Högskolan I Halmstad [609803]

Högskolan I Halmstad
Department of English Literature and Language

Black Community
in
Toni Morrison’s
The Bluest Eye, Sula and Song of Solomon

Ingrid Ranström
D-Essay
Supervisor Anna Få hraeus
Examiner AnnKatrin Jonsson

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Table of Contents
Abstract ………………………….. ………………………….. ………………………….. ………………………….. ……………………. 3
Introduction ………………………….. ………………………….. ………………………….. ………………………….. ……………… 4
The Novels in Brief ………………………….. ………………………….. ………………………….. ………………………….. …. 6
The Black Community "Defined"
The Black Community and White Society ………………………….. ………………………….. ………………………….. . 7
Dealing with Social Pressures in the Black Community ………………………….. ………………………….. ………. 13
Characteristics of Survival
Physical Demarcations ………………………….. ………………………….. ………………………….. ………………………. 15
Blackness as Color ………………………….. ………………………….. ………………………….. ………………………….. … 20
“And the child ren might know their names…” ………………………….. ………………………….. ………………….. 23
Survival and Staying Intact in the Black Community ………………………….. ………………………….. …………… 26
Family ………………………….. ………………………….. ………………………….. ………………………….. …………………. 27
Singing, Healing, and Magic ………………………….. ………………………….. ………………………….. ……………….. 28
Storytelling and Laughter ………………………….. ………………………….. ………………………….. …………………… 31
Hatred ………………………….. ………………………….. ………………………….. ………………………….. ………………… 32
African Legacy ………………………….. ………………………….. ………………………….. ………………………….. ……… 34
The Importance of the Individual ………………………….. ………………………….. ………………………….. ……….. 38
Racialization within the Black Community
Divisions within the Black Community ………………………….. ………………………….. ………………………….. …. 39
Blackness and Racial Differentiation ………………………….. ………………………….. ………………………….. ……. 46
Conclusion ………………………….. ………………………….. ………………………….. ………………………….. ………………. 51
Works Cited ………………………….. ………………………….. ………………………….. ………………………….. …………….. 55

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Abstract
Using the novels, The Bluest Eye, Sula and Song of Solomon , the purpose of this essay is to
examine Toni Morrison‟s characters in the setting of the black community with emphasis on
gender, participation in society and the class differences which exi st within the black collective .
All of the characters in the nar ratives exist in communities which are defined by the racial
barriers formed by the surrounding white societies. Due to her concern with the inter -relatedness
of race, gender and class as they are lived by the individuals, Morrison gives her characters
physical and psychological qualities which enhance their chances for survival and fulfillment,
thus leading to the survival of the black community. Through her characters in The Bluest Eye,
Sula and Song of Solomon , Toni Morrison portrays the black community with reference to
blackness and the inner struggles of the individual as well as the class differences and social
structures within the collective . It can be concluded that the black community is an important
part of today‟s society as the contemporary ind ividual must embrace his/her culture and heritage,
which is found in the unity of the collective .

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Introduction
Toni Morrison, the first African -American woman to win the Nobel Prize for Literature
(1993) , uses her novels as an expression of her concern with the inter -relatedness of race, gender
and class as it is lived by individuals. Each of Morrison‟s works, The Bluest Eye (1970), Sula
(1973), Song of Solomon (1977), Tar Baby (1981), Beloved (1987), Jazz (1992), Paradise
(1998), Love (2003), and A Mercy (2008) provides insights into the comple xity of the black
community. The general shared focus in her fiction al narratives is the sociopolitical struggle that
has historically characterized the African -Ame rican experience.
All the characters in Morrison‟s novels exist in communities that are defined by the racial
barriers formed by the surrounding white society. These barriers are both topological and
psychological. The dominant white society violates, den ies and sets the rules for these borders
causing black communities to suffer from confusion and anxiety. On the one hand, Morrison‟s
characters have physical and psychological qualities which enhance their chances for survival
and fulfillment, thus leading to the survival of the black community. On the other , just “being
black” in her novels does not promote unity within the community as there also exists
racialization and class differenc es within the black collective .
Although all of Morrison‟s novels give the narrator ‟s continuous thoughts concerning
“place” and “self”, her earlier works are , according to Oumar Ndondo‟s article, Toni Morrison
and her Early Works: In Search of Africa, more focused on something that she nostalgically calls
“village literature” and which “highlight the presence of the African continent” (26). Ndondo
further states that although Africa is not actually mentioned in Morrison‟ s earlier works, there
are too many references to the continent to ignore Morris on‟s “attempt to reconnect with the
experience of her people [and] the African community at large” (27). Morrison‟s link with Africa

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is prominently displayed as she scrutinizes the village, or communal life in her earlier works and
therefore this D-essay , with its focus on setting and the black community, examines the author‟s
first three novels.
Further, critics argue that while Morrison‟s earlier works, The Bluest Eye , Sula and Song
of Solomon are decidedly modernist in theme , plot and method; her later novels represent the
postmodern movement of twentieth century literature. All three narratives examine the
individual‟s consciousness and reality and thus identify a new affiliation to his or her history .
This is often accomplished by exploring the same occurrence through different perspectives.
Morrison also uses myth , a distinctive modernist tool, in her novels to further entice her
characters into a r elationship with their past. Whereas modernism is concerned with identity,
influence, convicti on and harmony, postmodernism deals with diversity , division, politics and
pop culture . According to M. Kubitschek, Toni Morrison: A Critical Companion ,
“Postmodernism… [is] central to Toni Morrison‟s later fiction. [The qualities of postmodernism]
are intimately connected in Tar Baby , Beloved , and Jazz” (19). Therefore, as Morrison‟s novels
are classified under two different literary movements of the twentieth century, it is again fitting
that this essay focuses on the f irst three narratives and their s hared modernist approach.
This D-essay will thus examine the characters of Morrison‟s first three novels, The Bluest
Eye, Sula and Song of Solomon in the setting of the black community with emphasis on their
interactions, conflicts with, and participation in society as well as the class differences which
threaten the unity within the collective. This paper will also investigate the family as an
institution, the African -American way of life and the search for and discovery of self as they are
presented in t he novels.

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The Novels in Brief
In The Bluest Eye , Morrison examines beauty and value from the perspective of the black
community and how black society imposes an incongruous white standard on its constituents.
Pecol a Breedlove is a young African American girl coming of age during the 1940s. She longs to
be loved and accepted by her own community as well as in a world which rejects and diminishes
the value of the members of her own race and defines beauty according to an Anglo Saxon
cultur al standa rd. Pecola‟s yearning manifests itself in her tragic aspiration to have blue eyes.
The narrative is told from a third person omniscient perspective by a neighbor , Claudia M acTeer ,
who relates the heartbreaking story of Pecola‟s upbringing as well as the co mmunity‟s
responsibility for her ultimate demise. The novel thus causes the reader to reflect upon
participation within the black community and the conseque nces following any deviations from
the established cohesiveness of the black society.
Sula further investigates the repressive white society‟ s influence on the black community
and examines the corruptive forces which compel the members of the black society to reject and
alienate one of their own people. The life of Sula Peace, while growing up in the black
community of Medallion in the 1920s , is shaped by her experiences with family and friends. A
strong sense of feminine identity is d isplayed in this independent young woman and when she
returns to Medallion as an adult, she is feared and treate d as an outcast because of her refusal to
conform to the anticipated norms found in black society . Sula‟s best friend from childhood , Nel
Wright , assumes the traditional role of wife and mother as an adult and yet, risks losing her own
identity in the process. Therefore, the focus of Sula is the workings and struggl es of the internal
black society while it simultaneously centers on an in -depth analysis of the marginalized roles of
blacks a nd w omen within the black community.

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Song of Solomon is an enchanting and moving narrative depicting the black experience
and a quest for black identity . It focuses on the character of Milkman Dead and his inner struggle
with his white middle -class image and his African – and Native -American roots. Milkman‟s
father, Macon, promotes materialistic ideals and Milkman seem s to inherit these qualities al ong
with a predisposition to treat those around him badly . In contrast, Milkman‟s aunt, Pilate, has a
differen t set of values which include love, affection, respect and loyalty. Her care and nurturing
contribute to Milkman‟s eventual search for his racial identity. The first part of the novel takes
place in the northern community and depicts Milkman‟s personal pas t while the second half of
the novel occurs in the southern community and explores his ancestral past. Hence, the novel
examines the connection between culture, family, heritage and identity within the traditions and
boundaries of the black community.
The Black Community and White Society
In all of Morrison‟s novels, the black community is, from one perspective, largely
defined by the dominant white society and its standards. Yet, a lthough the boundari es are set by
the white society, the black community may subliminally resist those rules. Morrison thus
creates a setting, or background, for each of her novels in order to introduce her characters.
While the physical setting initially dominates in Song of Solomon and Sula, Morrison begins The
Bluest Eye with a psychological setting by using an excerpt from a children‟s reader.
Morrison chooses to open The Bluest Eye and certain of its other chapters with a
reference from the childhood primer Dick and Jane. “Here is the house. It is green and white. It
has a red door. It is very pretty. Here is the family. Mother, Father, Dick and Jane live in the
green -and-white house. They are very happy” (Morrison , Bluest 1). These excerpts from this

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well-known American textbook reader serve as a backdrop for the setting for the novel in a
number of ways. First, the familiar words from the Dick and Jane story establish the ultimate
“whiteness” that defines the lives of members of the black community. Morriso n wants the
reader to understand th at these and other images available to the black society serve to
internalize racism by illustrating that to be glad, contented and successful means that one must be
a part of white , middle class suburbia . Secondly, Morrison also uses the Dick and Jane citations
to expand on the appalling fact that this “ cheerful and perfect” white family was an accepted part
of the educational learning systems in the US through the mid 1970s when the books were finally
removed from t he classroom. However, many parents and teachers still remember these books
fondly as exceptional learning tools. Finally , the telegraphic s entences serve as a reminder that
just as spaces and functional words are omitted, so is the distinctiveness of the black society as it
completely submits itself to the white ideal. Furthermore, the novel is divided into the four
seasons of Fall, Winter, Spring and Summer, which inform the reader that “to everything there is
a season” and that the actions occurring in this narrative are a part of the inevitable cycle of life
and the dominate “whiteness” of society which will eventually repeat itself .
Following the initial psychological backdrop of the novel, the reader finds that The Bluest
Eye takes place in Morrison‟s home town of Lorain, Ohio . Lorain is known for its steel mills and
shipyards and is located on Lake Erie. In the novel, t he black comm unity of Lorain is separated
from the upper -class white community, also known as Lake Shore Park, a place where blacks are
not permitted, unless they are employed by a white family. This further emphasizes the
perspective that the boundaries of black society are set and defined by the dominant white
community. Claudia and Frieda M acTeer go in search of Pecola at Lake Shore Park where
Pecola‟s mother Pauline works for a white family, known as the Fishers. “The lakefront hou ses

