Out of all the sections of Beloved, this last part has had the least amount of impact on me. I can’t put my finger on why that is, although I can compare it to my own experiences writing. It’s similar to when I reach the end of my deadline and my writing style deteriorates as I struggle to finish in time. I’m not saying that the ending is bad per se, but I don’t feel like it meets the standard the rest of the book set. If anything, it seems emotionally distant, more like watching a movie than being immersed in the character’s life’s.
I realized halfway through the book that the public library had Beloved on cd. I’m not sure if anyone else is familiar with the concept of books on cd – a voice actor reads the book and you play it like a cd, pretty self explanatory. Plus they can be imported onto an ipod. But anyway, I checked the book on cd out when I realized that Toni Morrison herself read the story. I thought it would be a great way to get an even better view of the story, since Morrison might put more emphasis on certain things, or put some of the emotion she used when writing the book into the reading of it. So when I didn’t get into the last part of the book I listened to one of the cd’s. It didn’t help. Morrison’s voice is soft and she didn’t use strong emotions like I thought she would. Her voice was more something that you would fall asleep to than commanding and giving purpose and meaning to the words. It made me wonder how she expected people to read the book. Although it doesn't keep the reader on the edge of their seat, it isn’t something to be read lightly, at least not to my way of thinking. Now I’m left wondering is Morrison, not being a voice actor, simply didn’t have the ability to verbally give the words power or if she wanted the reader to flow through the book without becoming attached to anything in particular.
Tuesday, March 31, 2009
Wednesday, March 25, 2009
Third time around and I still have questions.
Something that has always bothered me when reading Beloved for other classes is that I feel like Stamp Paid is this absolutely fascinating character and a lot of people even forget that he's even in the story. When you learn the story of his wife and how he was forced to give her to the slave owner's son for sex. How she was raped. That was the reason for his changing of his name because according to him, there is no greater sacrifice or action he is required to do that no matter what- he has made up for whatever he has done or will ever do. Yet I wanted a little more insight into how he felt about his wife after she came back to him. And WHERE she was at the current point in the story. Maybe I just miss it but I've never known the answer to those questions.
Another thing I've wondered is the relationship between Stamp Paid and Baby Suggs. You learn that they are close and that's why he feels the desire to take care of Sethe and the family slightly and why he blames himself even more for inadvertently sending Paul D away. But WHY were Stamp Paid and Baby Suggs close? What was their connection??
When Paul D sleeps with Beloved, I thought it would become a major crisis within the story and between Sethe and him. Yet, it never really seems to have the presence I thought it would. WHY isn't it a big deal?? Why doesn't Morrison bring this issue into play and then do nothing with it? Why does this situation open up his "tin heart" and have him saying 'red heart' over and over again. Yet, sleeping with Sethe had no where near the same emotion?
Carved Void
Are the townspeople correct when they reject Sethe and her household due to the horrific act she committed in that tool shed? Or can the murder of Beloved in the face of impending disaster that would result in Sethe’s, and more importantly her children’s, enslavement – a reality which repels every particle of Sethe’s existence – be justified? Perhaps we cannot go as far as to say that this murder is justifiable; however, we can draw out reasons to explain why Sethe was willing to enact such a decision. “Why,” as the spirit of Beloved says, “did she go in the water in the place where we crouched?” (253)
Maternal instincts combined with a life of bondage is the answer. There was no other way for Sethe to save her children from the life she fought so hard to leave behind than to take theirs in that moment when schoolteacher arrived to 124. For Sethe, any reality outside that of Sweet Home farm would be better for her children, even if that reality meant death. Before Paul D leaves 124 he tells Sethe, “There could have been a way. Some other way.”(194) But in the heat of the moment, there was no way out for Sethe except the one she decided to act upon. In a way, her maternal instincts were correct: should they have made a dash for it a bullet would have met them in those woods behind 124. We know this from the precautions the schoolteacher and his companions made. “Three of them dismounted, one stayed in the saddle, his rifle ready, his eyes trained away from the house to the left and to the right, because likely as not the fugitive would make a dash for it.” (174) They would shoot to stop any slave attempting to make a dash.
This decision is also shaped by the particular life Sethe lived as well –from seeing her mother hanging from a tree as a child, the rape she had to endure while her husband watched from the rafters, and to the world of constant fear and trembling that comes for a life as a slave. She existed among violence, and it was violence that shaped her decision to murder her children.
Not only was it violence but also a lack of experience that could only be gathered passed down generation to generation through family and close ties – something slavery prevented. Sethe explains this problem to Paul D, while tip-toeing around the subject of the murder. It is exemplified by the basket, “that thing you used to hang the babies in the trees,” that Sethe wishes she could have learned to make during those first 28 days of paradise at 124.(188) She is missing this skill. It is also seen in the way Sixo ties up Howard’s thumb after it had been smashed in the barn. “See,” Sethe says, “I would have never thought of that. Never.” (189) If only Sethe had this very missing link in her constitution to fill the void slavery had carved out, then she might have acted otherwise on that day.
But Sethe does save her children by being overcome with maternal madness. Beloved in the process becomes a martyr in order to save the family. However, once the three – Sethe, Beloved, Denver – are together, this void of slavery carved out in each of the members shapes their feelings of happiness. The three recurring lines, “You are mine / You are mine / You are mine,” exemplify this problem. (256) Their happiness hangs upon the idea of ownership: their love rests upon a belonging to, a product of slavery that they cannot leave behind.
Maternal instincts combined with a life of bondage is the answer. There was no other way for Sethe to save her children from the life she fought so hard to leave behind than to take theirs in that moment when schoolteacher arrived to 124. For Sethe, any reality outside that of Sweet Home farm would be better for her children, even if that reality meant death. Before Paul D leaves 124 he tells Sethe, “There could have been a way. Some other way.”(194) But in the heat of the moment, there was no way out for Sethe except the one she decided to act upon. In a way, her maternal instincts were correct: should they have made a dash for it a bullet would have met them in those woods behind 124. We know this from the precautions the schoolteacher and his companions made. “Three of them dismounted, one stayed in the saddle, his rifle ready, his eyes trained away from the house to the left and to the right, because likely as not the fugitive would make a dash for it.” (174) They would shoot to stop any slave attempting to make a dash.
This decision is also shaped by the particular life Sethe lived as well –from seeing her mother hanging from a tree as a child, the rape she had to endure while her husband watched from the rafters, and to the world of constant fear and trembling that comes for a life as a slave. She existed among violence, and it was violence that shaped her decision to murder her children.
Not only was it violence but also a lack of experience that could only be gathered passed down generation to generation through family and close ties – something slavery prevented. Sethe explains this problem to Paul D, while tip-toeing around the subject of the murder. It is exemplified by the basket, “that thing you used to hang the babies in the trees,” that Sethe wishes she could have learned to make during those first 28 days of paradise at 124.(188) She is missing this skill. It is also seen in the way Sixo ties up Howard’s thumb after it had been smashed in the barn. “See,” Sethe says, “I would have never thought of that. Never.” (189) If only Sethe had this very missing link in her constitution to fill the void slavery had carved out, then she might have acted otherwise on that day.
But Sethe does save her children by being overcome with maternal madness. Beloved in the process becomes a martyr in order to save the family. However, once the three – Sethe, Beloved, Denver – are together, this void of slavery carved out in each of the members shapes their feelings of happiness. The three recurring lines, “You are mine / You are mine / You are mine,” exemplify this problem. (256) Their happiness hangs upon the idea of ownership: their love rests upon a belonging to, a product of slavery that they cannot leave behind.
Feelings on the big secret
In contrast to what appears to be the general feeling of the rest of the class, I don’t, and didn’t feel utterly disgusted with Sethe when it was revealed that she was a murderer. This is not the first time I have found myself at odds with the general feeling of my peers, but this time it feels a little different. It’s not that I find murder appealing or that Sethe was necessarily right in killing her child. I could simply understand the reason behind the act, which I kind of felt the rest of the class didn’t. Or rather, they did understand that she killed them out of a misguided sense of love, but didn’t understand the feeling in and of itself. I have a theory that my creative writing background may help me in this respect, to see into the nuances of Sethe’s decision, that others may not be able to. Or I’m simply more comfortable with the idea of death, it’s a toss-up. But I wanted to post my thoughts on Sethe’s decision to kill her children now that I have things more settled in my mind.
I’m not particularly interested in the notion that Sethe only killed the children because she didn’t know how else to handle the situation. It could very possible be true but I don’t picture it that way. I see Sethe’s decision as being valid in a desperate kind of way. And I have no doubt that at the time, she fully believed in the justice of what she was doing. She is almost like a soldier, who has seen the worst the world has to offer, and the terrors that await her children. The only way to spare them from the inevitable is to kill them. The dead don’t suffer, that sort of mindset. I know I’ve read somewhere else of this sort of act being done before, and in a surprising frequency. Off the top of my head I want to say that mothers would throw their children off a cliff or tower when Roman troops were approaching, instead of having them taken into slavery, but I can’t be certain that I’ve got the facts right.
Regardless, I don’t hate Sethe for her decision. I’m sure if I met someone who had really done something like that I would be as freaked out as Paul D, but there’s something in the way that Morrison wrote the passage that didn’t instill feelings of deep disgust in me. Perhaps it’s because as the reader I’ve seen not only some of the horrors of her past but gotten an in-depth perspective of how those events affected Sethe.
I’m not particularly interested in the notion that Sethe only killed the children because she didn’t know how else to handle the situation. It could very possible be true but I don’t picture it that way. I see Sethe’s decision as being valid in a desperate kind of way. And I have no doubt that at the time, she fully believed in the justice of what she was doing. She is almost like a soldier, who has seen the worst the world has to offer, and the terrors that await her children. The only way to spare them from the inevitable is to kill them. The dead don’t suffer, that sort of mindset. I know I’ve read somewhere else of this sort of act being done before, and in a surprising frequency. Off the top of my head I want to say that mothers would throw their children off a cliff or tower when Roman troops were approaching, instead of having them taken into slavery, but I can’t be certain that I’ve got the facts right.
Regardless, I don’t hate Sethe for her decision. I’m sure if I met someone who had really done something like that I would be as freaked out as Paul D, but there’s something in the way that Morrison wrote the passage that didn’t instill feelings of deep disgust in me. Perhaps it’s because as the reader I’ve seen not only some of the horrors of her past but gotten an in-depth perspective of how those events affected Sethe.
