the same to the kids,” he says. This is an understatement, for this man doesn’t believe that his children’s lives are worthier than lives of the bugs.

Being an aggressive and lonely teenager, Molly likes reading depressive stories such as The Virgin Suicides, Catcher in the Rey, the Bell Jar and Jane Eyre. The novel alludes to orphan trains, the crash of the stock market, President Roosevelt, the attack on Perl Harbor and the World War II.

Imagery is actively used to describe the way the characters look, the conditions they live in and even their feelings and emotions.

They call this an orphan train , children, and you are lucky to be on it.
To be on an orphan train has nothing to do with luck. On the contrary, these children definitely are not lucky at all, for they are parent-less and homeless, not to mention, that the majority of them are going to work as slaves for their future foster parents.

Upright and do right make all right.

Coarse country people looking for a field hand.
A field hand is metonymy which stands for a farmer’s helper.
Em is practically sitting in the lap of a gray hair.
A gray hair is synecdoche where a gray hair stands for a person.

The melancholy that filled our home.