Beloved Pages 281-323

 Tension rises in 124 between Beloved, Sethe, and Denver. After losing her job, Sethe struggles to provide for her household, always giving Beloved the only food and clothes that she has left. Denver states that, “If the Hen had only two eggs, she [Beloved] got both. It was as though her mother had lost her mind” (282). Sethe’s sacrifices for Beloved seem stem from her guilt of leaving her. However, these acts of kindness from Sethe cause her to deteriorate, becoming weaker and thinner while Beloved gains more weight. The roles in the household also switch. Sethe becomes less of a mother figure, and she begins to lose all control over Beloved and her constant outbursts. I think the reason that Sethe sacrifices so much for Beloved and tolerates her extremely controlling behavior is a result of her immense guilt that she has carried her whole life. Denver describes that, “Beloved accused her of leaving her behind, of not being nice to her, not smiling at her… Sethe pleaded for forgiveness, counting, listing again and her reasons: that Beloved was more than important, meant more to her than her own life” (284). Sethe tries so hard to make up for her mistake, however it seems to only make Beloved more angry and greedy. 

Throughout these chapters it seems that Denver is a representation of the future, while Beloved is a representation of the past. Denver transforms from a girl to a woman as the story progresses. She is a positive part of Sethe's life and serves a symbol of hope. In contrast, Beloved represents the horrors of slavery and Sethe’s horrible guilt that she has lived with for so long. The legacy of slavery and its consequences haunt the entire community, therefore they all have to work together as whole to get rid of Beloved in order to get rid of the past. 

When Sethe mistakes Mr. Bodwin for the school teacher and violently tries to kill him with an ice pick, everyone rushes to prevent her from making a similar mistake to the one she made many years ago. This incident represents Sethe’s own personal struggle of moving on from the past. Throughout the novel, she seems to be unable to stop revisiting her traumatizing past, however because she is stopped by the townspeople from killing Mr. Bodwin, Sethe is caused to reevaluate her own actions and heal from her mistakes. In this moment, Sethe is forced to confront her past and learn to move on, thus symbolizing the idea of confronting the horrendous act of slavery as a community and moving foreword. 

Paul D returns to 124 and is also forced to confront his past. He finds Sethe lying on the bed awaiting her own death. She states, “This little place by the window is what I want. And rest. There’s nothing to rub now and no reason to” (321). Sethe feels as though she has lost her “best thing” once again, and there is no purpose in trying to live a fulfilled life without being haunted by her own memories. However, Paul D reminds her that “You are your best thing, Sethe. You are” (322). This moment symbolizes hope. Paul D and Denver are each working together to build a new life for each other and move on from the past. 

The last chapter is solemn. Beloved is described as a bad dream that everyone was trying to forget. She was a symbol of loneliness that could not be taken away. For Denver, Sethe, and Paul D, Beloved was harder to forget because they knew her, yet Morrison states that “They realized they couldn’t remember or repeat a single word she said, and began to believe that, other than what they themselves were thinking, she hadn’t said anything at all. So, in the end, they forgot her too” (324). The repetition of the phrase “This is not a story to pass on” not only symbolizes the story of Beloved herself but also the story of slavery. Slavery can be hard to remember and think about because of how horrible it was, however if we do not acknowledge our past mistakes, we cannot have a better future. 

Beloved pages 236-277

     This particular reading of Beloved has been my favorite from the whole book. What made it so interesting was that the majority of this section took place inside the heads of the main characters addressing their memories and also giving us a deeper understanding of who these people were. The first chapter was all about Sethe coming to terms with who Beloved is to her. Throughout the chapter she also reasons with herself for killing Beloved, stating that, “if I hadn’t killed her she would have died and that is something I could not bear to happen to her” (236). She tells herself that she doesn’t even need to say any of this to Beloved because she already knows and understands. She also now fully understands why Baby Suggs always thought about colors in her later years in life. Sethe for the first time in a while has a sense that her family is together again in some way and she is enjoying her life in this moment the same way Baby Suggs took the time to enjoy colors after so many years of not being allowed to think for herself. Sethe’s chapter concludes with her thinking about Paul D and how he was the reason she did not recognize Beloved from the beginning. She says that Paul D had always wanted Beloved gone and  how he is in the wrong for calling her love, “too thick” because really what is important is that she has something to love and protect and someone who came back to her (239). 