Paul D-- does it all tie together
I think Paul D plays a huge role that is not quite so obvious as Denver and Sethe. Paul D consistently discusses his heart of tin—he puts a barrier up to never face his fears of the past. Beloved stands more than just the death of Sethe’s child, but of slavery and African American oppression of a whole. The quote “if [she] hadn’t killed her she would have died” (236) intrigues me because it shows that her mother was simply trying to protect her from the horrors of being an African American during times of slavery. Paul D feels funny about Beloved and thinks she is up to no good. I believe his dissaproval of Beloved has to do with directly with his fear of his past. Sethe also says she killed her daughter to protect her (175), but Paul D. now says Sethe scares him.
These characters tell a story about love and their family relationship, but also represent so much more. Something else that really stuck out to me is that you never know if Beloved is actually real. Sometimes it appears that she is completely human and other time it seems as if she is a ghost or spirit. Beloved is seen by other humans, but disappears in the snap of a finger. Once again I believe this aspect of Beloved’s character directly connects to Paul D. and his views on slavery. This is because sometimes it is hard to believe slavery actually happened and that those horrific events actually occurred.
I am unsure of what is to happen in the end, but I keep thinking about Paul D. I know he is a minor character, however, I feel his disapproval of Beloved, fear of Sethe, and description of his horrifying past will have a large effect on the conclusion of this novel.
These characters tell a story about love and their family relationship, but also represent so much more. Something else that really stuck out to me is that you never know if Beloved is actually real. Sometimes it appears that she is completely human and other time it seems as if she is a ghost or spirit. Beloved is seen by other humans, but disappears in the snap of a finger. Once again I believe this aspect of Beloved’s character directly connects to Paul D. and his views on slavery. This is because sometimes it is hard to believe slavery actually happened and that those horrific events actually occurred.
I am unsure of what is to happen in the end, but I keep thinking about Paul D. I know he is a minor character, however, I feel his disapproval of Beloved, fear of Sethe, and description of his horrifying past will have a large effect on the conclusion of this novel.
The New Slavery
Denver’s section, beginning with “Beloved is my sister,” particularly fascinates me because it is the first time we hear of Denver admitting to being downright scared of her mother (242-247). Other characters (including Baby Suggs, Paul D, the townspeople, and so on) may recognize the fact that Sethe seems mentally and/or emotionally unbalanced when it comes to her children, but it is Denver – the one remaining character most directly affected and engangered by Sethe’s madness – who first expresses an overwhelming sense of fear of her own mother. Despite describing Sethe in this state as being “Not mean or anything, but like I was somebody she found and felt sorry for. Like she didn’t want to do it but she had to and it wasn’t going to hurt,” Denver acknowledges that her fear of decapitation by her own mother outweighs the kindness of Sethe’s intentions (244). This great fear of her mother, the one who nurtures her, probably influences and increases her devotion to Beloved, the one whom she nurtures, in order to protect Beloved from any further damage that Sethe could inflict upon her. This completely honest perspective of Sethe from her remaining child skews our image of Sethe as readers: if even her own children realize how dangerous she is and are afraid to sleep at night because “there sure is something in her that makes it all right to kill her own,” were her actions really worth the price (242)? Instead of liberating her children, Sethe has created a new slavery for them, as long as they are imprisoned with her in 124 and exposed to her deranged cruelty (which is almost worse than the cruelty of a stranger because it is originates as a perversion of the most pure and powerful emotion: love). Instead of using her love to hold her small family together in the aftermath of the escape from Sweet Home, Sethe allows her love to consume her, and this fierce, swollen love drives her own children away from her (emotionally and, except for Denver, physically) more effectively than slavery (because the latter at least family members with a yearning to return, whereas Sethe’s children no longer care about her fate or being with her to share it).
Beloved; an escape from reality, do not exceed 10mg...
In the second part of Toni Morrison’s novel Beloved, the true identity of Beloved is fully realized by both of the main characters in the story, Sethe and Denver. Throughout this section, Beloved serves as a further separation of the two women from the surrounding community, with each of the characters becoming more fully focused on the need; the possession of Beloved. With the departure of Paul D, the character within the novel that had more fully integrated these two women into the surrounding society, these women become drawn into Beloved’s world, a world where reality is fleeting, replaced with the mystery and incredulous occurrences that are linked to Beloved.
Throughout the Second section of Morrison’s novel, Sethe, for the first time realizes that Beloved is her daughter, claiming ownership with “she my daughter. She mine. See. She come back to me of her own free will” (236). However, what has distracted Sethe from the realization has been her emotional connection to Paul D, a very tangible, flesh-and-blood figure who is tied to Sethe through a shared past. “I would have known right off, but Paul D distraced me” (239), is Sethe’s rationalization of why she did not recongnize her “daughter”, which foreshadows a separation of Sethe’s attachment with the present reality, because she will now live her whole life centered upon loving Beloved, revealed by the lines “I’ll tend her as no mother ever tended a child” (236), also revealing Sethe’s reversion to her rememory. Through this chapter, it is evident that Beloved is the catalyst that will send Sethe back into her past, by the cataloging of the events in her past, from “after they stole it” (236), in reference to her milk, to Beloved’s “Pinkish headstone” (237).
Beloved serving as a wedge that will drive Denver and Sethe apart, Denver also feels an overwhelming possession towards Beloved. The opening of the proceeding chapter from Sethe’s possession of Beloved are Denver’s words “Beloved is my sister” (242), and the closing words of “She’s mine, Beloved. She’s mine” (247). With the exact same words echoed by Denver and Sethe, the conflict of ownership is introduced, and the future relationship of mother and daughter is also introduced. As Sethe discovers that she can, in a sense, start her life over, with the forgiveness from Beloved, it is foreshadowed that she will start off her ‘new’ life without the realization of Denver as her daughter, denying the past eighteen years of Dever’s life. The theme of denying existence, perhaps the death of Denver is brought to realization by Denver’s language, connotative of death, such as “She cut my head off every night” (243), and “I want to go to sleep, but I know if I do I won’t wake up”(244).
Through the second part of the novel, Morrison develops the divide that Beloved will cause in the future of these characters, both from each other and from the reality of present life and the surrounding community. Morrison develops Beloved to have the same effect as a drug, a substance that causes a person to become obsessive and additicted, to loose grasp with reality, and to turn to the drug to solve every problem the character encounters within everyday life.
Throughout the Second section of Morrison’s novel, Sethe, for the first time realizes that Beloved is her daughter, claiming ownership with “she my daughter. She mine. See. She come back to me of her own free will” (236). However, what has distracted Sethe from the realization has been her emotional connection to Paul D, a very tangible, flesh-and-blood figure who is tied to Sethe through a shared past. “I would have known right off, but Paul D distraced me” (239), is Sethe’s rationalization of why she did not recongnize her “daughter”, which foreshadows a separation of Sethe’s attachment with the present reality, because she will now live her whole life centered upon loving Beloved, revealed by the lines “I’ll tend her as no mother ever tended a child” (236), also revealing Sethe’s reversion to her rememory. Through this chapter, it is evident that Beloved is the catalyst that will send Sethe back into her past, by the cataloging of the events in her past, from “after they stole it” (236), in reference to her milk, to Beloved’s “Pinkish headstone” (237).
Beloved serving as a wedge that will drive Denver and Sethe apart, Denver also feels an overwhelming possession towards Beloved. The opening of the proceeding chapter from Sethe’s possession of Beloved are Denver’s words “Beloved is my sister” (242), and the closing words of “She’s mine, Beloved. She’s mine” (247). With the exact same words echoed by Denver and Sethe, the conflict of ownership is introduced, and the future relationship of mother and daughter is also introduced. As Sethe discovers that she can, in a sense, start her life over, with the forgiveness from Beloved, it is foreshadowed that she will start off her ‘new’ life without the realization of Denver as her daughter, denying the past eighteen years of Dever’s life. The theme of denying existence, perhaps the death of Denver is brought to realization by Denver’s language, connotative of death, such as “She cut my head off every night” (243), and “I want to go to sleep, but I know if I do I won’t wake up”(244).
Through the second part of the novel, Morrison develops the divide that Beloved will cause in the future of these characters, both from each other and from the reality of present life and the surrounding community. Morrison develops Beloved to have the same effect as a drug, a substance that causes a person to become obsessive and additicted, to loose grasp with reality, and to turn to the drug to solve every problem the character encounters within everyday life.
Coming to Terms with Beloved and Sethe's Relationship
At first I was amazed that Sethe completely accepted Beloved to be the incarnation of the baby she killed so many years ago. Then I thought about it in the context of the story, and I suspended my disbelief a little bit further. After all, we are told on the very first page that 124 is haunted, and Sethe suspects that the ghost is her deceased child. Even Paul D senses the presence of ‘company’ when he enters the house (10). These characters all seem to believe in the paranormal. So I am just going to go with it: Beloved is the ghost of Sethe’s baby reincarnated in (or possessing) an adolescent female body.
However, I find it disturbing that Sethe now has so many experiences she wishes to share with her child. She wants to “plant carrots just so [Beloved] can see them” (237). She wants them to smell things with Beloved. She expresses her desire to “teach [Beloved] what a mother should” (237). I just don’t understand why she couldn’t have kept her baby in the first place allowing her to grow up doing these things in real life. Sethe explains that “if [she] hadn’t killed her she would have died” (236). This phrase really strikes a nerve with me. I understand that Sethe did not want her baby to have a life of slavery, but I still wonder if killing her baby was the best thing to do. When she did it, she had no way of knowing that the baby would ever come back again.
As readers, we do know that times were much more difficult for Sethe and the slaves when she was driven to attempt to murder her children. This was shortly after she was brutally attacked and her milk was stolen. In the present, times have changed. She is able to concentrate on being a mother. She feels that perhaps Baby Suggs saw an opportunity for Sethe and her child to be reunited so Baby Suggs helped from “the other side” (236). She mentions that now she can put her head down in peace like she longed to do when her baby was buried beneath the headstone that reads “Beloved” (241). So maybe I do understand her desire to create experiences to share with Beloved. Now, while Beloved is present, she can express the motherly love she had been holding back ever since her daughter’s tragic death.
