How does the author use symbolism in the novel, When We Left Cuba?

The ocean serves as a symbol of the distance between Beatriz and Cuba and, likewise, represents the distance between her American identity and her Cuban identity. The family occupies different social tiers in America than the ones they dominated in Cuba. The novel repeatedly explores the theme of home, and the sounds of crashing waves triggers its own waves of homesickness in Beatriz: “as much a part of my memories as the sound of the waves off the Malecon, my sister’s laughter, my brother’s voice” (39).