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were the loveliest. Garden furniture, ornaments, windows like shiny eyeglasses…[the] sky was
always blue” (Morrison , Bluest 105). The girls are thus subliminally testing the white
geographical boundaries. However, their stay is short -lived as Pauline is furious at Pecola for
tipping over a pan of blueberry cobbler , “Crazy fool…my floor, mess…look what
you…work…get on out…her words were hotter and darker than the smoking berries and we
backed away in dread” (Morrison , Bluest 109). As the novel progres ses, Morrison shows that
there are always devastating consequences when the boundaries of racism are tested .
Unlike the black communities in Song of Solomon and Sula, Lorain in The Bluest Eye is
marked by blatant differences in the economic standing of its members. There are middle class
families such as the Peals and the characters of Geraldine and her son Louis Junior; the lower –
middle class Mr. Henry Washington and the MacTeers; and finally the lower class Breed loves.
These differences exert pressure on the members of the black society and its future and are
displayed in the attitudes of the people towards one another. When Geraldine arrives home to see
Pecola in her house she “saw the dirty torn dress, the plait s sticking out on her head…the cheap
soles, the soiled socks…the safety pin holding the hem of the dress up…She had seen this girl all
of her life…they were everywhere…Get out, you nasty little black bitch. Get out of my house”
(Morrison , Bluest 92).
The plight of this black community is further exemplified by social pressures which are
inscribed in the characters‟ consciousness and reflect white supremacy and the constant
inequality that exists. The social pressures include racial tension and the necessit y of the bla ck
community to know its place . Although these pressures are mainly of a psychological nature,
they may be enforced by physical violence. This is shown in Song of Solomon as the men listen

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to news on the radio of a young N egro man named Emmett Till. For merely whistling at a white
woman, he is brutally murdered by white supremacists.
The black character of Pauline is known as Polly in the white Fisher household. She is
renamed by the daughter in the Fisher family thereby giving dominant power e ven to the
youngest member of the white society. She is degraded by her white doctor when giving birth as
he states, “these here women you don‟t have any trouble with. They deliver right away and with
no pain. Just like horses” (Morrison , Bluest 125). Further, as Miss Alice and Mrs. Gaines are
talking, they realize the constant gender inequality that exists in the black community,
“Everybody in the world was in a position to give them orders. White women said, ‟Do this.‟
White children said, ‟Give me th at‟. White men said, ‟Lay down.‟ The only people they need n ot
take orders from were black children and each other” (Morrison , Bluest 138).
According to Cynthia Davis‟ essay, Self, Society and Myth in Toni Morrison’s Fiction , “All of
Morrison‟s characters exist in a world defined by its blackness and by the surrounding white
society that both violates and denies it” ( Davis 27).The setting for Sula is a small town in Ohio,
located on a hillside known as “Bottom”. Here again is evidence of the oppressive white society
manipulating and mistreating the black community as a white slave owner promises his slave
fertile “bottom” land as well as his freedo m. However, the slave is deceived into believing that
the land on the hillside is “rich and fertile…the bottom of heaven [and is] the best land there is”
(Morrison, Sula 5). The white community establishes itself in the rich and fertile valley while the
black community is forced to live on the boundary, or margin, of the white society. Nevertheless,
and despite this “nigger joke” (Morrison, Sula 4), the black community identifies with the
designated area, which leads to their acceptance of and consent to live in a degraded situation,
“The black people watching her [dancing] would laugh and rub their knees, and it would be easy

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for the valley men to hear the laughter and not notice the adult pain that rested somewhere under
the eyelids, somewhere under the ir head rags and soft felt hats, somewhere in the palm of the
hand somewhere behind the frayed lapels, somewhere in the sinew‟s curve” (Morrison, Sula 4).
Morrison baits the reader with binary opposites as she continues to play with the geographical
locati on of “Bottom” being the hillside area instead of the lower fertile valley; “Bottom” as the
less advantageous place to live both for social and economic reasons and yet, which becomes an
attractive area for the white community in the 1960s as ironically; t he community of “Bottom” is
turned into the Medallion City Golf Course which is not located on the flat valley, but rather on a
hilly area of land where “the soil slid down and …the wind lingered” (Morrison, Sula 5). Finally,
Bottom is not a recognized mun icipality in itself, but has boundaries which are defined by the
white society of Medallion and according to Morrison, “it wasn‟t a town anyway: just a
neighborhood” (Morrison, Sula 4).
Nel, lifelong friend of Sula, chooses the role of wife and mother and remains true to her
hometown and her roots while accepting her status in society . These social rules were the
accepted values infused from childhood where she “sat on the steps of her back porch
surrounded by the high silence of her mother‟s incredibly or derly house…waiting for [her] fiery
prince” (Morrison , Sula 51). However, her fiancé Jude also attempts to attain the social role of
family breadwinner and lines up for a job on the New River Road. “It was after he stood in lines
for six days a running and saw the gang boss pick out thin -armed white boys from the Virginia
hills and the bull -necked Greeks and Italians and heard over and over „Nothing else today. Come
back tomorrow,‟ that he got the message” (Morrison , Sula 82). Jude realized that not only was
his opportunity of employment as well as his hopes and dreams in the hands of the dominant
white employer, but also that his masculine identity was connected to his work situation and

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therefore tensions and frustration arose which eventually led to him pressuring Nel into “settling
down”.
In Song of Solomon , the reader is absorbed into the black community, an entity unto
itself, but yet never far removed from the white world. The first pages of the novel describe “Not
Doctor Street” and “No Mercy Hospital”. These names are used within the African -American
community but are unofficial and not recognized by the white city rulers who instead identify
them as Mains Avenue and Mercy Hospital. This “hidden” or underlying resistance is based on a
fear resulting from a history of the negative effects of racism. Morrison explains in her speech
delivered at Howard University on March 2, 1995, that racism may come in different forms and
that it “can only reproduce the environment that su pports its own health: [which include] fear
[and] denial” (Morrison, 1995) . Thus, racism is not entirely to be blamed on those who oppress,
but also on those who are oppressed. In order to understand how this hegemony functions, one
must examine the meani ng of racial formation and its impact on racial identity.
According to Michael Omi and Howard Winant‟s, Racial Formation in the United States ,
there are three different interpretations of race. They include scientific, religious, and political
perspectiv es. Racial formation is the process by which the above interpretations stipulate the
significance and composition of racial categories. The racial category of “black” evolved with
the intensification of racial slavery. With slavery, a perception emerged wh ich formed racial
identities for both slaves and colonists. Slaves found themselves in a hierarchical system under
the command of the colonists. As Elijah Anderson points out in his article, The Emerging
Philadelphia African American Class Structure , “Alon g with slavery…came a white supremacist
ideology that defined black people as less than human, as genetically inferior to the country‟s
majority. Even after emancipation, this ideology persisted, all but negating the prospect of

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equality between the races” (55). Milkman Dead, in Song of Solomon , has a family name which
is given to them by a “drunken Yankee in the Union Army…who couldn‟t have cared less”
(Morrison, Song 18). By giving the family a new name, the white society denies them their black
culture a nd slave origins and thus, by isolating their individualism, destroys their ethnic and
spiritual identities. The name is accepted with resignation but also signifies the attitude of the
black middle class towards slavery by giving them the opportunity to “ wipe out the past”
(Morrison, Song 54). This is an example of the white society wielding authority over the
submissive and consenting black community.
In fact, the group, or collectivity is the basis for Song of Solomon as there is no main
character in th e text. Although Milkman has a strong role in the novel, Pilate, as well as Macon
among others, can also be seen as main characters. These characters acquire their individuality
through their interrelation with each other. Morrison‟s approach is that the e ntire community
cannot be represented by any single character. The author uses group dialogue to represent the
social collectivity and to communicate its values. Porter, an intoxicated man in Song of Solomon ,
is encouraged by a group to express his emotions. Later in the novel, Morrison uses group
dialogue again as a circle of men at the General Store are angry concerning their rejected
attempts at hospitality and verbally assault Milkman. This leads to a bloody scuffle.
Dealing with Social Pressures in the Black Community
In all three novels, s ocial pressu res lead to frustration . Porter, as mentioned in the above
example, exposes the average daily living conditions of the black community. His drunkenness
expresses an intense frustrati on in the form of an insane need to be accepted and loved
(Morrison , Song 26). Porter‟s character is an expression of the general deterioration and the self –

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destructive atonement of the whole community. Porter, while sitting on the attic window of his
hous e, is not ridiculed for his behavior by his friends, but rather good -naturedly accepted as if
this type of behavior was the norm, Instead of being condemned, his outward disp lay of emotion
and frustration is sha red and understood by the group.
Eva, in Sula, is frustrated by her son‟s drug addiction. Plum adhered to the social
expectations of his country and served in the war. However, upon returning home, his life
revolved around drugs and alcohol, presumably to dull the pain of his horrific experiences.
Although Eva loves her son, she is at a loss as to how to quiet his “demons” and therefore douses
him in kerosene and sets fire to him. Nevertheless , the black community does not condemn Eva
for this transgression, nor for her daughter Hannah‟s death , despite the ambivalent circumstances
surrounding it.
Morrison also shows that social pressures lead to internal frustrations in The Bluest Eye
as Pauline becomes disillusioned with her married life with Cholly, as well as being mother to
Sammy and Pecola. Her frustration with her black life is assuaged only when she visits the
picture shows and can lose herself in her white fantasies. The tension that she feels gives her
strength to change and “it was her good fortune to find a permanent job in the home of a well -to-
do family whose members were affectionate, appreciative and generous. She looked at their
houses, smelled their linens, touched their silk draperies, and loved all of it” (Morrison , Bluest
127).Her transformation is complete when her name is chan ged to Polly.
The characters in Morrison‟s novels, then, reach their fullest potential and development
within the boundaries of the community. In contrast with European -American literature, where
characters are made heroes as they distance themselves from society because of their ideas or

