The Loss Of Innocence in "The Flowers"

In “The Flowers,” Alice Walker illustrates Myop’s abrupt loss of innocence through her transition from carefree exploration to the startling discovery of death and racial violence. At the beginning of the story, Myop’s world is filled with happiness as she “skipped lightly from hen house to pigpen” (Walker 119) and felt that “nothing existed for her but her song” (Walker 119). These details emphasize her purity and freedom, demonstrated by her playful interaction with nature. However, the latter vanishes when Myop stumbles upon the remains of a lynched man. Her initial reaction is a simple…