What does Annunziata's suitcase represent to her when she fills it with Italian soil and brings it to America? How does this change when she passes it on to Maria, and Maria passes to Eddie?

What do you believe Annunziata's suitcase represents to her when she fills it with Italian soil and brings it to America? How does this change when she passes it on to Maria? When Maria passes it to Eddie?

Annunziata's brown suitcase originally belonged to her husband Giuseppe who gifted it to her when they parted. She fills it with the soil from her pre-purchased burial plot in the Verano cemetery. It was impractical and heavy and a burden on her journey across the Atlantic, but it represented her country and she viewed it as her only reward for having done all that was asked of her. Years later, upon hearing from Maria that she is moving out, Annunziata dumps the dirt outside into the garden. Going forward she would tend the garden with the addition of the Roman earth. She gives the suitcase to Maria who understands that this was something Annunziata had wanted to keep but that she values her daughter more. Still later, Maria, in turn, gives the brown leather bag to her boyfriend Eddie as they part. It meant home to her, but now it was time to give it to the person she loved.

The suitcase full of dirt represents Italy and her roots. Annunziata saves her husband's suitcase to bring her family with her to the new world. She leaves Italy under protest, in fear for her life and that of her daughter. She only surrenders the suitcase to her daughter when she realizes she is losing her too. The suitcase represents family and is a way for Annunziata to stay linked to Maria. When Maria gives that same suitcase to Eddie, it is out of love. Each person surrenders the suitcase for love. The father, the mother, and the daughter.

I love Scribbling Scribe's answer to this. I hadn't really thought about the suitcase much, but Scribe's statement that "each person surrenders the suitcase for love" hits the nail on the head.

The suitcase and earth represent to Annuziata the life she left behind but still wants to remain attached to. Since she can't take Guiseppe, the suitcase also represents the love she's leaving behind. She passes the suitcase on after dumping out the dirt to have it co-mingle with her American garden (perhaps symbolizing she's ready to integrate into America) as a way for Maria to carry on the traditions of her roots and show her abiding and deep love for her daughter. Similarly in passing the suitcase to Eddie, Maria is passing along her love as presented in the suitcase to Eddie.

I agree with all of the above comments. I also think in a very real sense suitcases represent moving on. It suggests physical acceptance of the need for movement as well as emotional acceptance of the need for each recipient of the suitcase to take it on their journey forward. In turn, the giver has to move on as well accepting the loved one’s departure.

I also agree with the above comments and feel items such as a suitcase can provide connections to and memories of family and events and should passed down to other members of the family or close friends so the can appreciate and be connected to your life story.

It might seem unbelievable that someone would haul a suitcase filled with dirt all the way to a different continent except that many years ago a friend's mother hauled a bucket of soil from one state to another state when her first grandchild was being born; the grandmother wanted to be able to say the grandchild was born "above" [name of home state] soil." Supposedly, this bucket of soil was allowed in the delivery room. The suitcase and soil symbolize Annunziata's love for her country and the life she had previously enjoyed there.

The suitcase symbolizes a love of country, family and traditions that immigrants are often forced to shed when they arrive in their new country. Many of us like to gather a small rock or a seashell or inexpensive keepsake when we visit a foreign country to help us remember an exciting or emotional trip. Ties to the lands of our ancestors are even more compelling. I would love to have a small bit of soil from my grandparents’ family home in France. It would be cherished.

I loved this element of the book. To me, it represented her roots, her history, and her love for her country. Wanting to keep all of that close to her heart, but realizing sometimes you need to let things go to move on. Hence, passing it on to her daughter, and Maria passing it on to Eddie. It also allowed the giver, to still be a part of the recipients life. Loved it!!

The soil was so significant to Annuziata when she left her homeland, but once her daughter needed it, she did not hesitate to give it to her. Likewise, when Eddie needed the suitcase, Maria did not hesitate to give over her last remnant of her father.
I think the use of the suitcase was to show that people are more important than objects.

"Each person surrenders the suitcase for love. The father, the mother, and the daughter." ~ ScribblingScribe

So true! That suitcase represents Annunziata's home in Italy and the life she is forced to give up there, not once but twice. First as a child and then as the mother of a child she must protect when her husband is confined. She fills it with the dirt of the burial plot she had planned to occupy for eternity, knowing that there is a good chance she will never see Italy again. At least, she can still be buried in the soil of her country and ancestors.

But the time finally comes to let go . . . and she empties the dirt into the soil of the garden she has tended in Los Angeles. Is it an acknowledgment that she has finally accepted that Los Angeles is her home? I think that's open to interpretation. It certainly represents another sacrifice for the daughter that she loves so completely, even though she lacks the capacity to express that love.

I agree with ScribblingScribe. The suitcase represents the complicated love Giuseppe, Annunziata, and Maria feel for each other. And it also comes to represent the unconditional love that Maria feels for Eddie & the fact that she finally understands what it means to love unconditionally when she lets Eddie walk away from her without telling him how she really feels and how much she really needs & wants him in her life. But she loves him enough to understand what HE needs and puts his needs ahead of her own. That's the point at which Maria really grows up and comes into her own as a strong, independent woman.

I too love what Scribbling Scribe said. The suitcase full of dirt represented home and roots to Annunziata, but she didn't hesitate to give it to Maria when Maria would otherwise have packed in a shopping bag. Annunziata gave the suitcase to Maria out of love, just as Maria gave the suitcase to Eddie out of love. The suitcase is a a tangible way of passing on intangible love.