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innovatio ns, the characters in African -American literature are made distinct because of their
determination and contribution within their society (Mbalia 90). Thus, t he characters‟ survival
depends upon them existing within the boundaries of the community. While t here is some
criticism concerning this theory surrounding the character of Sula who is said to have achieved
her individuality outside the community, her adult identity is actually an effect of her childhood
upbringing and experiences in the black society . Her return to Bottom and her “roots” shows her
ultimate need for a little control in an otherwise racist world.
Physical Demarcations
While there is no main character in Song of Solomon , the members of the collectivity are
highly unique individuals. By giving her characters different physical and psychological features,
Morrison defines blackism, which is the racialization and class difference within the black
community. Paradoxically, these characteristics also contribute to the foundation of the surviv al
of the black community in that the interpretations or misinterpretations of these characteristics
affect the characters‟ role in society and their perceptions of self. Blackness, birthmarks, and
other physical demarcations , while being symbols of indivi duality and exclusion, are used by the
author to symbolize the participation of her characters on a deeper communal and racial level.
Pilate is born without a navel. She delivers herself at birth and has no living mother, no tie to her
past and is not acce pted by her community. This woman is an outsider and people reject her as
“something God never made” (Morrison, Song 72). At the same time, she is an individual who
has had to start with nothing. She “threw away every assumption she learned and began at ze ro”
(Morrison, Song 149). Because Pilate is not dependent on anyone, she is psychologically
portrayed as a stron g, self -invented black woman. Physically, Pilate represents the prototypical

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African woman; she holds herself tall and has black skin and wine -colored lips. Macon remarks,
“If you ever doubt we [were] from Africa, look at Pilate” (Morrison, Song 54). Pilate, her
daughter Reba and granddaughter Hagar live in an area of town called Southside . This is quite
appropriate, as she is Milkman‟s first conn ection to his southern origins. One could say that she
is Milkman‟s guide, or “pilot” in his search for his legacy. Macon, as the representative of
“Northern” materialism, tells Milkman “Pilate can‟t teach you a thing you can use in this world.
Maybe the n ext, but not this one” (Morrison, Song 55). At the same time, it is Pilate in all her
blackness that encourages Milkman to drop his father‟s white ideals and adopt his true black
heritage.
In the community‟s attempt s to “define” Sula upon her return , she is seen as evil, “The
presence of evil was something to be first recognized, then dealt with, survived, outwitted,
triumphed over. Their evidence against Sula was contrived, but their conclusions about her were
not” (Morrison , Sula 118). Sula‟s presenc e, or role, in the community is defined by society‟s
perspective concerning her birthmark, which is initially described as “a stemmed rose [which
gave] her otherwise plain face a broken excitement” (Morrison , Sula 52). The girl is seen as
having a strange exterior beauty, but with a n unpredictable and vivacious core , just as a rose is
beautiful to the eye, but can cause pain and unpleasantness to the one who touches its stem. As
Sula‟s character evolves into an independent, confident and sexual woman, so has her birthmark
become darker and is described as Hannah‟s ashes, symbolizing suicide and death, a s well as a
copperhead, bringing to mind the snake and sin associated with t he Garden of Eden. Morrison,
however, credits Sula with the virtue and integrity of remaining true to herself and her desires
and ambitio ns. Further, her lack of falseness, coupled wit h the independence of her character is
in direct contrast with the comm unity‟s sense of pettiness and dependence and is what causes

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them to hate her and see her as an outsider. While physically in the community, Sula refuses to
adhere to the norms and conventionality of its members , such as marriage and childbirth .
The charac ter of Shadrach, in Morrison‟s Sula, has not been given a physical
demarcation, but rather a mental one. Shadrach , saved from the biblical “fiery furnace” survives
World War I and returns to Bottom with severe headaches, hallucinations concerning the
“monstrosity” of his hands, and with no sense of identity, “Twenty -two years old, weak, hot,
frightened, not daring to acknowledge the fact that he didn‟t know who or where he was”
(Morrison , Sula 12). Out of his own horrifying experiences with death, Shad rack cares enough
about the people in his community to institute National Suicide Day, i n order that they need not
be anxious about death, but rather, have the chance to embrace it once a year. The community
accepts this eccentric man for his role in socie ty and even “stopped remarking on the holiday
because they had absorbed it into their thoughts, into their language, into their lives” (Morrison ,
Sula 15). Thus, Morrison uses the “mark” of insanity and eccentricity of the character of
Shadrach to bring a deeper understanding of the fear of death to the black community and
therefore enhance its survival.
Another type of physical demarcation is that which is caused by s elf-mutilation. In
contrast with deformity, such as a birthmark, or deficiency, as will be noted below in the case of
Pecola Breedlove in The Bluest Eye , self -mutilation is the character‟s confrontation with
society‟s repressive social demands. Susan Willis, in her article Eruptions of Funk: Historicizing
Toni Morrison , explains that it is a means of escaping the societal forces of “white domination”
and a method of reaching freedom. She states that “self -mutilation brings about the spontaneous
redefinition of the individual, not as a alienated cripple – as would be in the case of the bourgeoi s
society – but as a new and whole person, occupying a radically different social space” (Willis

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40). Both Sula and Eva Peace exhibit this v iolence towards self and in doing so, strengthen their
status in the black community. Sula, when threatened by the w hite domination of four teenage
boys, responds by using a knife and cutting off the top of her finger in a display corresponding to
the act of male castration. This act shows her repudiation of white dominance and refusal to
accept the lower status of a bl ack woman. Although the details surrounding Eva Peace‟ loss of
her leg are not quite conclusive, the narrator hints that this act of self -mutilation was done in
order to obtain insurance money which would enable the woman to provide for her children. She
confronts the “white laws” of society and uses them to her own benefit and therefore achieves
her own financial independence. Eva, the biblical mother figure, is seen as “creator and
sovereign” and her status in society in heightened because of her sacrifice, “and adults, standing
or sitting, had to look down at her. But they didn‟t know it. They all had the impression that they
were looking up at her, up into the open distances of her eyes, up to the soft black of her nostrils
and up to the crest of her chin” ( Morrison, Sula 31). Although Eva‟s role is one of dominance in
the black community, she is not a threat, but instead is admired.
In The Bluest Eye , Pauline Breedlove has a limp, caused by a rusty nail which penetrated
her foot when she was a child. The nail, which biblically symbolizes sins and rebirth, causes her
a physical disability which lays the foundation for her perception of self as a child. “Thi s
deformity explained for her many things that would have been otherwise incomprehensible: why
she…had no nickname: why…nobody teased her: why she never felt at home anywhere, or that
she belonged anyplace” (Morrison, Bluest 111). Pauline‟s constant strugg le with her role in
society, and her eventual search for physical beauty, leads her through many changes which
impact the survival of the culture of the black community. While other women conform to the
white standard of beauty and straighten their hair, P auline does not; nor does she attempt to

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change her dialect to the conventional way of the “white” vernacular. Although she “merel y
wanted other women to cast favorable glances her way” (Morrison , Bluest 118), she realizes,
with the loss of her two front teeth, that she herself will never achieve physical beauty and
instead, experiences a “rebirth” in her identity. She finds a new status in the community “and her
process of becoming was like most of ours” (Morrison , Bluest 126) which involved great virtues
and high morals. Thus, Pauline becomes representative of the black feminine community by her
speech and actions, “Holding Cholly as a model of sin and failure, she bore him like a crown of
thorns, and her children like a cross” (Morrison , Bluest 127). Thi s rebirth, caused by the “rusty
nail” and associated with “thorns” and the “cross”, could seemingly be seen as Pauline‟s ultimate
assimilation into the community, however, Morrison takes the character a step further as she
finds work with a wealthy white f amily. This employment, coupled with her enjoyment of
watching “white” movies, create fantasies of beauty that can only be found in the white ideal.
Pauline again goes through a metamorphosis where she despises the blackness and everything
about that commu nity. Her “cross” is actually her skin color and the limitations of being a black
woman.
Pecola Breedlove is the central figure in The Bluest Eye . Her physical deformity is her
“ugliness”, a perception that is shared by the community and that forms the gi rl‟s own identity .
She is a “ ”winged, but grounded bird ” and is always the victim, whether it be schoolboys that are
taunting her “Black e mo”, the verbal abuse of her mother, the tormenting by Junior, or
Geraldine insulting her by calling her “black”. Pec ola does not fight back. Growing up in a world
where the predominant message is the white ideal of Shirley Temple beauty, Pecola is “a little
black girl who wanted to rise up out of the pit of her blackness and see the world with blue eyes”
(Morrison , Bluest 176). Blue eyes are synonymous with “whiteness” and Morrison‟s character

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believes that the quality of “love” is found within the white society. Her presumption of this is
constantly being reinforced because of the lack of love that she receives fro m her own
community. This lack of acceptance causes her to associate “ugliness” with “blackness” and she
therefore mistakenly believes that she could “breed love” to her own unborn baby if only her
eyes were blue.
Blackness as Color
Morrison uses different shades of “blackness” in all her characters to explain diverse
class differences within the black community and the opportunities afforded those with lighter
skin versus those with darker skin . While this topic will be discussed in detail later on in this
paper , it is sufficient to note here that Morrison even associates superior education and class with
lighter skin in the character of the paradoxical Soaphead Church, a “cinnamon -eyed West Indian
with lightly browned skin” (Morrison , Bluest 167). Soaphead Church comes from a well –
educated and powerful family of mixed blood who purposely “married „up‟, lightening the
family complexion and thinning out the family features” (Morrison , Bluest 168). The Church
family demarcation is actually their obsess ion with “whiteness”. Whiteness, to Church, is
synonymous with cleanliness, which is even the case concerning The Bluest Eye characters
Pauline Breedlove and Geraldine who strive to keep everything in their lives as neat and spotless
as possible. Being “a very clean old man”, he is repulsed by dirt and human physicality, and
considers himself to be superior because of his mixed blood as well as because of his relationship
with God. The character is a paradox as he works with people, and yet hates them; he says that
he knows God, and yet has no spiritual calling; and finally, he believes that he has every right to
be corrupt. Although the people of the community do not trust him, they still find “their way to

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his door” where he counsels them concerning “dread”. Thus, the character of Soaphead Church
with his light skin and Anglican features causes the reader to correlate the qualit ies of education,
higher standing and cleanliness with whiteness, despite the extreme negativism and falseness that
surround him.
While Sula is described as having “heavy brown” skin color, Nel is the color of “wet
sandpaper – just dark enough to escape t he blows of the pitch -black truebloods and the contempt
of old women who worried about such things as bad blood mixtures and knew that the origins of
a mule and a mulatto were one in the same” (Morrison , Sula 52). Morrison shows , in her
description of Nel, how the different shades of black affect the community. Whereas those with
lighter skin are seen as having a better status, the author gives credit to those with darker skin as
“truebloods”. Morrison means that acceptance and tolerance should be the foundation of
relationships and shows this through the friendship that is formed between the two girls, despite
their differences in skin color. The participation and interaction of these character s on a deeper
level is a basis for the survival of the black community.
Nel‟s mother, Helene Wright, is aware of the differences in color in the black society and
although she doesn‟t want her daughter to be as light -skinned as she is, she urges her daughter to
“pull her nose ” in order that it would grow more narr ow. Although Helene grew up in New
Orleans, she escaped the segregation of the area and married the ri ght (Wright) man and
established a good life for herself and her family in Medallion . She is forced to return to New
Orleans when her grandmother is taken ill and she brings ten -year-old Nel with her. Throughout
her trip to the South, she is continuo usly reminded of her lower -class status as a black person
when she is removed , for example, from the train‟s White Only car and w hen she is not
permitted to use the restrooms . Morrison uses these illustration s to explain the predicament of