However, I find it disturbing that Sethe now has so many experiences she wishes to share with her child. She wants to “plant carrots just so [Beloved] can see them” (237). She wants them to smell things with Beloved. She expresses her desire to “teach [Beloved] what a mother should” (237). I just don’t understand why she couldn’t have kept her baby in the first place allowing her to grow up doing these things in real life. Sethe explains that “if [she] hadn’t killed her she would have died” (236). This phrase really strikes a nerve with me. I understand that Sethe did not want her baby to have a life of slavery, but I still wonder if killing her baby was the best thing to do. When she did it, she had no way of knowing that the baby would ever come back again.
As readers, we do know that times were much more difficult for Sethe and the slaves when she was driven to attempt to murder her children. This was shortly after she was brutally attacked and her milk was stolen. In the present, times have changed. She is able to concentrate on being a mother. She feels that perhaps Baby Suggs saw an opportunity for Sethe and her child to be reunited so Baby Suggs helped from “the other side” (236). She mentions that now she can put her head down in peace like she longed to do when her baby was buried beneath the headstone that reads “Beloved” (241). So maybe I do understand her desire to create experiences to share with Beloved. Now, while Beloved is present, she can express the motherly love she had been holding back ever since her daughter’s tragic death.
Did Sethe have ulterior motives for killing Beloved?
After reading more of Beloved, I am still drawn back to the main shock of the story; that Sethe killed the baby that could already crawl. So, all right, Sethe had the threat of slavery over her head, which would be instilled upon her children. But was that enough to drive her into murder or was there an ulterior motive? As we discussed in class, I think that Sethe gained too much freedom and independence too quickly and she was not sure how to handle a difficult situation. Though Sweet Home was a plantation with slaves, I feel like the Garner family was not as harsh as possible (unless I completely missed some horrific actions.) Yes, I know it was slavery, the servants were beaten, the Schoolteacher raped Sethe and her milk was stolen, and there is also that vivid image of Halle with butter spread all over his face. However, things could have been a hell of a lot worse. For instance, Garner’s wife gave Sethe “earrings” for her wedding to Halle.
I personally believe that Sethe’s painful memory of her mother’s death, and trying to find her body, triggered something inside of her. She never wanted her children to feel the pain and agony of losing a mother, so she decided to kill them and live with the pain and possible regret. I can see both sides of this, both martyrdom and selfishness. Sethe sacrifices any chance of happiness she may posess, because she always has the thought of killing in the back of her mind, and she possibly saved her children from slave labor. On the other hand, she may seem selfish to some because she robbed her child of life and joy. By saying this, no matter how many times I go back and forth between these two sides trying to find an end to this difficult ultimatum, I can only stop to think that Sethe is either a masochist or she receives pleasure from other’s pain, what the Germans call, schadenfreude. Think about it, Sethe barely talks about her past and troubles, holding them inside which would undoubtedly cause pain.
Beloved and The Jungle: The Recycling of History
I can’t help but confine my response to the contents of pages 236-241. The parallels I am able to draw between this section of Beloved and Upton Sinclair’s The Jungle are quite remarkable. With Sethe looking back at her past experience as a slave mother, I was strongly reminded of the women in The Jungle who are Lithuanian immigrants living in the meat packing district of Chicago during the early 1900’s. They’re left with no choice but to live in horrible conditions as a result of their immigrant, illiterate status, white men treat them horribly, and they work in slave-like conditions for the packers. In a desperate attempt to save her family and keep her children fed when times get tough, one of the women, Ona, has no choice but to sell her body to her boss who threatens to ruin her life in Packing Town if she refuses to submit to his commands. Further, the family find themselves slightly pleased when one of the children dies so that they will not have to suffer in such grave conditions any longer. Likewise, in Beloved, Sethe talks about flirting with the possibility of working at a slaughterhouse after she left jail, in order to help support her children. And when times proved difficult, she slept with the engraver “and bought, so to speak, [Beloved’s] name” (240).
The parallels between these two texts, The Jungle and Beloved, work to make a profound statement about the treatment of non-white people in the U.S. today. Although the greater contexts surrounding each situation differ, it only goes to show that time changes, and, therefore, so do laws, regulations, and the lot. However, the recycling of old, “immoral” beliefs takes place and history repeats itself only, each new time, in a different form. Slavery, clearly seen as wrong and horrible, still took place, maybe not for blacks, but for immigrants to the country mystified by the notion that America holds the key to unlock the doors to true happiness and prosperity. Above all, while one community, or group of people, is thriving and blind to the other side of life, there are people struggling to survive, struggling to save their children from the horrors their facing trying to keep themselves alive, doing anything to hold on to their family unit while praying for a brighter future. Mothers are willing to do anything for their children they can in order to keep them safe from harm. In this chapter, Sethe touches on her desire to save Beloved from the tribulations of slavery. Most of us couldn’t fathom death being preferred over reality for a child. But for Sethe, taking eachother “to the other side” (240) seemed like her only option.
I think reading texts like this is crucial to our well-being as humans living without such horrific experiences at our doorstep. It’s important to understand the different realities others have faced, or currently face, in order to fully appreciate our blessing and to have the knowledge necessary to take steps towards, hopefully, one day eliminating such injustices all together. This is one instance, I would say, that "recycling" is unfortunate.
Overcoming the Past
Denver in the last section of the books seems to represent a bridge between the community and Sethe. While Denver becomes so afraid of Beloved at 124 she decides to go visit Lady Jones for help. She tells her that Sethe is sick and asks if Lady Jones knows of any work she can do. Though Lady Jones doesn’t have any work she tells the community about Sethe’s problems. The community starts bringing baskets and gifts of food and various things by the house to show their support and help the family. Denver in return brings the baskets back to their owners. By doing this she learns and befriends a good portion of the community.
I believe in this section Denver is supposed to represent the antithesis of Beloved. Denver finds her freedom and begins to act independently. While, Beloved slowly beginning to kill Sethe in the house seems to be a representation of how terrible and violent the past was. Denver is reaching out to the community and acting independently. She represents the future. Sethe represents the present and she is the main focus of the book because she shows the reader that in the immediate aftermath of slaverly the suffering did not end. Sethe is tortured by her past (Beloved) to the point where it is killing her. There seems to be very little salvation possible for Sethe. Denver on the other hand, representing the future, seems to show that the future is optimistic.
At the end of the book, when the community gathers to exorcise Beloved, Morrison is showing that the African American Community can unite and move beyond their pasts. They can with each other’s support begin to start the healing process and begin the fight to assimilate into American culture.
Potential Explanations
Firstly, I loved this lengthy read, but I did find a few things confusing. I did not understand why Toni Morrison made the character of Beloved the returning spirit of Sethe’s deceased baby daughter. Of course the story will probably have a twist, but as far as I got, I do not understand why Morrison would make this deceased character come back to life. I was thinking that maybe it was a symbol of Sethe’s inability to let the past stay in the past. Sethe is constantly living in the past, recalling memories that fog her sight of the present. I was thinking that perhaps Beloved is the physical form of Sethe’s defensive wall that she built inside herself when she committed the murder of her daughter.
Also, she could be the physical aspiration of Sethe’s pent up guilt throughout the years. When she saw Schoolteacher coming down the road, something inside her snapped. All she thought was that she was going to protect her children anyway she could, even if it meant death. Once she had time to regain some sanity after she was arrested, I think she realized what she did and the guilt never left her. I think this could be a possibility for why her house is ‘haunted.’
Next, I was confused as to why Baby Suggs’ neighbors were so callous to Sethe after her incident. Obviously it was a horrendous thing that she did, but I was shocked that no one sympathized for her. They were supposed to be a community and be there for each other, but she was left alone in her time of need, and I did not understand that. I was not so much confused as to why this happened, just more disappointed that a community of people that seemed to really look out for one another, crashed and burned when one of them was in real need.
I also hated that Paul D left and let Beloved win. I thought it was really great how Morrison made this happen, though. Sethe’s issues with her past, which is physicalized in Beloved, ran her only chance at a good and happy life out the door, literally.
Also, she could be the physical aspiration of Sethe’s pent up guilt throughout the years. When she saw Schoolteacher coming down the road, something inside her snapped. All she thought was that she was going to protect her children anyway she could, even if it meant death. Once she had time to regain some sanity after she was arrested, I think she realized what she did and the guilt never left her. I think this could be a possibility for why her house is ‘haunted.’
Next, I was confused as to why Baby Suggs’ neighbors were so callous to Sethe after her incident. Obviously it was a horrendous thing that she did, but I was shocked that no one sympathized for her. They were supposed to be a community and be there for each other, but she was left alone in her time of need, and I did not understand that. I was not so much confused as to why this happened, just more disappointed that a community of people that seemed to really look out for one another, crashed and burned when one of them was in real need.
I also hated that Paul D left and let Beloved win. I thought it was really great how Morrison made this happen, though. Sethe’s issues with her past, which is physicalized in Beloved, ran her only chance at a good and happy life out the door, literally.
Beloved, Sethe, and Denver
This section of the book is divided into different sections narrated by each of these three characters. Following that, the narration blends, and all three women are speaking at once. Sethe's narration reminded me a lot of her earlier attempts at justification. It becomes sort of a rant, moving quickly and explaining and going over the events that lead up to her decision and trying to decipher what has happened for Beloved to return. It is a stream of consciousness, and this works for the book because we get to really see all the things that Sethe took into consideration and a sort of relief she has in Beloved returning, seemingly not mad about what Sethe did. I think Sethe probably often felt guilt about her action and wondered if her baby understood or could forgive her for it. Beloved's return seems to signify to Sethe that she is forgiven and that she gets a chance to start over--she even expects her boys to return to her.
Denver's narration was also interesting because I feel as though I haven't been able to understand much of Denver through the book. She seems childish, much younger then 18, and needy. Through the narration, we see some gaps in her language and thoughts. We also continue to see her desire for attention from Beloved and for her to understand what they are to each other, as she knows Beloved is only focused on her mother. While she knows that Beloved does not always have good intentions, she has indicated that she has already chosen her side over Sethe's.
Beloved's narration is also confusing to me because I can't get a grasp of what she is. How has she returned? Why now? She obviously feels different than Sethe thinks she does, accusing Sethe of leaving her, hurting her. I think this section really bridges the plot that we have read thus far into whatever is coming next--the reader knows that all women know who each other is and where they stand with one another. They all have expectations for one another, and this part sets up that there will be a change in the usual way of life that the reader has so far gotten used to.
