The Wild Child
The Wild Child, who makes only a brief appearance in
Meridian, represents the possibility of pursuing life
independently, on one’s own terms. The Wild Child is an iconic figure—Walker
does not even give her a name. The residents of the slums surrounding Saxon
College know little of this mysterious, almost-feral girl who rummages for
food in garbage cans and has not fully acquired language. Meridian
ultimately fails to help her and, in fact, plays a role in her death—the
Wild Child cannot be tamed, and she died trying to escape that fate. Like
the Wild Child, Meridian strips her life of external influences, material
goods, and physical comforts as she moves from community to community,
registering voters and fighting racism. Both women live on the fringes of
society, away from the scrutiny and judgment of mainstream life. Meridian’s
great-grandmother, Feather Mae, suggests a similar presence, a free,
radical, and unconventional spirit who, after her profound experience in the
pit in the serpent mound, renounces all religion not based on physical
ecstasy. Later in her life, she took to walking around naked and worshipping
the sun. These unique women pursue their lives on their own terms, extolling
their fiercely individualistic spirits.
The Tank
The tank sits in the town square in Chicokema, where Meridian is
living when the novel opens. Painted white and decorated with red, white,
and blue ribbons, it was bought in the 1960s to ward off “outside
agitators,” those who advocated the extension of civil rights to all of the
town’s residents, including blacks. Positioned near the tank is a statue of
a Confederate soldier, whose leg was permanently crushed when the tank was
being put into place. This gestures to the fact that the civil rights
movement is like a new civil war, one that has come with great force to
replace and supersede that earlier conflict. When Truman meets up with
Meridian again after a considerable absence, he witnesses her leading the
town’s children, forbidden on that day from touring the traveling exhibit,
across the square. Men positioned inside the tank move the muzzle and point
it directly at her, but she is neither cowed nor deterred. The tank serves
as an ironic presence, suggesting that freedom must be defended from those
who do not match the tank’s white coloring. It also symbolizes the violence
and oppression that marked not only the history of slavery but the civil
rights movement as well.
The Sojourner
The Sojourner is the name given to the largest magnolia tree in the
country, which grows in the quadrangle of Saxon College. It is associated
with Louvinie, a slave on the plantation whose property would eventually be
turned into Saxon College. Louvinie buries her tongue, cut out in punishment
for unintentionally causing the death of one of the Saxon children, beneath
a scrawny magnolia tree, which eventually grows into the renowned, towering
giant. Thus, the magnolia serves as a living reminder of the past, of growth
in the face of oppression and the millions of slaves who were silenced,
their tongues metaphorically removed, by the institution of slavery. The
tree also serves as a source of comfort for the lonely Meridian, who
initially has trouble adjusting to college life. At one point, Meridian even
chains herself to it to prevent its removal, a task at which she ultimately
fails. When the students, in revolt, chop down the tree, the Sojourner’s
symbolic import changes. Now its destruction represents an abrupt breaking
with the past and the racist traditions that marked it.
The Sacred Serpent Mound
Like the Sojourner, the serpent mound—and the deep mysterious pit
contained in the coil of its tail—is a powerful connection to the past. The
ancient mound, built by the region’s original Native American inhabitants,
is located on a patch of land behind the Hill home. It is a reminder of the
need to study, honor, and learn from the past. Meridian’s father has a
spiritual connection to the lives of people buried there, and he honors the
native presence that preceded his own as tenants of the land. The mound, to
him, symbolizes the interconnectedness and the universality of human
experience. It helps him to contextualize and better understand the black
experience by signifying the lives of another marginalized people who were
forever altered by a racist white power base. However, just as the land was
taken from the Cherokee, Meridian’s father is similarly forced to give up
ownership of the parcel. Thus, also like the Sojourner, the mound’s symbolic
meaning and significance change when the area is taken over by the
government and turned into a historical park that initially bars blacks from
entering. What had once been a powerful connection to the past becomes a
radical disconnection from it, as the site is exploited and its deep
spiritual, cultural, and historical significance is trivialized and
commercialized.
