110 pages • 3 hours read
Silvia Moreno-GarciaGods of Jade and Shadow
Fiction | Novel | Adult | Published in 2019A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more. For select classroom titles, we also provide Teaching Guides with discussion and quiz questions to prompt student engagement.
Symbols & Motifs
1920s Mexico
Gods of Jade and Shadow takes place against the backdrop of Mexico in 1927. Hun-Kamé continuously describes the difference between himself and Vucub-Kamé, stressing that his own view allowed for the inevitability of change among mortals. Mexico mirrors this idea in its culture. The book offers a glimpse at the acculturation of the time with the merging of American and Mexican traditions. In every city, Casiopea notes the popularity of American culture, such as flapper dresses and short hair. The Carnival and Veracruz, once a smaller religious and cultural celebration, has exploded into a lively street fair and tourist attraction. The American influence creates a new event that is less about a celebration of local culture and more about a commodity that people from many different countries can experience.
The modern lies of figures from Mayan myth also show how times change and how the past adapts to the present. Though the Mayan gods and beliefs have been pushed aside by the emergence of Catholicism, the figures of myth find places in society. Loray makes his home in the vibrant city of Mérida, which was once The White City but whose name changed due to cultural shifts. Loray outfits Casiopea in the fashions of the day, which are more revealing than anything she was ever allowed to wear, and his influence brings Casiopea into the rush of 1920s living. Xtabay lives in Mexico City, where she enjoys luxuries, she never had in the woods. Rather than trees and the land, she surrounds herself with potted plants, which both bolster her power and allow her to fit in a world where her original image no longer holds the power it once did. The resulting story world jumbles together a mix of American and Mexican culture, along with ancient mythology and more modern religion. As happened to Hun-Kamé, the cultural and religious elements that are less widely believed faded as people clambered to be part of the modern world, and certain elements of the Indigenous peoples’ cultures were lost in the name of progress.
Xibalba
Xibalba is the Underworld in Mayan mythology. It is ruled by Hun-Kamé with Vucub-Kamé at his side, and the two preside over the souls of the dead. In addition, their brothers rule over various forms of suffering for mortals, such as sickness and pain. Hun-Kamé and the other lords live in the Jade Palace, a structure built of stone that has many, many rooms and is full of courtiers and followers. Xibalba is also the city where the palace is located, and the city and palace are built around the World Tree, which grows up through the numerous layers of existence.
The Black Road of Xibalba is the path that leads throughout the Underworld to the city and Jade Palace. In the myth, the road is full of trials, as well as rivers of pus and blood. The road in Gods of Jade and Shadow is more complex, offering both physical and emotional challenges for any who walk upon it. The road itself has nine layers, each more deadly than the one before. As long as one stays upon the road, they may find their way to the city, but stepping off the road causes one to become lost in the Underworld. Once lost, the Underworld traps travelers, killing those who are alive and torturing them with visions or physical torments. Those who manage to stay on the road and arrive at the city may be placed into one of many houses built to torture travelers, such as one with flying knives or another where the jaguars wait to make meals of prisoners.
The Stars
Throughout Gods of Jade and Shadow, the stars light Casiopea and Hun-Kamé’s way through their ordeals. Casiopea observes in Chapter 1 that she felt born under an unlucky star because of the life she lives in her grandfather’s house. As the story continues and her situation changes, she gains new appreciation for the stars. At one time, she loved to gaze at them because they felt far away, and she reasoned that if things could exist so far from her, she could one day be free, too. She often falls asleep gazing at the stars because they calm her and give her hope, even as the bone shard embedded in her hand saps her strength. Casiopea is named after the constellation Cassiopeia, which is based on a Greek myth. This links her directly to mythology and implies that she has a place among the stars, not only on the earth.
The stars also symbolize Casiopea and Hun-Kamé’s love. It is not said, but the text implies that they are star-crossed lovers, doomed to be apart for eternity while still carrying feelings for one another. Whether they are or not, Casiopea and Hun-Kamé find new beauty and meaning in the stars as their feelings for each other grow. Hun-Kamé in particular notices the stars he’d never bothered to look at before because they are of strong importance to Casiopea, and anything that matters to her, matters to him. Their only kiss takes place beneath a sky full of stars, and it is the last time they are together as mortals. The final scene of the book takes place during the daytime, showing that Casiopea’s future is separate from Hun-Kamé.
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By Silvia Moreno-Garcia