When the narrators are intertwined, this is furthered as they are in conversation with one another, all wanting different things and demonstrating their true emotions about the situation, making themselves very vulnerable.
Denver's narration was also interesting because I feel as though I haven't been able to understand much of Denver through the book. She seems childish, much younger then 18, and needy. Through the narration, we see some gaps in her language and thoughts. We also continue to see her desire for attention from Beloved and for her to understand what they are to each other, as she knows Beloved is only focused on her mother. While she knows that Beloved does not always have good intentions, she has indicated that she has already chosen her side over Sethe's.
Beloved's narration is also confusing to me because I can't get a grasp of what she is. How has she returned? Why now? She obviously feels different than Sethe thinks she does, accusing Sethe of leaving her, hurting her. I think this section really bridges the plot that we have read thus far into whatever is coming next--the reader knows that all women know who each other is and where they stand with one another. They all have expectations for one another, and this part sets up that there will be a change in the usual way of life that the reader has so far gotten used to.
When the narrators are intertwined, this is furthered as they are in conversation with one another, all wanting different things and demonstrating their true emotions about the situation, making themselves very vulnerable.
3 Perspectives
I feel like this part of the book we have read is a like the key to the book. It explains much of what happened with Sweet Home after Mr. Garner died, and also gives us an in depth look into the four major characters; Sethe, Denver, Paul D, and Beloved. Each part of Sethe’s, Denver’s, and Beloved’s chapter was written in how they would think and act. Sethe’s passage was one giant paragraph describing her love for her daughter and her children, and what led up to her actions. It seemed as though the giant paragraph and the style of Sethe’s ramblings took on her personality. She is a proud woman, but does not seem to keep her head on straight when things begin to faze her. She feels the need to defend herself in any way possible, like when she explains her actions to Paul D. This giant paragraph that told of the stories leading up to why she killed Beloved portrayed that exactly. Denver’s really made me question even more if anything happened to her as a baby. When Sethe was found in the shed with her children, she was trying to swing Denver against a wall to kill her. Any kind of trauma like that to a baby, even if they are being thrown around, is dangerous to the development of the brain. The more we read about Denver and she speaks, the more I begin to wonder if there is anything physically wrong with her after the incident. Although she is 18 years old she acts even more childish that I thought. She holds onto small threads of hope like a little child, as in her waiting for Halle. She also describes herself as one with Beloved, when she says she “swallowed her blood right along with my mother’s milk” (242). Beloved’s passage was rather confusing to read. Half the time I was confused as to what she was talking about, but in the end it made sense. We’re not supposed to know everything about the Beloved that was found sleeping on a tree stump, and she is a puzzling girl. She is like a wide eyed doe trying to learn more about people, suck the life out of people, push people away, all the while keeping herself together. By breaking up her passage in fragments and in poetic form, it’s putting the reader in the mindset of Beloved.
Who is Paul D?
A common theme found throughout Toni Morrison’s Beloved is that of identity, especially in the character of Paul D. Because of his past horrific experiences in slavery, he is unable to define himself as a human being. Everything he has ever been has been determined by white men, or his owners, and after becoming free, Paul D has no concept of identity. After leaving Sethe, Paul D’s “tobacco tin” heart is “blown open”. Much of his heartbreaking past is revealed. Paul D is unsure of whether or not he truly is a man or that he was only a man because Mr. Garner made him one. He questions, “was that Garner’s gift or his own will?” and “Did a wheiteman saying it make it so?” (260). Though Garner made his slaves “men”, “Paul D believed schoolteacher broke into children what Garner had raised into men” (160). One can imagine why a slave, such as Paul D, may have trouble identifying with himself. After being told what to do for so long, how does one begin to make his own decisions? It is at this moment in the novel that there is a turning point in Paul D’s character. The reader is relieved and horrified at the same time to finally discover the full story behind Paul D’s tobacco tin. He now becomes a character with which the reader can sympathize. His past has created such confusion and heartbreak that Paul D can no longer find himself. Paul D’s revelation ends with Stamp Paid’s mentioning of Beloved. Stamp Paid asks, “Is she what run you off?” (277) and Paul D replies with a shudder that leaves the reader wondering the same thing he himself is in the last lines of the chapter—“Why?” (277).
This segment of Beloved seemed to be broken up into two different sections for me. The first section was certainly the more confusing of the two, because of the blending of narrators. I understood that the first “chapter” where this began was Sethe speaking (“Beloved, she my daughter.”), the second was Denver (“Beloved is my sister.”), but the third was not so clear. I honestly have no idea who is speaking. The fourth “chapter” was definitely a blending of Sethe and Denver (and possibly that third mysterious speaker?), but I had trouble keeping up with who was speaking when. I kept having to retrace my steps to find a definable moment. For example, “They tried that once, but I stopped them,” is definitely Sethe speaking.
I wish I understood Morrison’s motivation for putting in this section, for doing it the way that she did.
The second section that I identified was all plot and I was extremely grateful for it. A lot of loose ends were tied and I had a whole new understanding. We FINALLY went back to the beginning and learned how and why they all left Sweet Home. We know what happened to Sixo and the other Paul’s. Again, coming to this better understanding of things was a relief.
I do wonder, though, if learning about the beginning of the story near the end of the book was so unsettling to me because a chronological order is logical and simply easier to follow, or if because, as a reader, I’m just used to the beginning at the beginning. It’s something to continue to consider.
I wish I understood Morrison’s motivation for putting in this section, for doing it the way that she did.
The second section that I identified was all plot and I was extremely grateful for it. A lot of loose ends were tied and I had a whole new understanding. We FINALLY went back to the beginning and learned how and why they all left Sweet Home. We know what happened to Sixo and the other Paul’s. Again, coming to this better understanding of things was a relief.
I do wonder, though, if learning about the beginning of the story near the end of the book was so unsettling to me because a chronological order is logical and simply easier to follow, or if because, as a reader, I’m just used to the beginning at the beginning. It’s something to continue to consider.
Not that crazy
The idea of killing your own child as a means of saving them from a horrible life is something that I keep thinking about even when I’m not in class or reading this book. Initially I feel like I would do anything to ensure the survival of my children, but I have never been a slave. When I try to imagine what that must have been like, Sethe’s actions don’t seem so crazy to me.
The summer after I graduated high school I worked at a factory full-time and at a grocery store part-time. Some days it would already be hot and sticky outside when I got to work at 7 a.m. I’d be sweating all day, except for two breaks and a lunch when I got to sit in the air conditioning. Then I’d drive to the grocery store and work until 10 at night. I’d get home and my feet and my knees and my back would hurt. I hated it, but I was saving money for a new car and once I got enough money and reached my goal I could stop. Hell, if I had decided I didn’t want a new car, I could have just quit one job and worked less. No big deal. But I couldn’t imagine having to work like that every day with no end in sight. Also knowing that I was working for something helped get me through the day. Slaves were just working. There was no retirement they were working for, no light at the end of the tunnel. And that’s just the work. I couldn’t imagine working like that and being whipped and abused and treated like shit and having to just take it, and then waking up the next morning only to have to do it all over again. I don’t know if I could handle something like that mentally. I don’t know if I would want to live if that was going to be my life.
So when I look at it that way, I don’t think what Sethe did was crazy at all.
The summer after I graduated high school I worked at a factory full-time and at a grocery store part-time. Some days it would already be hot and sticky outside when I got to work at 7 a.m. I’d be sweating all day, except for two breaks and a lunch when I got to sit in the air conditioning. Then I’d drive to the grocery store and work until 10 at night. I’d get home and my feet and my knees and my back would hurt. I hated it, but I was saving money for a new car and once I got enough money and reached my goal I could stop. Hell, if I had decided I didn’t want a new car, I could have just quit one job and worked less. No big deal. But I couldn’t imagine having to work like that every day with no end in sight. Also knowing that I was working for something helped get me through the day. Slaves were just working. There was no retirement they were working for, no light at the end of the tunnel. And that’s just the work. I couldn’t imagine working like that and being whipped and abused and treated like shit and having to just take it, and then waking up the next morning only to have to do it all over again. I don’t know if I could handle something like that mentally. I don’t know if I would want to live if that was going to be my life.
So when I look at it that way, I don’t think what Sethe did was crazy at all.
Outside of Sweet Home
In this section of Beloved, Morrison greatly emphasizes the importance of space, physical space, especially places. As we’ve noticed from the beginning chapters, every location mentioned in the story is linked to a rememory, the rememory of Sweet Home, or Alfred, Georgia. Some characters are also linked to an assigned space. Sixo’s lover, for example, is only referred to as the “Thirty Mile Woman” because Sixo had to travel thirty miles away from Sweet Home to see her. This woman’s name in the story suggests that Sweet Home was more or less the center of the world. In fact, even when the woman escapes from Schoolteacher and is currently no longer thirty miles away, but just outside of Sweet Home, she is still referred to as “Thirty Mile Woman.” I find it interesting that this woman is never given a proper name, yet her baby, “Seven-O,” is given a name that links him to his father. While the baby is given a proper name that secures family connections, the mother of the child is still not given a proper name which continues to separate her from Sweet Home, or perhaps separates Sweet Home from the rest of the world.
The bubble that is Sweet Home also defines manhood but in two completely opposite ways. In the first part of the novel we learn that all the male slaves of Sweet Home were men, according to Mr. Garner. This is different from all the slaves outside of Sweet Home who were not raised to be men. But on page 260, Paul D wonders about the manliness of Sixo and Halle and states that “it was always clear […] that those two were men whether Garner said so or not.” While Paul D may have many reasons for thinking this, he does mention one aspect of Halle and Sixo that separate them from the other slaves and Sweet Home. Morrison writes, “Only Sixo, who has been stealing away to see his woman, and Halle, who has been hired away for years, know what lies outside Sweet Home and how to get there” (263). It is interesting that the only two men Paul D know for sure are true men are also the only two men who have been away from Sweet Home, who “know what lies outside Sweet Home.” In this definition of manhood, being away from Sweet Home is what actually matters.
