Chapter 3, Don't Talk to Me about Matisse Summary and Analysis

Ceylon has been sought after by many of the great European empires and the settlers that came from them. Michael's ancestor arrived in 1600, a doctor who healed the residing governor's daughter and was given land, along with a new name, Ondaatje. The long history of Michael's family is impressed upon him at an early age during a visit to a church where his family's names are inscribed on plaques along the church. Michael then discusses Simon Ondaatje, the last Tamil Colonial Chaplain of Ceylon.

In "Tongue", Michael is leading a group of children on the beach when they encounter a crocodile. It is a kabaragoya, and it is dead. The creature is common in Ceylon and is rarely found elsewhere in the world, but the size of an average...