    The next chapter focuses on Denver and for the first time really shows how she feels about her mother, father, and Beloved. One of the biggest questions I had before was if Denver knew how Beloved had died and here she answers it saying that as much as she loved her mother she also feared her. Her brothers when they still lived at 124 would tell her stories about how to survive their mother if it ever came to that again and she also talks about this nightmare situation where Sethe cuts her head off and then braids her hair. She keeps this fear deep down inside of herself as to not anger her mother and to protect both herself and Beloved. Denver repeats throughout the chapter, “It’s all on me, now” when speaking about her protective nature over Beloved. Denver had always felt the comfort from her ghost and now that she was back in person was not going to let anyone take her away again. Denver has this protective nature because she does not know when Sethe will turn again and try to hurt them. Finally Denver also reveals in this chapter that she still believes Halle is eventually going to come back for them and that when he does he will protect her and Beloved from Sethe. Her chapter ends similar to Sethe with her repeating the phrase, “She’s mine, Beloved. She’s mine” (247). 

    After Denver, Beloved tells her story but in a less direct way. Her first chapter is very interesting because of the spacing. There are big gaps between some of the words almost as if they symbolize gaps in the memories or who Beloved really is. She also here talks about how she is missing her teeth which is similar to when she pulled a tooth out in front of Denver. It seems that she is not in the real world and this is more a part of the magic realism area of the story. The recurring theme of water also plays a part in her story as she described floating with the dead men and how she sees Sethe’s face in the water which looks like hers as well as the earrings that were taken from Sethe when in jail. After this is when Beloved and Sethe finally talk to each other and how Beloved remembers her and will stay with Sethe. She also here refers to the school teacher and his nephews as the “men without skin” which seems fitting as that description would be dark and something to cause fear in someone just as schoolteacher did with Sethe and the other slaves (254). The chapter ends again with this phrase, “You are mine” which I think helps to symbolize who Beloved is as a person (256). She seems to represent something different for each person in her life and helps both Sethe and Denver realize things about themselves and also helps to give them what they need in life. For Sethe it seems like that may be validation that she did the right thing and that her daughter still loves her and for Denver that is someone to connect with and to be able to protect so that she does feel so alone in her life. 

    This section ends with Paul D. He recounts the end of his time at Sweet Home and when all the men decided it was time to run. He also speaks about how he did love Sethe and how it hurt that he no longer had the feeling of wanting to live with one woman after running away from her. Stamp Paid then comes to visit and the two men talk about what happened all those years ago and how Paul may have understood had he been there because all she was trying to do was stop things from getting any worse for her children. 

Bass 2/8/21 blog post - Beloved

Last night’s reading began with Paul D contemplating the complexity of manhood with an enslaved past. Now that he is liberated from slavery, he wants to be able to exercise liberty over his life and is deeply disturbed by the power that Beloved, representative of his past, seems to hold over him. He resolves to confess to Sethe, but ultimately cannot bring himself to tell her of his turmoil and instead tells her he wants to have children with her. Sethe ruminates on motherhood, concluding that for her, “unless carefree, mother love was a killer”. The rain that had emancipated Paud D turned cold and fell as snow in a curious twist on pathetic fallacy. Later in a flashback, four horsemen come to take Sethe back to slavery, clearly painting slavery as certain hell itself. Rather than have her children returned to slavery, to hell, Sethe murders one with a saw and is ready to murder the rest and herself when Schoolteacher decides that they are too manicly feral to be enslaved. He describes her in animalistic terms as a creature that was too severely abused in an effort to break its spirit into submission. The infanticide draws a parallel to the historical infanticide of Margaret Garner, whom we learned tangentially of in a Harpeth Hall history classroom. I researched and found that the book may be based loosely upon that historical event. Our reading ended with Paul D confronting Sethe about the murder that Stamp had told him of. Sethe defends that it was an act of love. Paul D tells Sethe that she has two legs and not four, that she is yet a human and not an animal, but Sethe remains defensive of her actions. Our reading carefully examined the struggle of enslaved and emancipated people to grasp personal identity and humanity, a life of their own, while being dehumanized and subjected to hell on earth. 