The bubble that is Sweet Home also defines manhood but in two completely opposite ways. In the first part of the novel we learn that all the male slaves of Sweet Home were men, according to Mr. Garner. This is different from all the slaves outside of Sweet Home who were not raised to be men. But on page 260, Paul D wonders about the manliness of Sixo and Halle and states that “it was always clear […] that those two were men whether Garner said so or not.” While Paul D may have many reasons for thinking this, he does mention one aspect of Halle and Sixo that separate them from the other slaves and Sweet Home. Morrison writes, “Only Sixo, who has been stealing away to see his woman, and Halle, who has been hired away for years, know what lies outside Sweet Home and how to get there” (263). It is interesting that the only two men Paul D know for sure are true men are also the only two men who have been away from Sweet Home, who “know what lies outside Sweet Home.” In this definition of manhood, being away from Sweet Home is what actually matters.
Through Schoolteacher's Eyes
About halfway through the novel, Beloved, the reader learns the big “secret” of the novel, of what the story has been leading up to thus far. Sethe, in an attempt born out of the mysterious bonds of love, tries to save her children, and in doing so, injures her sons and murders her two-year old daughter (175). Toni Morrison reveals this horrific event by beginning with the perspective of schoolteacher.
The viewpoint of schoolteacher is interesting, because in his version of what he sees Sethe do, he is almost compassionate. At first glance, schoolteacher seems to have some decency in him when he talks about Sethe. However, that façade is soon ruined upon closer examination of the text. Schoolteacher notices all the:
nigger eyes…Little nigger-boy eyes open in sawdust; little nigger girl eyes staring between the wet fingers that held her face so her head wouldn’t fall off; the little nigger-baby eyes crinkling up to cry in the arms of the old nigger whose own eyes were nothing but slivers looking down at his feet. But the worst ones were those of the nigger woman who looked like she didn’t have any. Since the whites in them had disappeared and since they were as black as her skin, she looked blind (177).
Eyes are considered to be portals to the “soul,” which is a considered to be a human trait; it is a quality that only humans have. So, by actively noticing all the ex-slaves’ eyes, he is humanizing them. Schoolteacher brings them up to his level as a human being, and perhaps there is some compassion. However, the word “eyes” is always prefaced with the word “nigger.” The n-word becomes an adjective to specify what kind of eyes they have, and separates them from schoolteacher and his white counterparts. Instead of compassion and empathy, the most emotion schoolteacher is moved to is that of pity; the pity of his inferiors. Furthermore, he notices that Sethe’s eyes are all black. They have no more white. Schoolteacher is white and Sethe is black. In his view, white is good and superior and human. Sethe no longer has any trace of white in her eyes and by extension, her soul. For what she has done, schoolteacher can no longer see her as human and thus, capable of good.
Additionally, schoolteacher is not moved at all by Sethe’s plight since he simply takes off after arriving upon the gruesome scene and considers them all as property lost. Sethe was “the woman schoolteacher bragged about, the one he said made fine ink, damn good soup, pressed his collars the way he liked besides having at least ten breeding years left. But now she’d gone wild…The whole lot was lost now” (176). He speaks of Sethe in dehumanizing terms. He frequently makes a comparison between the slaves and animals. Breeding is what animals do, or rather what people have domesticated them to do. So Sethe is merely an animal and a piece of property to schoolteacher. Therefore, the absolutely horrific and gruesome scene he comes upon, does not move him. What Sethe does to her own child is rendered as animalistic; as if the infanticide were nothing more than a lion hunting for its food.
Let's Save Mr. Garner's Good Name
Let's not trash Mr. Garner because he likes to take a little pride in his work. Let's look at this relatively, and perhaps we can understand why people, such as Mr. Garner, may have thought as slaves as inferior people. They come from a country where, especially for the time, they had very little contemporary technology. They lived in tribes, wore little clothing, had little knowledge of the rest of the world, and raided each other's villages with machetes hacking up men, women and children alike. Then the people who hack the villages collect the survivors, the ones who look like they may make good trade bait for the Europeans and people living in the New World, and then sell them as slaves in exchange for goods, gold, spices, etc. This view may be a little one-sided yes, but let's think about the time period. The 1800's, there was no form of mass communication, and the only information these slave owners were receiving was coming from American Media (newspapers, town criers). From their perspective they were being sold these barbaric people, who lived in harsh conditions and ruthlessly carved each other's families apart with knifes. And on top of that, these slaves were being sold by other Africans. So should we really call him a racist with the information given? Everyone is bias toward their own country, of course Americans are gonna think themselves a superior people.
So with that said, Mr. Garner of course was a racist like most during this time, but this does not make him a bad person. "Garner called and announced them men--but only on Sweet Home, and by his leave. Was he naming what he saw or creating what he did not?" (260). Yes, he referred only to his slaves as "men" and no others. And yes, it was probably because he thought that he had reformed these savages into men, but is that a bad thing? During a time where no one gave a damn about these people, during a time where they were seen as barbaric, Mr. Garner steps up and takes it upon himself to turn these people into real men. He doesn't care about what other noble white people will think of him when he refers to his slaves as "men." It would even "sometimes [lead to] a fight" (13). Think of that . . . This noble is fighting other white slave owners because he calls his slaves men in public. Let's not forget that even Paul D mentions that slaves were "spoiled" under Mr. Garner because of all the rights he gave them that were considered "against the law" (267). These rights included "letting niggers hire out their own time to buy themselves. He even let em have guns!" (267). Those are two pretty big rights to be giving such a hated race during such a racist time.
So let's review. Was Mr. Garner a bad person? No he was not, and I will not sit here and read these blogs while people drag his good name through the mud. He gave his slaves rights, actually fist fought other whites "because he called his niggers men," and did all he could to turn them into "people" when the rest of society thought of them as savages (13). It's ABSOLUTELY ABSURD TO SAY THIS KIND OF TREATMENT OF SLAVES IS WORSE THAN VIOLENCE. I would much rather have a colony of slaves loving life, who can get married, and can buy their freedom, than a colony of slaves who get whipped, beaten, raped, or killed for not picking enough cotton or attempting to learn to read. I would bet that most people who went through slavery would agree that they wouldn't have minded staking it out a few more years if it could have been done without the lynchings.
So with that said, Mr. Garner of course was a racist like most during this time, but this does not make him a bad person. "Garner called and announced them men--but only on Sweet Home, and by his leave. Was he naming what he saw or creating what he did not?" (260). Yes, he referred only to his slaves as "men" and no others. And yes, it was probably because he thought that he had reformed these savages into men, but is that a bad thing? During a time where no one gave a damn about these people, during a time where they were seen as barbaric, Mr. Garner steps up and takes it upon himself to turn these people into real men. He doesn't care about what other noble white people will think of him when he refers to his slaves as "men." It would even "sometimes [lead to] a fight" (13). Think of that . . . This noble is fighting other white slave owners because he calls his slaves men in public. Let's not forget that even Paul D mentions that slaves were "spoiled" under Mr. Garner because of all the rights he gave them that were considered "against the law" (267). These rights included "letting niggers hire out their own time to buy themselves. He even let em have guns!" (267). Those are two pretty big rights to be giving such a hated race during such a racist time.
So let's review. Was Mr. Garner a bad person? No he was not, and I will not sit here and read these blogs while people drag his good name through the mud. He gave his slaves rights, actually fist fought other whites "because he called his niggers men," and did all he could to turn them into "people" when the rest of society thought of them as savages (13). It's ABSOLUTELY ABSURD TO SAY THIS KIND OF TREATMENT OF SLAVES IS WORSE THAN VIOLENCE. I would much rather have a colony of slaves loving life, who can get married, and can buy their freedom, than a colony of slaves who get whipped, beaten, raped, or killed for not picking enough cotton or attempting to learn to read. I would bet that most people who went through slavery would agree that they wouldn't have minded staking it out a few more years if it could have been done without the lynchings.
Mr. Garner: The "Nice" Slave Owner
A theme that I found to be intriguing was that of Mr. Garner. He is reported as a nice man, a man who calls his slaves "men," never yells, and one who teaches Halle how to "figure." Everyone, including his slaves, is sad when he passes.
Sethe as a young girl specifically thinks that Sweet Home is a fine place to be because no one ever yells at her. He even let Halle buy his mother with work, something that was almost completely unheard of. After all, who pays their slaves for work? A slave by definition is someone who works unpaid labor.
The irony of the situation is that while Mr. Garner is considered such a nice man, he still has slaves. He is still racist, whether or not he is "nice" about it. If he was truly a good man, he wouldn't have slaves at all. He would understand how unjust, how inhumane it is to have slaves.
This idea is finally questioned by Paul D as he sits reflecting on the night of Sethe's escape: "Garner called and announced them men--but only on Sweet Home, and by his leave. Was he naming what he saw or creating what he did not?" (260). This insight to Paul D's mind gives a more realistic view of Mr. Garner. Sure, he called his slaves men, something other slave owners would never do. But Mr. Garner would not call them men if they were not specifically his slaves. Paul D's question is essential: Did Mr. Garner really see them as men, or did he believe that he personally made them into men? Of course the answer is the latter. Mr. Garner prides himself in having slaves that are "men," but he does not believe that all slaves are men. In fact, if he believes blacks should be slaves at all, then he cannot consider all blacks to be men.
I would argue that this kind of attitude toward slavery is almost worse than violence. If Garner had not died suddenly and Schoolteacher had not shown up to make their situation worse, the slaves at Sweet Home may have lived complacent, sedentary lives. The Garners' practice of slavery had tricked them into believing that things weren't so bad. Sethe was satisfied with her life working with Mrs. Garner who never said a mean word to her. She liked bringing flowers into the kitchen to pretend it was hers. Imagine if everyone in the south took this approach! Slavery probably would have drawn much less attention and lasted much longer in America, as long as it was "nice" slavery. Sethe may have never even understood her own oppression or what it was like to have her own house, her own kitchen, to love her children as her own. That, to me, would have been the biggest travesty of all.
Agreeing with Paul D
I'm not saying that what Sethe did makes no sense, because it did. I just don't agree with it. And I finally figured out why when I read the line "Who in the world is he willing to die for?" on page 239. And I immediately thought, "Sethe, you didn't die for anyone. You killed for someone. And if there's one person I'd never be willing to kill, it's the person I'm willing to kill for." And, I have to admit that if Sethe asked me that question, I'd have to honestly admit that I wasn't sure I was willing to kill for someone. But then, I haven't lived her life. However, I saw what she did as very similar to what schoolteacher did to her. That is, she didn't give her children a choice in their lives (Beloved more than any of the others). Sure, if she hadn't done that, the only choice would have been to go back to Sweet Home, but then they could have chosen their own way of resistance. There was another way, like Paul D said, and that was to teach them what she knew about being free. And if she was punished for that, well, then she would be dying for them.
