Clearly defining the difference between the author and the narrator is vital to understanding how

the story Green Days by the River is told.

1. What or who is the author of Green Days by the River?

The author is Michael Anthony. He is the man who wrote the book.

2. What or who is the narrator in Green Days by the River?

The narrator - person who tells the story - is Shell, a fifteen year-old boy who is the central
character of the story.

There is undeniably more to the relationship between Mr Gidharee and Shell than first
meets the eye. What you think might be going on between Mr Gidharee and Shell in the
story?

When we first meet Shell in the story we learn very quickly that his father is very ill. Shell fears
that his father will die and that is in fact what happens. At the same time we learn of his growing
relationship with Mr Gidharee, a fit and healthy man, who seems to take Shell under his wing. It
soon becomes clear that Mr Gidharee sees Shell as a suitable son-in-law and partner in the Cedar
Grove plantation. During the story we see how Shell begins to act and dress more and more like
Mr Gidharee with his acquisition of long pants and a proper cutlass. We also get the impression
through Mr Gidharee's baiting of the dogs that he wants Shell to marry Rosalie, once he finds out
that Shell and Rosalie have slept together. By the end of the story the marriage will take place,
Shell's father has died, and Mr Gidharee is, to all intents and purposes, the male figure of
authority in Shell's life.
What evidence do we have from the text that shows the growing relationship - be it ideal or
not - between Mr Gidharee and Shell?

Our first impressions of Shell are those of a young boy who is just becoming aware of adulthood.
He still dresses and thinks like a boy. There are constant references to Shell wanting to wear long
pants (a symbol of manhood in the story) and how he thinks of Mr Gidharee as a man worthy of
respect. Chapter 18 is a pivotal turning point for Shell. When he meets Mr Gidharee to go to
Cedar Grove, Mr Gidharee comments, "so you dress up for the old bush today, eh?" There
follows a description of what Shell is wearing and when we look at that description, we see that
Shell has modelled himself after Mr Gidharee. The outfit is in every way - right down to a
cutlass in a case hanging from his left side - identical to what Mr Gidharee wears when he goes
to work the plantation. It is at this point that we realise that Shell has been slowly changing to
what Mr Gidharee would like him to be

The closing chapters of the story are vital to Mr Gidharee's trapping of Shell. How has this
worked through the story?

At first Mr Gidharee gains Shell's trust and admiration. He is a strong and physical character,
unlike Shell's sick father. He also makes a positive contribution to Shell's family by allowing
Shell to keep the food he harvests. This helps the family that is struggling. Mr Gidharee makes a
connection with Shell's mother and father and is placed in a position of high regard by both. All
the while we are constantly reminded - as is Shell - that Mr Gidharee is capable of ruthless and
sometimes violent behaviour. It is when Mr Gidharee finds out that Shell and Rosalie have slept
together that the trap is sprung. He baits the dogs with dragons' blood, which makes them
vicious, and then abandons Shell to their attack. By the close of the story Shell is engaged to
Rosalie and will be the inheritor of Cedar Grove. The lasting impression is one of a plan that was
cleverly formed and adapted to circumstances. While Mr Gidharee may not have known that
Shell and Rosalie would have been attracted to each other he certainly uses their sexual
encounter to further his purpose. Shell marries Rosalie and becomes part of the family.

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During Green Days by the River constant reference is made to the cashew tree that grows near
Shell's house. It is a place where Shell can often be found with many of the characters in the
story. The story also follows one year in Shell's life, so we also visit the tree at different seasonal
times.

For what reason do you think the author uses the cashew tree as a recurring image during
the story?

When we first encounter the cashew tree [6] it is in fruit and there is a group of boys pelting the
tree with stones in order to fell the fruit. Shell joins these boys who will later become his friends.
The tree becomes a meeting place for the boys because of their common desire to fell the fruit
and eat it, as well as gather the cashew nuts. Later we learn that Shell meets Rosalie at the
cashew tree [26] while she is gathering nuts. In this way the young people of the town are linked
together and we begin to learn of the circle of friends and relationships between them.