Beloved 101-146

 In the beginning of this reading, Sethe describes how she misses Baby Sugg’s soothing and protective presence. She recalls that Baby Suggs brought the black community together as she preached self-love in an atmosphere of hatred and intolerance. As she sat in the Clearing and people gathered around, she preached, “in this here place, we flesh; flesh that weeps, laughs: flesh that dances on bare feet in grass. Love it” (103). In an attempt to feel Baby Suggs’s loving presence once again, Sethe travels to the Clearing. Sitting on the old rock, Sethe calls for the touch of the fingers of her deceased-mother in law. She begins to feel fingers down her spine, but the fingers turn violent and Sethe feels that she is being choked. Once Beloved sees the bruises on Sethe’s neck, she touches them with “cool and knowing fingers” and begins to kiss them, but Sethe pushes her away and states, “You too old for that” (115). The fingers that once comforted her and then strangled her are another supernatural embodiment of Sethe’s past. Sethe seeks comfort by dwelling in memories of Baby Suggs, but lingering in the past is dangerous and suffocating. Denver accuses Beloved of choking her mother. Perhaps metaphorically, Beloved’s presence is choking her mother because Sethe is constantly reminded of her dead baby and is unable to break the chains that enslave her to her own past. 

In the next chapter, Paul D. recalls his time spent as a prisoner after attempting to kill Brandywine. He is chained with 45 other men who all work all day and sleep in wooden cages at night. Although they never speak to each other, somehow they understand each other through the looks in their eyes and subtle tugs on the chain. Together in bondage and shared oppression, these men create a strong community and brotherhood. After a huge rain storm, the dirt turns to mud and the prisoners seize an opportunity to escape. This chapter illustrates the importance of community in dealing with the horrors of slavery. However, we can see Paul D’s hope and spirit dwindle throughout his journey. Morrison describes, “Eighty-six days and done. Life was dead. Paul D beat her butt all day every day till there was not a whimper in her.” Paul D believes that, in order to survive as a slave, it is necessary that all independent thoughts, hopes, and memories are buried deep down. 

One night, Beloved enters the cold house where Paul D. is sleeping and asks him to sleep with her. He refuses her, but she eventually seduces him. Beloved’s identity is further complicated by this action, but we can see that her identity fluctuates and exploits the deep desires of Sethe, Denver, and Paul D. Denver desires a sister after she has lost all her siblings. Sethe wishes for her dead baby to come back to life. Finally, Paul D. desires a sexual partner. 

Beloved (pg 52-100)

 Summary

    To say much occurs in this section of the novel would be an understatement. It begins with the bizarre introduction of a new character: Beloved. Found near 125 after the carnival, a mysterious, young lady emerges out of the river. When Paul D., Sethe, and Denver bring this ambiguous character of peculiar roots into their house, the woman refuses any food and only drinks a lot of water. When she finally falls asleep with exhaustion, Sethe, Denver, and Paul D. are stunned by this turn of events.

    Beloved doesn't seem to remember her origins or anything much of her past, which Paul D. becomes especially skeptical of. His feelings of reservation and suspicion towards her only continues throughout this reading. For example, he insists that Beloved is not nearly as helpless as she seems, telling Sethe that he and Denver saw her lift a sizable rocking chair with one hand.

    Strangely enough, Beloved becomes attached to Sethe, and Morrison makes it clear that her devoted attention towards her is not normal. Throughout these pages, we see Beloved's "greed" for wanting to converse with Sethe, and so, in these chapters, we get a deep dive into Sethe's harsh and shocking past, one she always tried to hide from others and herself. During one conversation, Paul D accidentally brings up Halle's reason for disappearance and shares that he saw those men violate her. When Sethe becomes enraged that Halle never commented or tried to prevent what happened, Paul defends him by claiming that this was the defining moment of Halle's drastic mental decline. This reading ends with Denver telling Beloved how she got her name, sharing the story of the how a helpful white woman, named Amy, saved both her mother's and her life. 