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the black community and the treatment they receive , depending upon the society and setting they
find themselves a part of. Helen e‟s “lighte r” color afforded her a higher status when in the black
community , but after having crossed the boundaries into the white society, even her long brown
dress couldn‟t “cover” her blackness and she was scorned and humiliated and “all the old
vulnerabilities, all the old fears of being somehow f lawed gather ed in her stomach and made her
hands tremble” (Morrison , Sula 20).
Morrison also gives different grades of “blackness” in skin color to her characters in Song
of Solomon . Milkman‟s family, with the exception of his father, is fairly light-skinned while
Pilate‟s family is a darker black. The grades of darkness and lightness in skin pigment lead even
here, at least in part, to class differences within the black community. Milkman‟s grandfather, on
his mother‟s side, was a light skinned black and was part of the more genteel class with greater
privileges. Milkman‟s sisters, Lena and Corinthians, are light skinned like their mother, Ruth.
Even the name of “Milkman” indicates a black identity “whitened”.
As the white society dominates the b lack, “white” is considered the norm and black is
considered unclean. Hagar stares into the mirror, the white standard of beauty, and says “no
wonder”. The mirror is revealing her unclean “self” and a less than perfect image. To keep
Milkman as her boyfrie nd, Hagar thinks that she must make herself appear more perfect and less
black. “I look like a groundhog, where‟s the comb?” (Morrison, Song 309). Hagar immerses
herself in the white images of beauty as she takes a bath, goes to the beauty shop, and buys n ew
clothes in order to be loved by Milkman. One can draw parallels between Hagar‟s low self –
confidence and her love for Milkman by comparing the novel and the biblical Song of Solomon.
Hagar‟s shame concerning her appearance is found in Song of Solomon 1:6 , “look not upon me,
because I am black”. Milkman is her lover and his Native American ancestry, his hair, his eyes,

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and even his name are also described in Song of Solomon 5:10 -12, “My beloved is…the chiefest
among ten thousand…his locks are wavy and as b lack as a raven…his eyes are as the eyes of
doves by the rivers of waters, washed with milk”.
While Morrison makes the reader aware of the grades of blackness and how they affect
the characters, she also, via the biblical reference to Song of Solomon, imp lies the beauty of the
race. Song of Solomon 1:5, states, “I am black, but comely.” Milkman meets the beautiful and
sensuous woman Sweet in Shalimar and he “soaped and rubber her until her skin squeaked and
glistened like onyx” (Morrison, Song 285). Accord ing to Malin La von Walther, Morrison
“redefines female beauty by demanding that it be grounded in racial identity. Blacks must love
and desire racially authentic beauty rather than imitating other races‟ forms of beauty. To do
anything less is to deny one self” (Walther 782).
“And the children might know their names…”
Besides the physical features of the characters in Sula, The Bluest Eye and Song of
Solomon , the people in the novel s display depth through true psychological characteristics. There
are individual characteristics, such as names and personality, and characteristics shared by the
entire black collectivity, such as family dynamics, healing, storytelling, hate, and their Afr ican
American legacy which are interesting to note when examining the black community .
Names, which play an important role in all of Morrison‟s novels, are individua l and
psychological characteristics, causing the reader to draw conclusions about the char acters. In a
similar manner, according to Melville Herskovits, in The Myth of the Negro Past , names are of
great importance in the traditional societies of West Africa. They are identified with the
individual‟s essence and may change with time depending on growth and other occ urrences.

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African names provide a link with the African past and were often used by American slaves
(191). Sula, for example, is short for Nkusula, a greeting in African folklore. The Bible, a strong
influence on black people, is Morr ison‟s source for many of the names in Song of Solomon such
as Hagar, Ruth, Corinthians and Magdalena. However, the Bible is also rendered as a “white
book” and adopting names from the Book has often been distorted throughout history, as shown
with Pilate‟s name. The name of Pilate is associated with Jesus‟ death, but, in contrast, with
Milkman‟s redemption. “This is the reason for all the misnaming; a whole group of people have
been denied the right to create a recognizable public self – as individu als or as a community ”
(Davis 31). Pilate‟s name is written on a paper and enclosed in a small box which she hangs from
her ear. The importance and positioning of her name is not only to strengthen her own self
identity, but serves as a link to her legacy.
Milkman receives his nickname after a man witnesses the young boy at his mother‟s
breast. Because Milkman has not lost his proper name and his heritage, he is unable to form
meaningful ties with his family and his community. As he visits Montour County an d comes in
contact with “his own people”, the nickname Milkman is forgotten as he is better known as
“Macon Dead‟s son”. Later, in order to become alive, or “un -Dead,” Milkman must regain “the
name that was real”. He comes to understand that “names had mea ning…When you know your
name, you should hang on to it, for unless it is noted down and remembered, it will die when you
do” (Morrison , Song 329). Milkman returns from the south and considers the different names of
the men in Shalimar, “Their names. Names they got from yearnings, gestures, flaws, events,
mistakes, weaknesses. Names that bore witness” (Morrison , Song 330).
Names, as stated above, are used by the author to show the characteristics and function of
the individual. Out of the many unusual names in Sula, one notes with special emphasis the n ame

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Ajax , which r efers to cleanliness. Ajax, the cleaning disinfectant owned by the Colgate –
Palmolive Company , is known for removing spots. Sula falls in love with Ajax a nd this is her
cleansing from the community surrounding her. Society has seen her as an evil enigma: the
outcast who vies the rules of the community. When she finally falls in love, she is following in
the footsteps of the other women and therefore regains some of her standing. A s she experiences
love, Sula feels pure and clean . When Ajax leaves her, her status is retu rned to one of alienation.
Sula Peace doesn‟t find her own “peace” until her deathbed.
Further are the three “Deweys” who come to live with Eva Peace. These thr ee boys come
from different families and have different physical characteristics but, in spite of their real
names, Eva “classifies” them and renames them the “ Deweys”. Despite their obvious
differences, their teacher “could not tell them from one another… they spoke with one voice
[and] thought with one mi nd” (Morrison , Sula 39). Their individuality is lost as they become part
of a collective identity, showing their complete assimilation into the black society.
Names are significant in The Bluest Eye because they represent the state of the black
society. Morrison uses irony in the name “Breedlove” because the community of Lorrain does
not “breed love”, but rather sows the seeds of hatred of self and racialization. The dominating
motion picture industr y is an ever -present reminder of the white ideal of loveliness and when
Claudia an d Frieda are addressed as “Greta Garbo” and “Gi nger Rogers”, it reinforces
unattainable white beauty. Further, Maureen confuses Pecola‟s name with Peola in the movie
Imitatio n of Life concerning a woman who is black, but pretends that she is white. The
implication here is that all black women find beauty in the white ideal. Lastly, Soaphead Church,
named for his “tight curly hair…pomaded with soap lather” and his spiritual aff iliation with
Supreme Being, is a metaphor for cleanliness and purity and a symbol of the “white” people‟s

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God and the “perversions of a world driven by race as a determinant of love” (Beaulieu, 82). As
stated earlier, Soaphead‟s family, despite their atte mpts to “lighten” their skin through
intermarriage, their adoration of the words of colonial powers, and their loathing of their own
African roots, can never attain “whiteness” and therefore are seen as perverted and repulsive.
Soaphead sees himself equal with God and understands Pecola‟s wish of “breeding love” and he
is a product of inbreeding. Morrison shows, through the character of Soaphead, that obsession
with race and color distorts the power of real love.
Survival and Staying Intact in the Black Co mmunity
Self-awareness, a strong personality and being able to relate to oneself and others in both
white and black communities are the psychological keys for the survival of the black community.
As stated previously, the characters acquire their individua lity through their interrelation with
each other. “In Morrison‟s fictions, identity is always provisional; there can be no isolated ego
striving to define itself as separate from community…Individual characters are inevitably formed
by social constructions ” (Rigney 55). As previously stated, the character of Eva in Sula acquires
her respected position in society of mother and monarch through her interrelationship with both
the white and black communities. The above quote also applies to the character of Pil ate in Song
of Solomon , previously described as a strong and independent woman, as she moves “just barely
within the boundaries of the elaborately socialized wo rld of black people” (Morrison, Song 149).
She has the ability to adapt to any situation in whic h she finds herself. When good friends
Milkman and Guitar are arrested, Pilate performs her “Aunt Jemima act” to help them get them
both released. Milkman realizes that “she was both adept at it and willing to do it – for him”

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(Morrison , Song 209). Pilate‟s ability to relate to others is also shown as Ruth visits Pilate
because “she needed Pilate‟s calm view, her honesty and equilibrium” (Morrison , Song 135).
As stated above, the black community shares a number of basic psychological features in
all three novels. These characteristics are evident through the family dynamics and the basic
fundamental functions of song, healing, hate, and heritage for Morrison‟s African American
characters . It is difficult to separate and examine these characteri stics as they continuously
connect to each other and thus, are interdependent.
Family
In Song of Solomon , the reader is introduced to the two contrasting families of Macon
Dead and Pilate. However, if one is to examine the family as an institution, one sh ould look at
the roles of men, women and children in the black community. The epigraph to Song of Solomon
states, “The fathers may soar, And the children may know their names ”. There is no mention of
the women – wives – mothers in this epigraph who are lef t to teach the children their names as
the fathers fly away. The women are left to shoulder the responsibilities of family to make sure
that traditions and culture continue to be furthered through future generations. The woman‟s role
as storyteller is depi cted in Pilate, as she encourages Milkman‟s curiosity in his African roots.
Pilate instills a past in her children while Macon removes the black identities of his children.
When Macon, the father figure, relates stories to Milkman, they are negative and se lf-serving. It
is this loss of black selfhood that starts Milkman on his journey to find his black heritage.
Besides being storytellers, the women are given the roles of caretakers and nurturers as
exemplified in the responsibility Pilate shows for her nep hew, Milkman, when she “had told him
stories, sang him songs, fed him bananas and cornbread, and on the first cold day of the year, hot

