Set on two different continents and spanning over 250 years, Homegoing is a historical fiction novel written by Yaa Gyasi. The novel follows the stories of two families descended from half-sisters, Effia and Essi, who never meet. Although the families have vastly different experiences, they both face personal hardships and tragedies along with racism. The stepsisters had several encounters with parental relationships and maternal love that led them to find each other in two different circumstances. The way the sisters raised their children also changed due to their circumstances and upbringing. Gyasi points out that a character's relationship with their parents influences how they treat and communicate with others. Yaa Gyasi uses motifs of abandonment and sacrifice to portray parental relationships. We say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essayEffia is a character who sees the unfavorable side of parental love, once she gets married "she will have no news of her family" (Gyasi 26). Baaba resents taking care of a child that is not hers. Effia's marriage to James gives Baaba the opportunity to get rid of Effia and offer some political advantage to his village. Gyasi creates a sympathetic mood towards Effia that helps the reader relate to the character more. Once Maame is revealed to Effia, she has a sudden urge to "apologize perhaps for the burden her father made Babba carry all those years." The sudden change in Baaba's characterization helps the reader sympathize with Baaba. Furthermore, the apologetic tone used by Effia suggests that perhaps Baaba is a multifaceted character, through the sacrifice of self-respect that Baaba makes to care for Effia. Later in the text, Ness lies to the "devil" about Kojo's death and hopes to render the look mothers receive when "they killed their children to free them." The use of allusion portrays that Ness is willing to do anything for her son's freedom. However, Ness' statement about sacrifice is ironic since Kojo's freedom entails his imprisonment. Ness's sacrifice and relationship with her son ironically also leads to her husband's death and greater slavery while providing a slavery-free life for Kojo. Unfortunately, Kojo's lack of parental love leads him to be a highly competent father. The loss of parental love affects how the characters treat and communicate with their children. Kojo, for example, admits that being a caring father “felt like a debt to his parents.” Gyasi uses the comparison between debt and parenthood to convey that the loss of his parents during his childhood meant that Kojo was an ongoing and impactful part of his children's lives. Additionally, the connotation of remorse in “debt” creates a supportive response from readers, engaging them more in the novel. Similarly, Quey reveals that Effia "never hit him and spoke softly but confidently". The repetition of the “s” sound creates a peaceful atmosphere, which highlights Effia's nonviolent characteristics and creates an emotional environment for readers to engage in. As a result, readers also experience a feeling of satisfaction in seeing that even though Baaba's ways upset Effia, the same ways are not used on Quey. Unlike Effia, James was born into luxury and royalty, however, he implores an Asante warrior to "tell everyone he died in the war". The constant quarrels and the participation of Quey and Nana Yaa in the slave trade make James believe that conducting a, 31(1), 1–15.