Analysis

    Beloved is depicted as the representation of Sethe's dead child. We see this apparent in the identical name and moments that strongly display this theory. For example, when the three find Beloved at the river, Sethe has sudden urges to urinate, and the description of the scene matches that of water breaking during labor of a pregnancy. Later, Beloved talks about finding a place she belongs to and speaks of a bridge from the past life into the next life. The reader can clearly see the connection of finding a home through Beloved's sudden introduction.

    In these pages, we see unusual, yet symbolic attachments forming. Denver develops a strange obsession for Beloved in the beginning, denying Paul D.'s accusation of Beloved faking her weakness and insisting on caring for her by herself. I think this is a reflection on how she feels about her life and an outlet on how she copes with feelings of exclusion (especially after Paul D comes into the picture). Additionally, we see a symbolic and strong relationship between Beloved and Sethe forming, a bond that continues to grow as Sethe relays her painful and raw past to her. 

    All in all, I think this chapter bluntly shows the horridness and psychological effects of slavery. The reader undergoes shock as Sethe and Paul hesitantly and anguishly share their stories (i.e. the grotesqueness of Sethe's mother's rape and death and Halle's emotional and mental inability to cope with his wife being violated). These stories make slavery and the human beings who were victim to it seem much more real, more than just a history lesson, more than a horrible nightmare. This book brings out the humanist in the reader. 

Beloved p. 3-51

           In Toni Morrison’s Beloved, the timeline of the novel switches back and forth between the past and the present. Sethe, now escaped and living on Bluestone Road in Cincinnati, Ohio, lives with her daughter, Denver, because the rest of her children and her grandmother have died. She reflects on memories of her previous life as a slave, talking about her children, others she worked alongside, and how she escaped while pregnant. She also talks about they way she was treated and experiences she remembers. 

In these pages, I have noticed some themes/motifs. First, color is very important. Sethe says that Baby Suggs, “used the little energy she had left for pondering color” (Morrison 6) while she lay in her sickbed. Color was the only thing that brought her some relief and happiness, and she noticed splashes of color in her life, such as the blue of the sky and the lavender of the cloth that Sethe often brought into the house for her. Color is also discussed when Paul D. walks into Sethe’s house, and he notices things such as “the blue-and-white wallpaper” and “discreet flecks of yellow sprinkled among a blizzard of snow-drops all backed by blue” (13). I think the emphasis on color is important because it represents how skin color separated people in this time. They spend time describing color because there was such an emphasis on how it made people different from others and allowed for people to justify slaveholding. I also think that color is significant to the characters in the novel because it pertains to a sensory experience which is how people conjure up memories. Throughout this novel, we are given glimpses into Sethe’s life before her escape through her memories, so I think that colors help the characters connect with the stories of their pasts as well. 

Another important symbol in these chapters is that of ghosts. Sethe talks about how her children and grandmother have died, but how their presence is still felt. The opening lines state that, “124 was spiteful. Full of a baby’s venom,” (3) and later Paul D. asks Sethe, “What kind of evil you got in here?” (10). The characters who are still living are in a sense haunted by the ghosts of their past. Those who have passed away harbour rage and anger for their situations and the circumstances of their deaths, and because of this their spirits are still felt. I also think the concept of ghosts of the past and being haunted by things that are no longer there relates to the novel as a whole because Sethe is unable to escape these horrible memories of slavery and how her life was like before. Like the ghosts of those who have died, Sethe struggles to move on and is almost caught between worlds as she tries to push past the awful events she has endured in her life. We also see that the title of the book also comes from what was inscribed on Sethe’s baby’s headstone “Beloved.”

There is irony in the name “Sweet Home” as that was the name of the farm they lived and worked on while enslaved. The idea of home in this novel is important because “Sweet Home” was anything but sweet, however, it is where Sethe made some lasting connections, such as the one she shares with Paul D. Now, she lives in a house which is haunted by the spirit of her child, and she is trying to make it her home, but Denver despises living there and wants to leave to go somewhere else. Sethe is hesitant to leave because she is tired of running as she has been running all her life. She struggles to find a place that can truly be home because she now has a house, but it is not filled with relatives or friends, only loneliness and almost emptiness.