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nut soup” (Morrison , Song 210). Thus, Pilate gives nourishment to Milkman, both physically
with food and psychologically, with information about his black legacy. Milkman is also
provided with “white” nourishment as he is breastfed by his mother Ruth. Unfortunately,
Milkman is in greater need of psychological sustenance which would include his black heritage.
Finally, when discussing the roles of women in the black family, an important role is that of the
older woman, or grandmother. She is the middle of her family and the hub of the community .
She represents the past, as a type of Earth Mother who imparts feminine spiritual wisdom and
embodies the mystical, the ancient, and the traditional. According to John Mbiti, “the traditional
concept of family, according to the African peoples, is the on e that includes the living, those yet
to be born and the departed” (qtd in Holloway and Demetrakopolous 161). The older woman , or
ancestor figure, is portrayed in Song of Solomon by both the characters of Pilate and Circe,
Milkman ‟s helper in Part II . The role of the ancestor figure will be discussed in greater detail
further on in this essay.
Singing, Healing, and Magic
The bla ck community stays intact and healthy through song, healing, conjuring,
storytelling and laughter. Black folk songs draw on histor y and give voice to decades of struggles
and suffering. Poland, in The Bluest Eye , shows her desires for a better life by singing the blues:
I got blues in my mealbarrel
I got blues up on the shelf
I got blues in my mealbarrel
Blues up on the shelf

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Blues in my bedroom
„Cause I‟m sleepin‟ by myself (Morrison , Bluest 50)
The song, O Sugarman , weaving its way through the text of Song of Solomon , depicts the heart
of the black community in its longing for freedom. The reader is introduced t o this song, and the
theme of flight is set for the novel, as Pilate sings the folk song at Milkman‟s birth. O Sugarman
is the song which Milkman first hears as a “meaningless rhyme” that holds the secret of his
ancestry and his obsession with flight. “It is through song that the children receive the archetypal
imagery of thei r race, and it matters not whether a loving mother or a rejecting mother sings
these songs, so long as the children hear them” (Holloway and Demetrakopolous 109). Macon‟s
household is without song, but as he hears Pilate sing, he feels “himself softening under the
weight of the memory and the music” (Morrison, Song 30). Guitar‟s yearning for the black
traditions of song is also evidenced as he longs to play the blues. In Sula, the black community is
drawn together by their fate of being situated on the hillsides and strive for survival by using
music and the lightheartedness that it brings, the “people in the valley houses could hear singing
sometimes, banjos sometimes [and they might se e] a dark woman in a flowered dress doing a bit
of cakewalk, a bit of black bottom, a bit of „messing around‟ to the lively notes of a mouth organ
(Morrison , Sula 4).
Other fundamental functions within the black community are healing and conjuring
which are a significant part of all of Morrison‟s novels . Claudia, the narrator of The Bluest Eye ,
is nine years old when she falls ill and is forced to bed by her mother. The forlorn figure is
comforted by the caring of her mother‟s “large and rough hands” as she spreads Vick‟s salve on
Claudia‟s body and even makes her swallow the liniment. Morrison ‟s use of Vick‟s salve
illustrates an interesting point: Vick‟s, a company dating back to the late 1800s, was a medicine

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against croup and pneumonia , and its menthol aroma effectively cleared the bronchial tubes
when inhaled. The prominent magazine ad for Vick‟s in the late 1940s, when The Bluest Eye is
set, featured a blond, blue -eyed little girl with red rosy cheeks and further reinforces the “white”
image for health and beauty at a time in history when blacks struggle d with their identity.
Further, altho ugh this product is composed of , among other ingredients, “oil of juniper tar from
Bedouin haunts of North Africa”, the instructions on the package specifically state that this
product is not to be consumed, but rather to be externally applied. Claudia‟s m other, however,
over exaggerates the “white” guidelines regarding the “black” liniment , and becomes Morrison‟s
anagram “slave” to this salve by forcing Claudia to ingest the ointment, therefore compelling the
girl to consume the “white ideal” of blond, blu e-eyed beauty.
Circe, the older black woman mentioned above in Song of Solomon , is the healer and
provider of the truths of Milkman‟s past. Circe introduces Milkman to the legacy of his Native –
American roots as she tells him about his grandmother, an Indian named Sing. Milkman
struggles with the mystery of how to reconcile the old woman‟s wrinkled face and the fact that
she “had to be dead [with the fact that] out of the toothless mouth came the strong, mellifluent
voice of a twenty -year-old girl” (Mor rison , Song 240). Further, Pilate‟s methods of healing and
conjuring place a special emphasis on physical and spiritual needs. Pilate gives Ruth a greenish –
gray powder to help “reinstate [Ruth and Macon‟s] sex lives (Morrison , Song 131) and later she
also scares Macon from trying to abort Ruth‟s child by placing a male doll with a chicken bone
between its legs in his chair. Although he eventually succeeds in burning it, Macon has learned
to leave Ruth alone. These incidents show the importance of healing an d conjuring as a part of
the black community, as Morrison states, “I wanted to use black folklore, the magic and

31 Ranström
superstitious part of it. Black people believe in magic…It‟s part of our heritage (qtd in Watkins
50).
According to Eugene Genovese in his boo k, Roll, Jordan Roll: The World the Slaves
Made , the Conjurer “helped build an inner and autonomous black world for his brothers and
sisters” (Genovese 222). Ajax‟ mother, in Sula, was “an evil conjure woman [who] knew about
the weather, omens, the living, the dead, dreams and illnesses and…was stubborn in her pursuits
of the occult” (Morrison , Sula 126). She uses a combination of “plants, hair, underclothing,
fingernail pairings, white hens, blood, camphor, pictures, kerosene and footstep dust” to aid the
members of the society from all that ails them, both physically and psychologically. Thus , the
black commun ity is brought together through their unified belief in the “supernatural”.
Storytelling and Laughter
Another influential function of the collectiv ity is storytelling. Tales are related by the
characters to gain control over their situation and make their own happy endings. Sister and
Brother Pilate and Macon Dead tell two different versions of their family history. As Gay
Wilentz points out in her a rticle on the African heritage as discourse in Song of Solomon ,
“Morrison‟s use of African modes of storytelling and orature is a way of bridging gaps between
black community‟s folk roots and the Black -American literary traditions” (61). This is also the
case in The Bluest Eye with the character of Cholly who is abandoned at birth on a junk heap.
Aunt Jimmy provides a home for the baby, but a “nice old man” c alled Blue Jack bestows a past
upon the young man through the art of storytelling , “Blue used to tell him old -timey stories about
how it was when the Emancipation Proclamation came. How the black people hollered, cried,

32 Ranström
and sang. And ghost stories…[and] women…and fights” (Morrison , Bluest 133). Cholly loves
Blue Jack and compares him t o God, but then realizes that God was a “nice old white man”.
The psychological function of laughter is also used to help the black community stay
intact and healthy. Marie, China and Poland, three whores in The Bluest Eye , find humor in the
situation when Pecola asks them about their boyfriends, “All three o f the women laughed. Marie
threw back her head. From deep inside, her laughter came like the sound of many rivers, freely,
deeply, muddily, heading for the room of an open sa. China giggled spastically. Each gas seemed
to be yanked out of her body by an unseen hand jerking an unseen string. Poland…laughed
without sound”. (Morrison , Bluest 52). Laughter makes life‟s indignities and fears bearable as
shown by the conversation at the barbershop in Song of Solomon : “The men began to trade tales
of atrocities, first stories they ha d heard, then those they‟d witnessed, and finally the things that
had happened to themselves. A litany of personal humiliation, outrage, and anger turned
sicklelike back to themselves as humor” (Morrison , Song 82).
Hatred
The effects of hate also bring the community together as show n by Guitar‟s actions
against the white community. He hates whites and becomes a member of a group which avenges
the racist killings of black people. As stated above, the white society has denied the blacks their
full human right s and has placed limitations on them, both economically and politically. The
“Seven Days,” an underground warfare group is the political consequence of the black
community‟s dissatisfaction with the white judicial system. Guitar explains how the group
work s:

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There is a society. It‟s made up of a few men who are willing to take some risks. They
don‟t initiate anything; they don‟t even choose. They are as indifferent as rain. But when
a Negro child, Negro woman, or Negro man is killed by whites and nothing is done about
it in their law and their courts, this society selects a similar victim at random, and they
execute him or her in a similar manner if they can. (Morrison , Song 154).
Because blacks are excluded from the legal system, these men have established their own
judicial process. The methods of execution are similar, thus reminding the reader of the biblical
“eye for an eye” admonishment in Exodus Chapter 21. As the black community has set up their
own “court system”, they have reinforce d their unity and strength as a collectivity. Interestingly,
the name “S even Days”, according to Gurleen Grewal l in her novel , Circles of Sorrow, Lines of
Struggle , is ironic because it symbolizes creati on and yet promotes destruction (Grewal l 87).
Althou gh hate brings the community together in Sula, Morrison shows the devastating
consequences of an insurgence against the white community . The hatred of Sula by the women
of Bottom threatens to split the i nternal community as her presence symbolizes bad omens and
deficiency . Her death is lauded and means a return to normalcy, and there is even positive news
of a tunnel that will provide jobs for the unemployed black workers of the community. However,
after months of poverty and si ckness while waiting for the New River tunnel to be built , the
citizens, in their hatred towards the empty “white” promises of hope and prosperity and their
frustration at the oppression that they have lived under for far too long, parade to the
construct ion site and plunder and destroy the area. The horrifying consequence is the collapse of
the tunnel and the deaths of many of the people of the community. Morrison shows in the novel,
the u seless ness and terrible outcome of a black rebellion against the do minating white society .