The cashew tree provides a means by which the passage of time can be tracked during the story.
While the seasons are not as clearly defined in the Caribbean as in other more northern and
southern climates, there are periods of growth as well as periods where many plants do not bear
fruit. The descriptions of the state of the cashew tree therefore provide a vivid and effective
manner in which to track the passing of time.

How else does the author use the cashew nut tree through the story?

Answer 1
When Shell's father is very ill and has been taken to hospital, we learn that Shell is very upset
and worried about whether his father will live [56/57]. Shell returns to the cashew tree which is
described as "battered and empty and there were many brown leaves among the green." This
metaphor suggests how Shell must be feeling. While we know that the tree is like this because
the season is changing and the tree is no longer in fruit, we also know that it has taken a
pounding from all the stones that have pelted it. Shell is in many ways in the same boat. He is
emotionally "pelted" by his feelings for Rosalie and Joan, as well as in a constant state of worry
for his father's life.
During Green Days by the River constant reference is made to the cashew tree that grows near
Shell's house. It is a place where Shell can often be found with many of the characters in the
story. The story also follows one year in Shell's life, so we also visit the tree at different seasonal
times.

For what reason do you think the author uses the cashew tree as a recurring image during
the story?

Answer 2
Not much later in the story we learn that Shell goes to the tree to find companionship. We
already know that this is the place where the friends and young people tend to meet. It is a
convenient place for them to gather - a sort of common ground. On page 68 we learn that Shell is
often lonely because his friends have returned to school and he has not. We also know that he is
still very worried about his father because they have not heard anything from the hospital. At this
time the tree is described as "...jagged and torn, and in places, sticks and stones had completely
blasted away the ends of branches..." Once again the cashew tree is a good metaphor for how
Shell is feeling at this time in the story.

Answer 3
At the time in the story when Shell is becoming increasingly sexually aware, we learn that he has
noticed, in both Joan and Rosalie, that they are developing breasts. Once again the cashew tree
provides a good metaphor that compliments this development of awareness in Shell. Shell
notices that the cashew tree "...was getting into blossom again. And the green thing like moss on
the branches was young leaves." The renewed growth of the tree and it's beginning to fruit once
again compliment Shell's growing sexual awareness as well as a general turn for the better in his
relationships with his friends [129,132].
Mr Gidharee and his dogs

Throughout the story we hear about Mr Gidharee and his dogs. There are constant references to
what the dogs look like and what they do. We already know that Mr Gidharee is an important
influence on Shell and the decisions that Shell makes. Perhaps there is a purpose to the constant
imagery of the dogs.

What do you think is the possible relationship between Shell, Mr Gidharee and the dogs in
the story of Green Days by the River?

In the story, whenever Mr Gidharee appears, we hear the dogs first. When Shell and Mr
Gidharee begin to go to the Cedar Grove plantation together we learn that Shell takes one or
more of the dogs by their leashes and walks with them. As the story progresses, so Shell gets to
know the dogs more and more. He often comments on the physical condition and size of the dogs
and, while he does get to know them, he is always aware that the dogs can be very scary at times.

Later in the story the dogs attack Shell and we know the Mr Gidharee has been feeding them
dragons' blood to make them more vicious. We also know that Mr Gidharee likes Shell and that
he would like Shell and Rosalie to marry. In addition to this we know that Mr Gidharee is aware
that Shell and Rosalie have slept together and that he now expects Shell to marry Rosalie. It is
interesting that the dogs attack Shell before he has committed to marrying Rosalie, when Mr
Gidharee seems to be suggesting that he should.

There is a very strong sense in the story, through the connection of these seemingly random
events, that Mr Gidharee has provoked the dogs into attacking Shell. Mr Gidharee's very clear
message is: marry Rosalie or there will be trouble.
Based upon the answer to the previous question, how does the author build the impression
of potential violence in the story?

