The Color of Water Themes

The Color of Water Themes

Coming of Age

In most coming-of-age stories, a character transitions from childhood to adulthood, learning important life lessons along the way. In The Color of Water, the author guides his readers through two coming-of-age experiences, his own and his mother's. Though they do not happen at the same time chronologically, he places them side-by-side in the text to allow for easy comparison and contrast.

Ruth's childhood is constrained, deprived and sometimes brutal. Because of her abusive father, Ruth always feels the need to run or escape. Through her teen and young adult years she finds it difficult to stay in one place to deal with her problems, and this sometimes creates more problems. Even as an adult, Ruth feels the need to be constantly moving. She deals with grief by getting on a bicycle and propelling herself through the city. She moves her family to Delaware during one particularly difficult time.

Because she...
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