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African Legacy
One of the central themes of the African -American community , as well as a fundamental
element in Toni Morrison‟s novels, is the ever -present theme of the African legacy. The author
uses historical facts and details co ncerning the past to teach her readers about the rich and
complex herit age of the African American culture. She “reminds” her readers of the past through
fragmented images of flight, ancestral villages, and the African family unit. Morrison‟s
purposeful de scriptions, while not letting the reader forget the horror and humiliation of slavery,
often revert back to an earlier time of myth, closeness, and order.
Morrison uses the image of “flight” as a means of escape in her novels. In The Bluest
Eye, Maureen flees from the girls as they taunt her, “flying across the street against the traffic”
(Morrison , Bluest 73) and poor Pecola is compared to fragile bird with a “pleated”, or broken
wing, who is unable to flee from her confinement of ugliness . Morrison uses imagery in Sula as
Eva Peace is described as ”swinging and swooping like a giant heron, so graceful sailing about in
its own habitat but awkward and comical when it folded its wings and tried to walk” (Morrison ,
Sula 46) as she maneuvers herself down the flight of stairs to her son, Plum. He imagines her as
having a “great wing of an eagle” as she pours kerosene over him. Eva is giving Plum the chance
to flee and the freedom from his pitiful life as a cocaine, or “white lady”, addict. “Flight” is seen
as the resistance of the black community to the restraints of the white boundaries.
Of the three novels however, “flight” is a dominant theme i n Song of Solomon and
reveals itself as a lifelong fascination for Milkman. As he is born, Robert Smith , in
inconspicuous insurance salesman, makes himself a pair of blue silk wings and leaps to his death
as he attempts to fly. He desires freedom from his depressed state. As Morrison notes in Playing
in the Dark , “The desire for freedom is pro ceeded by oppr ession” (Morrison, Playing 62). This is

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true in the portrayal of Solomon, Milkman‟s great -grandfather on his father‟s side, who was a
member of the tribe of “Flying Africans” who had freed themselves from slavery – who had
flown away from oppression and do minion. The theme of flight indicates an escape from the
harshness and degradation of racism and the opportunity for oppressed slaves to liberate
themselves physically and spiritually from slavery. Milkman‟s yearning to fly is a connection to
his ancestral past and the importance it held for Solomon and the other enslaved Africans.
Milkman, entangled in his father‟s materialistic values of control, sits on the airplane, heading
south, and thinks that, “In the air, away from real life, he felt free, but on t he ground…the wings
of all those other people‟s nightmares flapped in his face and constrained him” (Morrison , Song
220). For Milkman, flight symbolizes escape from his present situation to a future where he
would feel at peace with his own individuality a nd his place within the community.
Furthermore, Morrison weaves Milkman‟s Native -American ancestry into the theme of
“flight” as Milkman ties “the red man‟s house” in O Sugarman to his Grandmother Singing Byrd
(her native -American name being related to the element of flying). Susan Byrd, Sing‟s niece,
confirms that Singing Byrd‟s brother was named Crow Bird (which is yet another link between
the Native -American ancestry and flying). She also relates that Milkman‟s black grandfather
Jake “according to the st ory…was flying…You know, like a bird” (Morrison , Song 323).
Morrison thus connects the theme of “flight” with both Native – and African -American legacies.
Milkman receives this astounding revelation while sitting in a “gray wing -back chair” (Morrison
Song 320), thus providing the reader with a hint of Milkman‟s own wings and eventual flight as
well as his acceptance of his mixed black and white, or gray, roots.
Morrison combines the psychological and physical aspects of the black community as the
African -American way of life is continuously depicted in all three novels. In a 1981 interview

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with Thomas LeClair, Morrison states, “I write what I have recently begun to call village
literature, fiction that is really for the village, for the tribe…my novels ought to…clarify the roles
that have become obscured; they ought to identify those things in the past that are useful and
those things that are not; and they ought to give nourishment” (Morrison, Conversation 119).
The “village” tha t Morrison is discussing is a synonym for Africa and her references in her
novels to the South, slavery and myths refer the reader‟s imagination back to the African culture
and lifestyle. Morrison demonstrates her own rediscovery of her African heritage th rough the
“village” qualities which she gives to the families in her narratives. Pilate‟s home, in Song of
Solomon , reminds the reader of an African village hut as she uses candles instead of electricity
and cooks with wood and coal. Her home bears the sc ent of African ginger and this introduces
Milkman to t he sensory world – the tastes, smells, sounds and sights – of his African roots. Ruth
describes the security found within the house as a “safe harbor” (Morrison , Song 135).
Because of the impact of sla very and separation of parents and children on the basic
family unit, “different alternative family units developed” (Beaulieu 144) . The family unit is a
necessity because it is the foundation for self, identity and community. Paradoxically, the
survival o f the community is therefore based on unity and harmony in the family. Thus, while
Morrison is faced with the modern challenge of portraying family structures which are seen to be
in a s tate of disorder – the poor Mac Teers, the hygienic Wrights, and the “deceased” Deads – she
simultaneously and notwithstanding manages to depict the strengths of the African family
(Ndongo 25). In Sula, Eva, Hannah, and Sula and in Song of Solomon , Pilate, Reba and Hagar,
are three gener ations of women who, despite divergence, gain strength from each other and
display an innate sisterhood , as do the whores Poland, China and Miss Marie in The Bluest Eye .
Their “community” develops because of a lack of a male figure. Morrison depicts the women in

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Song of Solomon eating eggs – a sign of fertility and womanhood. Further, the economically and
sexually independent women depicted in Morrison‟s novels are a consequence of the effects of
slavery, as stated earlier, when families were split and the mother would remain with the
children.
The African family is community -based and the nurturing quality is not contained within
the nuclear family, but is rather the responsibility of the entire community. The Deweys are
cared for by Eva in Sula and Pecola is taken in by the MacTeer family in The Bluest Eye . In the
article, Living Together: African Community -Based Values in Toni Morrison’s Song of Solomon ,
Adamo Soro examines the traditional West African attitudes towards “illegally -born” childre n, in
other words, those born out of wedlock. The African view is that all children are a “blessing” and
should be cared for. When Pecola is impregnated by her father Cholly, Claudia want s the baby to
survive, “More strongly than my fondness for Pecola, I felt a need for someone to want the black
baby to live” (Morrison , Bluest 190). Together with her insight into the internalization of the
white ideal of beauty, Claudia understands her African legacy and therefore embodies the
sentiments of the survival of the black community.
The asili, or physical ancestor figure is important in all families as it is this person who
repeats the myths and legends of the past and gives the family members their heritage. They are
portrayed by M‟Dear in The Bluest Eye , Circe in Song of Solomon , and Eva is Sula. Morrison
further uses the relationships with her other characters to the ancestor figure to maintain the
positive connection with African history and her belief that “the relationship between character
and ances tor…directly correlates with that character‟s success in navigating life” (Beaulieu 5).
According to West African tradition, ancestors are universal and their existence connects the
souls of the long -ago with the souls of the present. Although they have pa ssed on, their presence

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is ever near to the living as there is no division between the spiritual and the material. Therefore,
there is a reverence for the dead which is passed on through the generations of the black
community as both Ruth and Pilate talk t o their deceased ancestors. Ruth goes to her father‟s
grave to speak to him and Pilate comments about her father, “It‟s a good feeling to know he‟s
around. I tell you he‟s a person I can always rely on” (Morrison , Song 141).
The Importance of the Individu al
Finally, the psychological aspect of an individual‟s behavior and its effect on the
community is of importance when examining the representation of black society in Morrison‟s
novels . West African culture is based on the fundamentals of harmony in nature. The behavior of
an individual causes positive or negative consequences which may affect the “cosmic order”.
Soro writes, “…the individual is bound to pattern his behavior on the prescr iption of the tradition
because he knows that his misdeeds will affect the whole community, not just himself alone. So,
he somewhat feels responsible for the welfare of the group” (Soro 299). Best friends Sula and
Nel accidently cause Chicken Little‟s deat h by drowning. They tell no one of their involvement
in his death. The girls attend the funeral and, while Sula cries, Nel “felt convicted and hanged
right there in the pew” (Morrison , Sula 65). Morrison writes of “a space, a separateness”
(Morrison , Sula 64) and of “something newly missing” (Morrison , Sula 61) between the girls.
Hidden falsehoods had entered the friendship between Sula and Nel and their friendship would
never be the same; the community was affected by the tragedy in their faith and solidar ity
towards God when they “danced and screamed…to acknowledge [God‟s will] and confirm once
more their conviction that the only way to avoid the Hand of G od is to get in it” (Morrison , Sula
66).

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Divisions within the Black Community
As noted previously, t he physical or actual communities in the novels exhibit a village
quality in which the residents have joined together in a tribal unit to guarantee their ultimate
survival. However, when examining the black society of the narratives , one can divide the bla ck
community into four main classes. These coincide with the social organization of the black
community presented in the Philadelphia Negro by W.E.B. Du Bois in 1899. Du Bois, a noted
black intellect, architect of the Civil rights movement and founder of t he NAACP, developed a
typology of four classes: the well -to-do; the decent hard workers, the “worthy poor”, and the
„submerged tenth” (Anderson 55). Although the situation has changed greatly today, mainly due
to the civil rights movements and black migrat ion northwards, Morrison has used these four
topologies of classes as a basis to describe fou r very different communities in, for example, Song
of Solomon . This paper will first examine the four different physical communities in relation to
Song of Solomon and then focus on the class differences that arise between the topologies in all
three novels.
According to Du Bois, the class of the well -to-do constituted the upper -class of the black
community. They were usually the descendents of slave masters and were allowed a limited
education at white schools. They made up the early African -American professional class such as
doctors, lawyers, and small business owners, and therefore maintained a higher status among
other blacks. The well -to-do usually had a lig hter complexions (due in part to mixed racial
marriages and white slave owners raping generations of slave women), and although this meant
more prestige in the black community, it also conferred upon t hem the privilege of better
communication with the whi te society (Anderson 57). In Song of Solomon , the Fosters and
Macon Dead family represent the well -to-do with their lighter complexions, fine house,

40 Ranström
professions and automobiles. These families live in a northern city in Michigan located on the
shores of La ke Superior where even the name of the lake is a reminder of their distinguished
status.
The decent hard workers, according Du Bois, were those who were doing quite well
despite their humble origins and who served the community as ministers, teachers, and
storekeepers. Their complexions were browner than those of the well -to-do but they constituted a
positive society and they were proud of their accomplishments within the black community
(Anderson 58). In Song of Solomon , the small farming community of Dan ville, Pennsylvannia,
fits the above description. Milkman travels to Danville in search of his grandfather‟s gold and
encounters the Reverend Cooper, who gives him information about his heritage and, even more
importantly, a sense of belonging to a larger family. Milkman meets others whose tales of the
past also contribute to his own understanding about his past and present. Milkman listens to the
men in this community describe his grandfather with awe and respect as if he was the epitome of
the decent hard worker. His grandfather, Macon Dead I, through his own determination and
resolution, succeeded in keeping his own autonomy despite the laws and unwritten rules
established by the white community.
He had come out of nowhere…ignorant…and broke, with nothing but free papers, a
Bible, and a pretty black wife, and in one year he‟d leased ten acres, the next ten
more…You see?….See what you can do? Never mind you can‟t tell one letter from
another, never mind you born a slave, never mind you lose your name, nev er mind your
daddy Dead, never mind nothing. Here, this here, is what a man can do if he puts his
mind and back in it…We got a home in this rock, don‟t you see! (Morrison , Song 235)

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In his ignorance, Macon Dead I was actually a wise man as he worked at a craft that his
forefathers had excelled in for generations; he “invested” labor in real es tate. His decent belief in
the B ible was the basis for his life as shown in Matthew 7:24, “The wise man built his house
upon the rock”.
The worthy poor were descri bed as those of a much darker complexion who were
working, but barely making ends meet. They usually worked as laborers in factories and
construction. The women in the family were usu ally employed as domes tics in white homes.
“Such people emphasized strong family values…[and] tended to have a strong, almost ritualistic
sense of place…Their communities were organized around the idea that black people were
discriminated against by the wider society…” (Anderson 59). In Song of Solomon, the men of
Shalimar, loc ated in the rural hill country of Virginia, fit the description of the worthy poor.
They represent a meager, but close -knit community. When Milkman is at the General Store in
Shalimar, he insults the men by his lack of response to their initial friendlines s. “He hadn‟t
bothered to say his name, nor ask them theirs, had called them „them‟…[The toothless, poverty –
stricken men were] waiting around the general store hoping a truck would come looking for mill
hands or tobacco pickers…[they] looked at his skin an d saw that it was as black as theirs, but
they knew he had the heart of the white men” (Morrison , Song 266). As Milkman is visiting
Shalimar, the connections of his ancestral past and present remind him of Pilate‟s house in
Southside, a community within a community, representing strong family values and an emphasis
on heritage. As stated above, the wives of the worthy poor were usually employed as domestic
help. Corinthians, in the novel, leaves her father‟s well -to-do status and takes a job as a maid to a
white woman. This step down in the black community awards her an identity and reality in her
own black heritage.