Read Chapter 27 (which describes the build-up and the attack itself) and answer the following
two questions:

How does the author prepare us for the dogs attacking Shell?

The author carefully builds the impression of the Tobago dogs in order to prepare us for the
attack. When Shell first sees the dogs he says: "...they looked more powerful and restless than I
had known them, and they seemed so on edge that I had to be a bit careful of them..." [175]. This
first impression is then built upon when Shell discovers that Mr Gidharee has been giving the
dogs dragon's blood: "...with dragon's blood they'll tear up their own mother to pieces..." [175].
This impression undermines Shell's confidence and friendship with the dogs and he becomes
more and more wary of them as the day progresses. "...I did not like seeing the dogs in this
state..." [177].

How do we get the impression that Mr Gidharee is linked to the attack of the dogs?

The sense that Mr Gidharee is involved in the attack is a strong one. It is clear that he is
responsible for getting the dogs into the state they are in. It is also clear that he is questioning
Shell about his relationship with Rosalie. We learn that he expects boys who mess around with
girls to marry them. Yet, all the time Shell notices more and more that Mr Gidharee is on edge.
"I thought I could see an inner heat and violence in his eyes..." [177]. So when Mr Gidharee
gives the dogs more dragons' blood and then leaves Shell alone with the dogs, it is clear that he is
linked to the attack.
How Shell is trapped.

It is clear that Mr Gidharee manipulates Shell into a position where he has to marry Rosalie. We
know that Mr Gidharee knows about Shell and Rosalie, and we know that he was linked to the
attack of the dogs on Shell. Then Mr Gidharee takes Shell under his wing and pays for his
father's funeral. At the same time we learn that Shell and Rosalie will marry and that Shell will
now be a partner in the Cedar Grove plantation. So in many ways things work out well for Mr
Gidharee.

Where else in the story do we get the impression that Shell is being trapped into a
relationship with Rosalie and Mr Gidharee?

There are many images and anecdotes of Mr Gidharee hunting and trapping during the story.
These images prepare us in many ways for the final chapter and the final twist in Shell's life. We
learn that Mr Gidharee likes his dogs to hunt in Chapter 18, and we learn that he would want his
dogs to hunt more than just pigs, deer and iguanas. This in fact happens when the dogs hunt Shell
in Chapter 26. Mr Gidharee also rewards Shell for his hard work by giving him sapodillas (a
sweet and sticky fruit that Shell loves). Shell links the sapodillas to the ways in which he used to
trap birds and so we begin to get the impression that perhaps Mr Gidharee is using Rosalie as
bait in order to catch (or trap) Shell in order to get what he wants, which is for Shell and Rosalie
to marry.
Bearing in mind what you know about Mr Gidharee and how he used his dogs to get Shell
to do what he wants, how do you think the closing images of Mr Gidharee's new gun reflect
upon Shell and his decision to marry Rosalie?

We learn in the final chapter that Mr Gidharee no longer has the four Tobago dogs: "...no
barking of dogs disturbed Pierre Hill as Mr Gidharee and I walked up the road..." [196]. Later in
the chapter we learn that Mr Gidharee has now bought a gun to replace the dogs. He says to
Shell: "...Boy, in the bush, if you have a gun and a cutlass you don't want nothing else..." [198].

Shell is clearly nervous of the gun - as he was of the dogs - and thinks that: "...made me want to
ask about the dogs but I could not bring myself to do so. I did not want to think of what might
have happened..." [198]. The implication is clear: that Mr Gidharee has shot the dogs. This is
probably a good thing because they attacked Shell, but at the same time we are left with the
strong impression that Mr Gidharee has merely replaced the dogs with an even better method of
hunting. The implications for Shell are also clear. If he ever does anything to endanger his
relationship with Rosalie and Cedar Grove then he will have to contend with Mr Gidharee and
his gun - rather than just Mr Gidharee and his dogs.