Having never lived the life of a slave, I realize that my naivete must be making some people feel a little awkward. But I stand by what I said.
On Tuesday, when we divided up into groups, someone in my group brought up the constrast of gruesome and cute of Buglar and Howard holding hands and it being revealed that they did that because they were scared of their mother trying to kill them. I thought that sounded similar to the beautiful tree on Sethe's back, versus the gruesomeness of how it came to be. Now, in the chapter that Denver narrates, I've found another one: Earlier, Denver told Beloved not to tell Sethe who she was. At the time, it seemed like two sisters keeping secrets from their parents, that is, normal and a little heart-warming. However, we later find out that it was because Denver was afraid Sethe would kill Beloved again. I don't exactly find that gruesome, but it would be a huge stretch to say that it's heartwarming.
Having never lived the life of a slave, I realize that my naivete must be making some people feel a little awkward. But I stand by what I said.
On Tuesday, when we divided up into groups, someone in my group brought up the constrast of gruesome and cute of Buglar and Howard holding hands and it being revealed that they did that because they were scared of their mother trying to kill them. I thought that sounded similar to the beautiful tree on Sethe's back, versus the gruesomeness of how it came to be. Now, in the chapter that Denver narrates, I've found another one: Earlier, Denver told Beloved not to tell Sethe who she was. At the time, it seemed like two sisters keeping secrets from their parents, that is, normal and a little heart-warming. However, we later find out that it was because Denver was afraid Sethe would kill Beloved again. I don't exactly find that gruesome, but it would be a huge stretch to say that it's heartwarming.
The Perpetuating Confusion and Paul D's Haunted Past
An interesting aspect of this passage form Beloved is the change in narration styles throughout four chapters. While I thought the beginning of this novel was confusing, I was only further bewildered upon reading these chapters. The first chapter is narrated by Sethe herself, as can be seen when she starts by saying, "Beloved, she my daughter". The next is narrated by Denver, seen when she says, "Beloved is my sister". The third chapter is narrated by Beloved herself, beginning by saying, "I am Beloved and she is mine". The fourth chapter, however, while it begins the same way as the chapter narrated by Beloved, changes into a sort of stream of consciousness between Sethe, Denver, and Beloved interchangeably. This frequent and often unnoticeable change in narrators made these chapters extremely confusing for me to read as I was constantly reminding myself of who was talking. Yet, while the style is confusing, I believe it is used to further emphasize the themes of the story. We talked in class about the significance of circles as symbols of perpetuating cycles, and I see this change in narrating style as a symbol of the perpetuation as well. The change from the point of views shows the reader the feelings of not just the third person narrator, but Sethe, Denver, and Beloved as well. Therefore, by using these different, albeit confusing, narrating styles, the reader is given a more in depth look at the story itself while maintaining focus on the themes of the novel.
A second interesting aspect of this passage is the chapter in which Paul D is sitting on the steps of the church remembering his days as a slave. I found the chapter to be very powerful, not only because of the memories unearthed by Paul D, but mainly because of the pain they cause him simply to remember them. Paul D, previously described as stoic yet with a "tobacco tin" rusted shut as a heart, is now described as "blown open, spilled contents that floated freely and made him their play and prey". The character of Paul D changes from being a fairly resilient man to a very vulnerable one in this scene. His shaky emotional state is only further augmented by his drinking, no doubt used to numb the pain inflicted by his haunting memories of his slavery. When he talks about the price people paid for him, we find out in this scene that Paul D has a very pessimistic view about slavery. Paul D refers to African Americans as, "property that reproduced itself without cost". While this is an extremely cynical way of looking at it, it is essentially true for that time period and somewhat surprising that Paul D would recognize that about himself. Therefore, while Paul D is struggling to deal with his haunted past and resorts to alcohol to comfort himself, it is somewhat sobering to know that he is finally beginning to come to terms with his enslavement.
Thursday, March 12, 2009
The Mystery Woman
The introduction of Beloved shows how Denver is somewhat dependent on the ghost of Sethe’s first daughter, who died at age two. When Paul D shooed the ghost away, I wondered if it would ever return. The return of Beloved, in my opinion, causes a lot of tension among all the characters. At first, Beloved is just categorized as a woman who emerged from the water. By not expressing her identity in the beginning of this section, and by handing out subtle clues, Morrison creates a mystery in which the reader must figure out what is the significance of this mystery woman, Beloved.
The first clue as to whom Beloved is, is the simple fact that she answers to Beloved, which is what Sethe had engraved on her baby’s tombstone. Later, Morrison describes her with brand new, soft hands and feet- much like an infant. While Morrison describes this mystery woman, she also gives the detail that Beloved has a piece of lace around her neck, which would inevitably hide the scar from where her throat was slit.
While Morrison gives these subtle clues as to the woman’s true identity, she also uses mysterious details to make it so Sethe won’t know Beloved’s true identity. For instance, Sethe is mesmerized by Beloved’s low, deep, slow voice. Beloved’s voice is somewhat hypnotic, because after a few weeks, Sethe and Denver still weren’t used to the tone. After five weeks, the family at 124 knew just as much about Beloved as the day she showed up, which adds to her mysterious nature. While it seems obvious to the reader, and Denver, who this mystery woman is, Sethe probably cannot tell who she is because she has suppressed so many memories about her past. Sethe probably does not want to imagine what the grown up version of her slain child would look like, or how she would talk. By adding this detail, that Sethe does not know whom Beloved is, Morrison lets the reader become involved in not only Sethe’s mind, but also shows how her mind suppresses these memories.
Everyone in the novel seems fascinated by Beloved, except Paul D. Paul D seems annoyed with the woman, much like he was with her ghost at the beginning of the story. I think that Denver knew for a while the truth to Beloved’s identity, because she used to consider the ghost company, and she felt a familiarity when Beloved entered 124. Sethe, who is also fascinated by this woman feels some sort of connection to her, but isn’t able to pinpoint the truth.
The first clue as to whom Beloved is, is the simple fact that she answers to Beloved, which is what Sethe had engraved on her baby’s tombstone. Later, Morrison describes her with brand new, soft hands and feet- much like an infant. While Morrison describes this mystery woman, she also gives the detail that Beloved has a piece of lace around her neck, which would inevitably hide the scar from where her throat was slit.
While Morrison gives these subtle clues as to the woman’s true identity, she also uses mysterious details to make it so Sethe won’t know Beloved’s true identity. For instance, Sethe is mesmerized by Beloved’s low, deep, slow voice. Beloved’s voice is somewhat hypnotic, because after a few weeks, Sethe and Denver still weren’t used to the tone. After five weeks, the family at 124 knew just as much about Beloved as the day she showed up, which adds to her mysterious nature. While it seems obvious to the reader, and Denver, who this mystery woman is, Sethe probably cannot tell who she is because she has suppressed so many memories about her past. Sethe probably does not want to imagine what the grown up version of her slain child would look like, or how she would talk. By adding this detail, that Sethe does not know whom Beloved is, Morrison lets the reader become involved in not only Sethe’s mind, but also shows how her mind suppresses these memories.
Everyone in the novel seems fascinated by Beloved, except Paul D. Paul D seems annoyed with the woman, much like he was with her ghost at the beginning of the story. I think that Denver knew for a while the truth to Beloved’s identity, because she used to consider the ghost company, and she felt a familiarity when Beloved entered 124. Sethe, who is also fascinated by this woman feels some sort of connection to her, but isn’t able to pinpoint the truth.
Wednesday, March 11, 2009
The Power of Words
Beloved’s supernatural effect on the inhabitants of 124 is most profoundly felt in her ability to heal them through their own stories. Initially, Sethe detests and fears relating the horrors of her own life, of her past, to others; but when Beloved shows up and savors every detail about Sethe, she “found herself wanting to [tell stories], liking it. Perhaps it was Beloved’s distance from the events itself, or her thirst for hearing it – in any case it was an unexpected pleasure” (69). While she had previously attempted to shun all memories from her past because “every mention of her past life hurt,” Sethe begins to realize that this hurt can eventually lead to emotional healing (69). Instead of storing up all of her memories of slavery, she can release them and begin to release some of the pain that they carry. She even lets herself laugh briefly at one of her most painful memories (of her mother showing her where she had been branded), before that memory escapes her careful control over it and reminds her “something she had forgotten she knew” (73) – something she was thus unprepared to deal with emotionally at that time. This newly-remembered vision of Nan telling her about her conception (and its emotional significance for her mother) causes a surge of anger, followed by a longing for Baby Suggs, to overcome her momentarily – which then dissipates into a “quiet following the splash” (74), implying that this release of her emotions has created an inner peace for Sethe. However, some stories, like Paul D’s memory of the bit, are still too painful to be told as they might “push [Paul D and Sethe] back to a place they couldn’t get back from” – a place where they would forever remain emotionally shackled by their painful memories of slave life (86). Denver, though, discovers and manipulates story-telling to her advantage as much as she can. She throws all of her effort into “construct[ing] out of the strings she had heard all her life a net to hold Beloved”: Beloved, the provider of “a racing heart, dreaminess, society, danger, beauty” – everything that Denver longs for (90). So strong is Denver’s exertion in her description of her own birth that she “was seeing it now and feeling it – through Beloved. Feeling how it must have felt to her mother” (89). By trying so hard to keep Beloved through her words, Denver unknowingly creates a “rememory” for herself of her mother’s experience – a tangible, emotional vision of events that occurred before (and even while) she was born that Sethe wanted to shield her from, but couldn’t; because the power of words in the telling was strong enough to overcome Sethe’s need to prevent her daughter from “[going] there,” to the palpable slavery of her own past (44).
Beloved [First]
[When Paul D says he doesn't see the tree on her back.] "Whitegirl. That's what she called it. I've never seen it and never will. But that's what she said it looked like. A chokecherry tree. Trunk, branches, and even leaves. Tiny little chokecherry leaves. But that was eighteen years ago. Could have cherries too now for all I know."