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The submerged tenth, usually of dark complexion, represented the very poor. They
worked only occasionally and struggled to make ends meet. The y were often put down by the
more established members of the black community and, according to Du Bois, were usually
engaged in shady or illegal occupations (Anderson 60). Guitar and the Seven Days are examples
of the submerged tenth. They are a group of m en who are poor and turn to drink and narcotics
and thus create their own justice through violence. Murder and robbery are commonplace to
Guitar and stem from his father‟s death. Guitar‟s father, the breadwinner of the family, was
killed at the factory whe re he worked. The boss placed little importance on the death of his
employee, and Guitar explains that the boss “came by and gave us kids some candy” (Morrison ,
Song 61). Thus, Guitar grows up without a father figure and is not taught morals or the value of
human life.
Du Bois‟ four topological societies are the basis for the tensions which are found in the
black community and relate to class differences, racialization, the African -American‟s identity,
and conformity to the collectivity. The survival of t he black community is threatened by the
existence of class differences and racialization. Racialization can be described as “the extension
of racial meaning to a previously racially unclassified relationship, social practice, or group”
(Omi and Winant 2). In other words, the interpretations of race, which extend over the borders of
culture, society, relationships, and color are found in every existing individual, establishment,
and collectivity. This means that the people‟s racist presuppositions are found everywhere. Pilate
questions these presuppositions and asserts her basic belief in human relationships as she says, “I
mean what‟s the difference in the way you act towards „em? Don‟t you have to act the same way
to both?…Then why they got two words [bla ck and white] for it „stead of one, if they ain‟t no
difference?” (Morrison , Song 44). Edward Shils states,

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Differences in pigment symbolize or indicate contemporaneous differences between
present wealth and power and present poverty and weakness…it is cor related with past
events too – above all, with past events of humiliation, injury, and insult…cultural
derogatio n and individual affront… Color is the short -hand that evol ves all griefs and
grievance. (qtd in Halloway and Demetrakopolous 151)
In Song of Sol omon , Toni Morrison portrays racialization and class differences most
prominently in the character of Milkman. However, the struggles concerning class differences
have continued through the generations even before Milkman was born and can even be a result
of an individual purposely detaching himself from the collectivity or living his life on the
periphery of the community.
Dr. Foster, Milkman‟s grandfather on his mother‟s side, was part of the creole elite. His
ligher skin afforded him greater privileges. He was the only black to live in a white
neighborhood and the black community “named” his address Doctor Street reflecting their own
pride and sense o f achievement through him. Dr. F oster‟s economic standard and power is
dependent upon his black clientele, but at the same time, ironically, he “didn‟t give a damn about
them…Called them cannibals” (Morrison , Song 71). However, the doctor was forced to minister
to those that he held in contempt as he, despite his affluence, was not accepted within the white
community. “During his entire professional life he had never been granted hospital privileges
and only two of his patients were ever admitted to Mercy, both whites” (Morrison , Song 5).
Morrison illustrates a paradox in the novel as Dr. Foster is the unwillin g link between the white
community and the black masses. The black community believes that they are establishing a
worthy place, via the doctor, within the dominant class. In essence, the black community is using
Dr. Foster as a contact with the white comm unity: “Never mind that he probably didn‟t deserve

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their honor – they knew what kind of a man he was: arrogant, colorstruck, snobbish. They didn‟t
care about that. They were paying their respect to whatever it was that made him be a doctor in
the first pla ce” (Morrison , Song 329). On the other hand, the white community is also using the
doctor to maintain segregation by allowing him to be the “middle man” in the hierarchy between
whites and blacks, and in so doing, keeping the blacks “in their place”.
Dr. Foster cares for his light-skinned daughter and rais es her separate ly from the black
community. Ruth takes on the “white” standards of materialism that her father deems appropriate
which is shown when Ruth reveals, “I lived in a great big house that presse d me into a small
package. I had no friends, only schoolmates who wanted to touch my dresses and white silk
stockings” (Morrison , Song 124). Although Ruth talks about the confinements of her younger
years she passes these materialistic sta ndards to her own children, Lena , Corinthians and
Milkman.
Milkman is upper -middle class and is never really accepted into the black community
despite his yearning for acceptance. Due to the actions of his parents, Milkman is not
acknowledge d within the black community. He is, as mentioned earlier, the first black baby to be
born at Mercy Hospital, a “white institution.” This is fitting as his parents see themselves as
more “white” than their black neighbors. It is also ironically appropriate that the black boy who
is born into a white world is given the “white” nickname of “Milkman”. Ruth and Macon Dead
keep their children apart from the other children and dress them differently to emphasize their
separateness (Morrison , Song 217). The childre n are used as status symbols for Macon: he
dresses them up and drives around in his huge Packard, mainly in front of lower -class black
people.

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Macon Dead II, like his father, invest s in real estate and rents out housing to the lower –
class black community. He strives to accumulate wealth and is thus striving for the white
bourgeo is standards of living. His preoccupation with money and control is exhibited as he
refuses to allow Mrs. Baines, a woman whose husband has recently been killed, an extension on
her rent. As Macon holds the keys to his property, he has lost the keys to his own identity, his
family and his community. Like Dr. Foster, Macon Dead is also a middleman between the black
community and the white capitalists. His authority and economic status are based upon both the
“black” rent money and the “white” capital. “He trembled with the thought of the white men in
the bank – the men who helped him buy and mortgage houses – discovering that this raggedy
bootlegger was his sister” (Morrison , Song 20). Macon‟s position in real estate is precarious, as
is his position within the black community. He would rather that there existed more upp er-
middle -class black families and his dream is to invest in property for “a nice summer place for
colored people [wit h] beach houses” (Morrison , Song 33). Finally, Macon Dead is also shown as
the perfect capitalist by his obsession with the gold that is buried in his father‟s property.
Milkman joins in the search for gold but this undertaking evolves into a quest for kno wledge
about his African -American roots and thus an identity based on those roots. Macon, portrayed as
the fortune seeker, is the opposite of his sister, Pilate, who doesn‟t care about ownership.
Morrison relates this contrast to the biblical figure, Solomon. King Solomon was known for his
wealth and wisdom and while Macon stands for the wealth, Pilate stands for wisdom. The family
quarrel between Pilate and Macon depicts the struggle between black identities and allegiances.
She emphasizes her past an d is proud of herself and her history while he would rather
concentrate on his “white accomplishments”. This contrast is also depicted as the difference
between the northern urban black society and the southern past.

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Further class differences in the black community of the narrative are represented through
the relationship between Milkman and Guitar, and later, Saul. T he tension between Milkman and
Guitar signifies the struggles between the middle class and the working class. Guitar is
constantly reminding Milkman of his flaws and cowardice. Representing the submerged tenth
working class, Guitar knows the importance of taking risks. He goads Milkman by saying, “You
got a life? Live it! Live the motherfuckin‟ life! Live it!” (Morrison , Song 183). Later, as
Milkman is visiting the South, he meets a man named Saul and gets into a fight with him. Saul is
angry that M ilkman would just buy a new car because his car broke down and forces him to
realize the difference in social class that separates Milkman from the b lacks of the South.
Blackness and Racial Differentiation
While Morrison‟s Sula concerns itself with the survival of the black community in
reference to the white “Other”, – such as the stereotypical reaction of the white bargeman who
finds Chicken Little ‟s body and immediately thinks that his black parents were to blame , -there
are racial and class differences within the black society of Bottom which are portrayed through
the Wright and Peace families. Morri son, as stated previously, uses different shades of
“blackness” to depict class differences within the black community. However, the families rebel
internally against the stereotypes awarded them by racialization and therefore over bridge the
typical class differences within the bla ck community.
Wiley and Helene Wright are a middle class black family. Helene, whose name means
light, or fair -skinned, is born to a Creole mother and is therefore a person of color with lighter
skin. She is raised Catholic and is described as “impressiv e” and dignified. She takes being a
mother seriously and because of her skin color and economic status, she belongs to the well -to-

47 Ranström
do. However, when visiting New Orleans, Helene denies knowing the Creole language, and thus
denies her roots in a lower socia l order. While Helene would prefer being addressed by her more
distinguished and refined name, “the people in the Bottom refused to say Helene. They called her
Helen Wright and left it at that” (Morrison , Sula 18).Thus, although the prominent difference is
skin color and economic status was important to her, the lower classes did not recognize
racialization in her case.
Helene fears for her daughter Nel, whose “skin had dusk in it [and] she had [inherited]
the broad flat nose of Wiley and his generous lips ” (Morrison , Sula 18). Helene discourages Nel
from learning Creole and encourages her to be “lighter” by “pulling her nose”. Nel, on the other
hand, accepts her blackness and whispers, “I‟m me…Me” after experiencing her mother
becoming “custard” when in co nflict with the white society. When Nel marries Jude, a waiter at
the Hotel Medallion, her status changes to the decent hard workers. Nel believes in the
community and accepts the traditional role as wife and mother in order for the community to
survive.
Eva Peace is dark -skinned and Morrison originally situates this character below poverty
level as her husband BoyBoy leaves her with “$1.65, five eggs, three beets and no idea of what
or how to feel” (Morrison Sula 32). Eva, because of her sacrifice and inge nuity, has financially
provided for her family by building a house and receiving a monthly disability income, thus
raising her economic status from the submerged tenth to the worthy poor.
BoyBoy, however, raises his economic status even higher and is port rayed as a “picture
of prosperity and good will…[while] talking about his appointments and exuding an odor of new
money and idleness” (Morrison , Sula 35). Despite his money, his skin color remains the same

