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.
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This might seem like a cop-out, but I kind of considered Sethe's actions as those of an insane woman. I can't see her actions as wrong because she was not in the right state of mind. I imagine that all she could think about in the moment when she herded her children to the shed was having her milk taken from her. Maybe it's easier for a female to understand how horrifying that would be, but I think she just snapped. She didn't want her babies to have to go through something like that, and this was the only way she could think of to save them from it. It is wrong to murder, but the South was wrong to break her psyche with slavery. Granted, Paul D and Baby went through plenty of struggles and they never snapped...but perhaps they are more resilient. I don't know if any of that seems feasible for you, but it's something else to think about! :)
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