I've read beloved a couple other times for classes (This is going to be my third time reading it) and that quote I always loved reading/ Every time the imagery reaches me in that I am stuck with thinking how beautiful it is and yet it is twisted that I can find it to be beautiful because what gave her that scar is horrifying. Yet to find it horrifying is just as bad (i.e. Paul D) When he first sees the scars he kisses every branch and then after they have sex he is looking at it and he thinks it's ugly. That bothered me because the idea of having a tree on one's back (not necessarily from whipping) is a beautiful image. And it represents a lot more then that. Tree's represent life, family, roots, growth, change, etc. All things that you have and you can't really escape them because they are apart of living. The tree on her back represents not only the time in which she received it but every time after that.
It's quotes/scenes like this where you absolutely see Sethe trying to force the memories out of her head that I find the most fascinating. She was so hopefuly, so innocent sometimes when you see the memories of her at SweetHome. How she thought there would be a wedding ceremony. How she thought she was going to be happy. And then to find out that she doesn't even look at the tree on her back. That's a conscience effort to not look at one's back. She's avoiding remembering and she is doing it on purpose. The idea goes into memory and rememory. This ties into one of my favorite parts that we'll read about with the "school teacher's hat". And she can't just not remember it like she doesn't look at her back in a mirror.
Beloved's Purpose
Beloved is so mysterious making me confused on her role in the book. At first I thought she was simply another character who had entered, but soon realized that was not the case. I believe Beloved plays as representation of history. When Denver asks Beloved what her previous home or life was like she replies that it was “Dark” (88). She continues to say “I’m small in the place” and “A lot of people is down there. Some is dead” (88). This to me could be translated as being an African American during times of slavery. People were dying from starvation and horrible lifestyles and being small symbolizes having no power and just being another slave.
Although I think Beloved symbolizes the history of African Americans and slaves as general—she is also potentially Sethe’s daughter. As Denver and Beloved argue a little, Beloved reminds Denver “She is the one I need” (89). Beloved is relying on seeing Sethe –this is also portrayed from earlier in the book when she would wait for Sethe’s return every day and walk her to the house. When Beloved says, “I belong here”(89) it makes it seem as though this is where she has been previously. Perhaps she is the ghost who haunted this house yet now in a different form.
As of now in the book, Paul D. is the only one who finds Beloved’s character suspicious, but I feel that things will soon heat up to what her real identity and purpose will be. Whatever Beloved’s role may be, it is clear that she is magical and powerful. For example, “Denver was seeing it now and feeling it—through Beloved” (91). Denver is mesmerized by Beloved and constantly wants to watch her and be in her company. Her presence changes though as Denver realizes Beloveds true character when she says, “Then stay, but don’t never tell me what to do. Don’t never do that” (89) even though Beloved is living in her house and for all they know she is a complete stranger. Beloved also instigates the discussion of Paul D. and Sethe’s sad history. A conversation about holding on to people turns into the truth about Sethe and Halle’s parting.
As of now I think Beloved represents the horrific history of African American slaves and also the death of Sethe’s first-born child. I am excited to see how it plays out, as I am very confused at the time being.
Although I think Beloved symbolizes the history of African Americans and slaves as general—she is also potentially Sethe’s daughter. As Denver and Beloved argue a little, Beloved reminds Denver “She is the one I need” (89). Beloved is relying on seeing Sethe –this is also portrayed from earlier in the book when she would wait for Sethe’s return every day and walk her to the house. When Beloved says, “I belong here”(89) it makes it seem as though this is where she has been previously. Perhaps she is the ghost who haunted this house yet now in a different form.
As of now in the book, Paul D. is the only one who finds Beloved’s character suspicious, but I feel that things will soon heat up to what her real identity and purpose will be. Whatever Beloved’s role may be, it is clear that she is magical and powerful. For example, “Denver was seeing it now and feeling it—through Beloved” (91). Denver is mesmerized by Beloved and constantly wants to watch her and be in her company. Her presence changes though as Denver realizes Beloveds true character when she says, “Then stay, but don’t never tell me what to do. Don’t never do that” (89) even though Beloved is living in her house and for all they know she is a complete stranger. Beloved also instigates the discussion of Paul D. and Sethe’s sad history. A conversation about holding on to people turns into the truth about Sethe and Halle’s parting.
As of now I think Beloved represents the horrific history of African American slaves and also the death of Sethe’s first-born child. I am excited to see how it plays out, as I am very confused at the time being.
I want to start out by saying that I'm a little confused right now. When the character of Beloved enters in the story, I thought it was just a coincidence that this runaway girl and Sethe's "dead" daughter have the same name. But then I kept reading and realized that this might be Sethe's daughter, but I'm still not absolutely sure it is her. The fact that Beloved says she needs Sethe and is so drawn to her makes me think it could really be her daughter but we are told in the beginning of the story that she died around the age of two. I'm sure as I keep reading I'll figure this out but right now I'm not sure how Beloved has a connection to Sethe or anyone else for that matter.
Something that stood out to me during this section of the book was the great amount of story telling. So far, most of the characters have told or will probably continue to tell stories as way of giving out information and as a link to healing. I think there is a link between story telling and healing because most of these characters have never talked about their past, and in doing so they are able to almost re-live that moment and just open up to someone else about the pain or torture they received in the past. Even though Sethe says she doesn't like telling stories, when she does tell Denver or whoever else her stories she finds she actually feels better. Sometimes it's better to get everything out in the open rather than keep it in to yourself, especially for Sethe.
When Denver is telling Beloved the story about her mother giving birth, she says while she is telling the story that she can actually feel what her mother went through. Maybe story telling is a way to reconnect to the past and as I said earlier, re-live the past. I think Beloved finds so much comfort in these stories because (if she is really Sethe's daughter) than she is hearing about her mother's past, things she's never heard before and is probably very eager to hear. I think story telling is going to continue throughout this book because it is a good way to relay information while also being able to feel what happened during the event that took place in the past.
Beloved; Escape from your rememory
Through Toni Morrison’s work Beloved, the characters are gradually revealed, through the same stories told with more and more detail as the book progresses. With the introduction of the character Beloved, the histories and the individual stories of each character become more developed, Beloved serving as a tool for each character to learn more about themselves. As Beloved enters the narrative, the two main characters, Sele and Denver know themselves and each other in a greater way, with Beloved’s questions a device in which the characters are forced to delve within the rememory of their lives; the stories that will always be a part of them. Interestingly enough, as Beloved enters the lives of these two women, Morrison develops the dislike of Paul D for Beloved, because, he feels that she has taken his role as comforter and strength to these women. Furthermore, Beloved, instead of enriching the life of Paul D serves as a symbol of brokenness for the future of his newly formed ‘family’.
Beloved, though her desire for knowledge is a character who the two women feel comfortable with, Sele admitting “Even with Paul D…whom she could talk with…the hurt was always there-“ “But, as she began telling about the earrings, she found herself wanting to, liking it…in any case it was an unexpected pleasure” (69). This quote introduces the separation of degrees of closeness of Beloved to Sele and Sele to Paul D, indicating that Sele, a formerly uprooted character has found a stability in her life that cannot be offered by Paul D, who is a symbol of stability within 124. Paul D’s own words after his image of the cohesive family of the carnival, “And on the way home…the shadows of three people still held hands”(59), expresses that that future has been ‘destroyed’ by Beloved with the words “And damn! a water drinking woman fell sick, got took in, healed, and hadn’t moved a peg since”(79). This development of Paul D’s consciousness places Beloved in a position allowing her to be the cause of his separation from the two women. By this phrase, he develops a cause and effect between Beloved and a foreshadowing of the coming events, a further separation from the women of the household, also foreshadowed by his earlier dissatisfaction after sex with Sele, a moment he had been lusting for for twenty-five years.
Through the novel, Morrison also develops Beloved to be the key to a stronger relationship between mother and daughter. “Now, watching Beloved’s alert and hungry face..Denver began to see what she was saying and not just to hear it” (91), in response to the story of Denver’s birth, opens a new revelation of Denver’s character to the reader, indicating a paradigm towards her mother’s experiences. Beloved allows Denver to enter into the memory of her mother’s past, allowing her to feel the emotions and complete situations of “this nineteen year old slave girl…tired, scared maybe, and maybe even lost” (91). Through the character Beloved, Morrison introduces the aspect of internal change within the lives of these characters Beloved serving as a catalyst for change. Allowing Sele to confront her memories, and Denver, a very shy and isolated young woman to experience life free from loneliness are the changes Beloved brings on to this family. “Nothing was out there that this sister-girl did not provide in abundance: a racing heart, dreaminess, society, danger, beauty” (90). Beloved, for Denver, as well as Sele, is everything the two women could wish for, a new beginning in life that does not carry the emotional load of memories and rememories.
Beloved, though her desire for knowledge is a character who the two women feel comfortable with, Sele admitting “Even with Paul D…whom she could talk with…the hurt was always there-“ “But, as she began telling about the earrings, she found herself wanting to, liking it…in any case it was an unexpected pleasure” (69). This quote introduces the separation of degrees of closeness of Beloved to Sele and Sele to Paul D, indicating that Sele, a formerly uprooted character has found a stability in her life that cannot be offered by Paul D, who is a symbol of stability within 124. Paul D’s own words after his image of the cohesive family of the carnival, “And on the way home…the shadows of three people still held hands”(59), expresses that that future has been ‘destroyed’ by Beloved with the words “And damn! a water drinking woman fell sick, got took in, healed, and hadn’t moved a peg since”(79). This development of Paul D’s consciousness places Beloved in a position allowing her to be the cause of his separation from the two women. By this phrase, he develops a cause and effect between Beloved and a foreshadowing of the coming events, a further separation from the women of the household, also foreshadowed by his earlier dissatisfaction after sex with Sele, a moment he had been lusting for for twenty-five years.
Through the novel, Morrison also develops Beloved to be the key to a stronger relationship between mother and daughter. “Now, watching Beloved’s alert and hungry face..Denver began to see what she was saying and not just to hear it” (91), in response to the story of Denver’s birth, opens a new revelation of Denver’s character to the reader, indicating a paradigm towards her mother’s experiences. Beloved allows Denver to enter into the memory of her mother’s past, allowing her to feel the emotions and complete situations of “this nineteen year old slave girl…tired, scared maybe, and maybe even lost” (91). Through the character Beloved, Morrison introduces the aspect of internal change within the lives of these characters Beloved serving as a catalyst for change. Allowing Sele to confront her memories, and Denver, a very shy and isolated young woman to experience life free from loneliness are the changes Beloved brings on to this family. “Nothing was out there that this sister-girl did not provide in abundance: a racing heart, dreaminess, society, danger, beauty” (90). Beloved, for Denver, as well as Sele, is everything the two women could wish for, a new beginning in life that does not carry the emotional load of memories and rememories.