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and Eva notices that “underneath all of that shi ne she saw defeat in the stalk of his neck and the
curious tight way he held his shoulders” (Morrison , Sula 36). BoyBoy has left “the Bottom” and
now lives in the big city, but has lost his identity and pride in the process. Interestingly, Eva sees
BoyBoy as diminishing in status and refers to him as the only “colored person” she‟s ever hated.
Further, after this episode, Eva also leaves “the bottom” floor of the house and moves “upstairs”
as she accepts her identity and individuality.
In the 1940s depicted in the novel , the general feeling towards biracial children was one
of aversion and distaste. Three young black boys come to live with Eva, “Dewey one was a
deeply black boy with a beautiful head and the golden eyes of chronic jaundice. Dewey two was
light-skinned with freckles and a head of tight red hair. Dewey three was half Mexican with
chocolate skin and black bangs” (Morrison , Sula 38). These biracial children are not accepted by
the white or the black society and are therefore placed with t he darker -skinned Eva. Their mixed
heritage affords them a non -identity which “remains a mystery”, however, as Eva names them all
“Dewey”, the three form one common identity.
Sula desperately tries to raise her status, despite the color of her skin, and returns to the
community after an absence of ten years. During that time, she has gotten a college education
and raised her economic standing. However, after her actions of sending Eva to a rest home and
sleeping with Jude, the people despise her because of her independence, and the fact that she
challenges the collective identity of the community. They imagine her committing the ultimate
betrayal to the community: that of having sex with a white man. As Sula lies dying, Nel tries to
make her see the reality of her blackness and says, “You can‟t have it all Sula…You are a
woman and a colored woman at that” (Morrison , Sula 142). Sula replies to her friend N el

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concerning the hopeles sness of the feminine black sit uation and racialization by saying, “I know
what every colored woman in this country is doing…Dying” (Morrison, Sula 143) .
In The Bluest Eye , the author portrays racialization through the women of the community.
Du Bois‟ four social classes are again symbolized by skin color and economic wealth. At the
apex of the hierarchy is Maureen Peal , a light-skinned mulato girl with long braids and green
eyes. Although she has a protruding dog tooth, people are captivated by her “beauty” and
cuteness. The fact that she comes from a wealthy family supports the bond between race and
gender as her lighter skin promotes a wealthier status image. Claudia and Fr ieda position
Maureen as straddling both races and yet, cannot understand their feelings of inferiority when
she is around. They rebuff her attempts at friendliness and call her Meringue Pie, a sweet
confection which is white on the outside and brown on th e inside. Maureen finally runs away
saying, “I am cute! And you ugly! Black and ugly Black e mos” (Morrison , Bluest 73). Further,
while the [blacker] teenage boys are enchanted by Maureen‟s “whiteness”, they are then forced
to face their own blackness and therefore taunt bystander Pecola in self -hatred. Thus, Pecola
Breedlove becomes the victim for the entire black community‟s apprehensions and sense of
worthlessness.
Next i n the hierarchy is Geraldine, who is somewhat darker than Maureen.
Geraldine, a middle -class black woman, is concerned with the beauty of cleanliness and
perfection in her household. She upholds the white standard of beauty and is preoccupied with
white middle class aspirations such as potted plants and lace doilies. Although she and her family
are black, she separates herself from lower -class blacks and instructs her son, Junior, that she
“did not like him to play with niggers…the difference between colored people and
niggers…colored people were neat and quiet; niggers were dirty and loud” (Morrison , Bluest

50 Ranström
87). Junior, in his blackness, is not permitted to play with blacks, and is shunned by whites. His
frustration is thus directed at his own black community for not fostering him as a member, but
his anger is vented towards his mother ‟s black cat with the blue eyes. When Geraldine finds
Pecola in her house, she feels that the blackness that she fears and despises has entered her home.
Morrison uses this family as an example of the anxiety and the animosity that can exist within
the fam ily unit concerning grades of blackness in society.
Mrs. Mac Teer, Frieda and Claudia‟s mother, is positioned as third in the social hierarchy.
She is a strong presence who loves her children and would do anything for them , but she i s not
averse to “whippin gs”. Together with the income from their boarder Mr. Henry, and Mr.
MacTeer‟s salary, Mrs. MacTeer is able to stay at home and take care of the children. Her love
for her family is unconditional and her kindness extends to include Pecola. However, when
Pecola drinks three quarts of milk, she gets angry and complains unceasingly about the
Breedloves and their lack of responsibility . They were “slack enough to be put…outdoors [and]
that was criminal” (Morrison , Bluest 17). T hus, Mrs. MacTeer elevates her own hierarchal status
over them.
Finally, occupying the lowest position in the caste system according to skin color are the
Breedloves. They “lived [in a storefront] because they were poor and black , and they stayed
there because they believed they were ugly. Although their poverty was traditional and
stultifying, it was not unique. But their ugliness was unique” (Morrison Bluest 39). In a novel
concerning the white ideal of beauty, Morrison compare s ugliness to being black and further
parallels blackness with “despair, dissipation and violence” (Morrison Bluest 38). Morrison
further explains how each of the characters accepted their blackness and dealt with it: Sammy,
Pecola‟s brother, “adjusted his behavior to it; chose his companions on the basis of it” (Morrison ,

51 Ranström
Bluest 39) meaning that he used his blackness as a weapon of violence and intimidation; Pauline
uses her blackness as a function of her “martyrdom” and recognition of her inescapable real ity.
However, Pauline‟s fantasies of “whiteness” are shared by Pecola, who longs for a “mask” of
whiteness to cover her ugliness.
Conclusion
With reference to the DuBois‟ “color line” which divides the rich and poor, North and
South, white and black, and light and dark, Morrison writes in Playing in the Dark ,
Deep within the word “American” is its association to race. To identify someone as a
South African is to say very little; we need the adjective “white” or “black” or “colored”
to make our meaning cl ear. In this country it is quite the reverse. American means white,
and Africanist people struggle to make the term applicable to themselves with ethnicity
and hyphen after hyphen after hyphen. (Morrison, Playing 29)
Race can thus be discussed in terms of identity and collectivity. However, these topics are
intertwined with each other as one‟s individuality is inseparably linked to the community as a
person cannot survive without others or his legacy . Morrison exam ines the skills of survival
while concentrating on matters of self and cultural distinctiveness within the black community.
As Beaulieu argues, “In order to survive, Morrison‟s characters need to choose whether to exist
in the shadows, submerging their ide ntities, or to fight back, proving that they have a self worth
respecting” (170) . Morrison uses characters in each of her novels to illustrate the challenges
associated with the struggle for a n identity. While Pecola‟s racial iden tity is completely
dependent upon the white image of beauty and which ultimately leads to her decline into
insanity, Claudia reacts to these feelings of inferiority by fighting back. She discards the Shirley
Temple image and dismembers the white dolls that she is given. She questions why being

52 Ranström
“white” is synonymous with being beautiful. Thus, h er survival is due to her refusal to
internalize the loss of self and feelings of degra dation and inadequacy that is an already accepted
part of her society. Sula‟s acceptance of her i ndividuality is a choice that she has made while Nel
has allowed herself to be formed by the opinions and expectations of others. Sula‟s acceptance of
self symbolizes her “peace” with her blackness and with her own racial identity. Milkman ‟s
racial identit y, his “role” in life, and his individuality, also tie in with the meaning of blac kness.
Catherine Carr Lee states, “Central to both his maturation and his healing is Milkman‟s
recognition that the cultural past of the African -American South continues to c reate his twentieth
century present in ways that are not constraining but liberating” (Lee 109) . Milkman feels like an
outsider when he visits the community of Shalimar. He realizes that he must shed his immaturity
and distrust and enter a responsible adulthood. In so doing, Milkman can begin to unravel the
secrets of his African American ancestors. When Milkman gets into a fight with Saul, he
recognizes that he is on his own, that neither his father nor money can help h im and he sheds his
“white trappings” for the black community underneath. Lee compares the bobcat hunt and
initiation of Milkman to a “rite at the hands of the elders and wise men of African tribal cultures”
(118). The hunters in Shalimar advise Milkman to shed his city clothes in exchange for clothing
better suited to the hunt. By doing so, Milkman is shedding his present self in order to earn the
ways and wisdom of the ancestral community. Interestingly, the clothes that Milkman dons are
World War II army fatigues which reinforce his American roots and, at the same time, refer to
war as a time in a young man‟s life in which he makes the transition to manhood. Milkman
makes the transition to manhood as he accepts and understands the real meaning of being bo th
black and American. Morrison show s the signifi cance and great importance of this combination
through the birth of Milkman, the first black baby to be born at Mercy Hospital surrounded by

53 Ranström
the American colors of red (Ruth‟s basket of rose petals), white ( the falling of snow) and blue
(Mr. Smith‟s silk wings).
Collectivity includes the dependence of individuals upon each other for the survival of
the black communi ty and Morrison realistically exposes both achievement s and disappointment s
of the collectivit y in her novels. The c ommunity reinforces the identities of its members through
belief and heritage and individuals must remain a part of the collectivity in order to be innately
complete . Claudia, although she abhors the white ideals which are internaliz ed by her
community, she is accepting of her heritage and blackness. The Bluest Eye chronicles Claudia‟s
memories and affiliation with the poverty and racism of the community and her survival as a
“complete” individual and part of society. Sula rejects and is rejected by the community as her
life does not conform to their traditions. However, Sula‟s identity is actually formed by the
collectivity and her existence is only possible because of her love/hate relationship with its
members. Sula‟s ei ghteen year absence from the collectivity is only briefly mentioned because
she did not exist when she was apart from the black society. Morrison forcef ully portrays the
importance of collectivity in both the beginning and ending of Song of Solomon . In the very first
line of the novel, the name of the insurance company “Mutual Life” indicates that the black
community must live together in support and nurturing. The story closes with Milkman making a
famed leap to meet Guitar. Although there are many interpr etations about the ending of the story,
this writer is convinced that, as Guitar lays down his rifle, he is smiling and accepting his friend
Milkman. Milkman narrow s his eyes, as it is difficult to see in the dark, and leaps in love with
his arms outstretc hed toward his black “brother”, united and secure in the knowledge of their
heritage and legacy.

54 Ranström
In conclusion, the characters in The Bluest Eye , Sula, and Song of Solomon are show n in
the setting of a society which is constantly weighed down by the heritage of slavery and racial
brutality and is profoundly rooted in customs that have formed and influenced the African –
American culture . Toni Morrison portrays the black community with regards to blackism and the
inner struggles of the individual as well as the class differences and social structures within the
collectivity. Morrison also emphasizes the importance of the black society as every
contemporary individual must negotiate his/her culture and heritage, which are found in the unity
of the communit y. The characters of Claudia, Sula, and Milkman form their present identities
through the understanding of their A frican -American heritage and achieve individual fulfillment
within the collectivity. The au thor guides us toward the conclusion that by honori ng a mixed
heritage and constantly challenging racial interpretations over a period of time, at personal, as
well as social and cultural levels, new racial identities and me anings will be formed, both wi thin
and outside the black community.

55 Ranström

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