Dearly Beloved
Toni Morrison’s novel Beloved was for me an extremely difficult read to initially comprehend. The style it is written in can be described as patchwork - a central narrative that is constructed out of interactions among the characters and sprits living in house # 124 with digressions into the past life of Sethe. I had to read and reread the first ten pages just to stay afloat above the torrent of information that was presented to me in a style that took many pages to get used to.
Morrison has a great way of blending fantasy with reality. The hauntings with which Sethe’s house is plagued are referenced as a terrible nuisance, though with a passive acceptance as something that must be felt by the family. I found that colors and imagery pervaded everything from the past histories of these characters to their present reality in the house. The symbol of the tree, in particular, has deep implications. It represents not only the rape and struggle upon the Sweet Home farm experienced by Sethe – the cherrywood tree deeply etched into her back - but also a certain maternal care and love to which Denver and Beloved cling. In Ohio, Sethe has become withdrawn from her family because of the death of her baby and the ensuing hauntings that have marginalized the relationship with her daughter. Denver receives much wanted motherly affection by withdrawing toward the woods behind the house, particularly the tree sanctuary. “Veiled and protected by the live green walls, she felt ripe and clear, and salvation was as easy as a wish.” (35) This feeling of protection has roots in Sethe’s escape from Sweet Home farm while pregnant. The sanctuary is the womb of Sethe that protected Denver during this escape, and it is the place where Denver feels protection and love, now lacking in the complicated relationship with her mother. Denver is returning to the womb of her mother that has, in the past, afforded her sanctuary.
Upon the return from the carnival, Sethe relieves herself behind the house before she has a chance of examining the stranger that has appeared in their yard. But, in fact, this is a representation of her giving birth, or rather rebirth, to her dead daughter, as represented by Beloved. It is only after this “breaking of water” that runs and runs out of Sethe that Beloved is seen by the family. And coincidentally, Beloved appears from the direction of this “womb” tree sanctuary.
What was confusing was the manner in which this information was presented, and I had trouble figuring out if I was supposed to know what the characters were talking about or not, perhaps having not read carefully enough. Sorting it all out, however, I realized that the gaps and holes would be filled through the flashbacks and interactions between the characters and that the fragmentation was on purpose. I look forward to reading about Beloved and what she brings to the family.
Morrison has a great way of blending fantasy with reality. The hauntings with which Sethe’s house is plagued are referenced as a terrible nuisance, though with a passive acceptance as something that must be felt by the family. I found that colors and imagery pervaded everything from the past histories of these characters to their present reality in the house. The symbol of the tree, in particular, has deep implications. It represents not only the rape and struggle upon the Sweet Home farm experienced by Sethe – the cherrywood tree deeply etched into her back - but also a certain maternal care and love to which Denver and Beloved cling. In Ohio, Sethe has become withdrawn from her family because of the death of her baby and the ensuing hauntings that have marginalized the relationship with her daughter. Denver receives much wanted motherly affection by withdrawing toward the woods behind the house, particularly the tree sanctuary. “Veiled and protected by the live green walls, she felt ripe and clear, and salvation was as easy as a wish.” (35) This feeling of protection has roots in Sethe’s escape from Sweet Home farm while pregnant. The sanctuary is the womb of Sethe that protected Denver during this escape, and it is the place where Denver feels protection and love, now lacking in the complicated relationship with her mother. Denver is returning to the womb of her mother that has, in the past, afforded her sanctuary.
Upon the return from the carnival, Sethe relieves herself behind the house before she has a chance of examining the stranger that has appeared in their yard. But, in fact, this is a representation of her giving birth, or rather rebirth, to her dead daughter, as represented by Beloved. It is only after this “breaking of water” that runs and runs out of Sethe that Beloved is seen by the family. And coincidentally, Beloved appears from the direction of this “womb” tree sanctuary.
What was confusing was the manner in which this information was presented, and I had trouble figuring out if I was supposed to know what the characters were talking about or not, perhaps having not read carefully enough. Sorting it all out, however, I realized that the gaps and holes would be filled through the flashbacks and interactions between the characters and that the fragmentation was on purpose. I look forward to reading about Beloved and what she brings to the family.
Beloved's Return
After reading the first 100 pages in Beloved, the main response I have is to Beloved. Does Sethe really not know who she is? Why has she returned? I wondered about the timing--perhaps since Paul D "got rid of the baby ghost," she found another way to be with Sethe. She says to Denver, "She is the one I need...She is the one I have to have," (89) referring to Sethe. Denver is hurt by this, as so far in this novel the main characterization of Denver is about her loneliness. She wants a friend and she wants attention. Denver wants Beloved to be hers and I wonder about Beloved's feelings for Denver. Does she feel resentful? She says of Sethe, "She left me behind" (89), both girls are conscious of the reason this happened, that Sethe was pregnant with Denver. SO far, Beloved does not seem spiteful, but as a ghost she was always causing destruction and letting her presence be known. Sethe says that the ghost is only sad, but perhaps we will see this develop as Beloved becomes stronger and more purposeful.
Her development does seem to be that of a baby's in ways, she is small and sickly, and initially incontinent (64), which might indicate the development of a small child. She also doesn't talk much and the phrases she forms are often puzzling or simple. Sethe also experiences a strange bladder episode upon first seeing Beloved. I'm not sure if this was to foreshadow Beloved's incontinence or to demonstrate some sort of connection between the two of them.
Ultimately, Beloved's character is the most interesting and mysterious and will no doubt be developed further. Hopefully we will get answers about why she is back at 124 soon.
Her development does seem to be that of a baby's in ways, she is small and sickly, and initially incontinent (64), which might indicate the development of a small child. She also doesn't talk much and the phrases she forms are often puzzling or simple. Sethe also experiences a strange bladder episode upon first seeing Beloved. I'm not sure if this was to foreshadow Beloved's incontinence or to demonstrate some sort of connection between the two of them.
Ultimately, Beloved's character is the most interesting and mysterious and will no doubt be developed further. Hopefully we will get answers about why she is back at 124 soon.
A Beloved
After reading this far in the book I can say that I am pleasantly surprised by the story. I have read another one of Toni Morrison's books and I didn't really like it, but there is something about this book that I really like so far. In the latest section that I read I found very interesting. The appearance of Beloved is just really strange and kind of mystifying. I guess that she was the baby that had died, but it still was just really odd. Some some reason, whenever they talked about her I thought of Samera from the movie "The Ring". I think it was because of how creepy Beloved sounded from the descriptions of her. I think that she is a really interesting character and also a good plot device used to show more of the character's pasts so we can learn more about who they are. When she was first introduced I suspected that she was the physical manifestation of the dead baby just by her name. What I thought was odd was how mean and evil the baby seemed when it was a ghost, but now she was nicer, but still creepy. I don't really see how that connects yet, but hopefully it will become more clear later on in the story. When Beloved finally told Denver who she really was, I found it really interesting how she described being dead and in 'the other place'. Then when she described how she came to be in front of their house, that was just weird. Anywho, I really like this book so far and now with Beloved thrown into the mix, I can only expect this story to get much more interesting and probably a little stranger.
‘It’s Not Evil, Just Sad:’ the Ghost of Beloved Takes a Human Form
In pages 60-100 of Toni Morrison’s Beloved, a new character emerges “out of the water” (60). She is in a state of poor health, and she tells Sethe, Paul D and Denver that her name is “Beloved” (62). Upon reading this, I considered it a strange coincidence that this character goes by the same name that had been engraved on Sethe’s baby’s headstone. However, after reading Katie’s blog, “Beloved,” I agreed that Beloved must be the ghost that haunts 124. In the beginning of the story, when Paul D arrives, he asks if they had been experiencing an evil spirit. Sethe replies that “it’s not evil, just sad” (10).
The new character, Beloved, seems to embody this idea. She does not appear to be evil. She enjoys the sugary treats that Denver brings her (66), and she asks Sethe to tell her stories (69). When Paul D interrogates her about her past, she is defenseless. He asks her how she heard of 124 and who brought her there. To these questions she has no definitive answer (77). Beloved is described as being “homeless and without people” (78). She often requires the help of Sethe and Denver.
Strangely, when Paul D has the idea to find her a new home, she instantly chokes on her meal. Her connection with 124 is so strong that the simple thought of making her leave causes her to react traumatically. Paul D does not know how to handle Beloved’s presence at 124. He is uncomfortable with her and wants her to leave, but he cannot force her to leave because the house does not belong to him. In the next chapter, however, Denver and Beloved dance in Denver’s bedroom and Beloved seems cheerful. Denver “had never seen [her] this happy.” I find it interesting that Denver and Beloved get along so well. The fact that they dance and share stories together and consider each other’s “daydreams and misunderstandings more thrilling than understandings could ever be” (80) surely seems to indicate a strong sisterly connection between the girls. I am interested to find out who Beloved actually is and whether or not she is the ghost of Denver’s sister and Sethe’s baby girl.
The new character, Beloved, seems to embody this idea. She does not appear to be evil. She enjoys the sugary treats that Denver brings her (66), and she asks Sethe to tell her stories (69). When Paul D interrogates her about her past, she is defenseless. He asks her how she heard of 124 and who brought her there. To these questions she has no definitive answer (77). Beloved is described as being “homeless and without people” (78). She often requires the help of Sethe and Denver.
Strangely, when Paul D has the idea to find her a new home, she instantly chokes on her meal. Her connection with 124 is so strong that the simple thought of making her leave causes her to react traumatically. Paul D does not know how to handle Beloved’s presence at 124. He is uncomfortable with her and wants her to leave, but he cannot force her to leave because the house does not belong to him. In the next chapter, however, Denver and Beloved dance in Denver’s bedroom and Beloved seems cheerful. Denver “had never seen [her] this happy.” I find it interesting that Denver and Beloved get along so well. The fact that they dance and share stories together and consider each other’s “daydreams and misunderstandings more thrilling than understandings could ever be” (80) surely seems to indicate a strong sisterly connection between the girls. I am interested to find out who Beloved actually is and whether or not she is the ghost of Denver’s sister and Sethe’s baby girl.
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