Please post your responses to the first couple of chapters of Sula in the comments here. Remember, you need to do two out of the three options for the blog post assignment.
Blog Post: Please contribute to the blog with your thoughts, questions, and ideas. For each assignment, you must do AT LEAST TWO of the following:
A. Respond
to one of the guiding questions (I will post them on the blog for you).
B. Send
me an email with a thoughtful question, so I can post it on the blog.
C. Build
on someone else’s idea or politely disagree, with a thoughtful alternative
opinion.
Please be thoughtful, careful, and
diplomatic about your comments. I will be checking the blog regularly and will
be contributing as well. Each post should be about one body paragraph long. You
must complete the blog post by 10 PM on the night before the assignment is due.
Happy reading!
Guiding Questions and ideas to respond to:
- What is the significance of names and naming in the novel?
- Although Sula contains several male characters, the book is, in many ways, a novel that celebrates women. Sula looms so large in the reader's mind because Morrison strips away the power traditionally given to men. Examine the deficiencies of two male characters that suggest contrasting strengths in female characters.
- Toni Morrison once said, "I know evil preoccupied me in Sula…" Examine the nature of evil in Sula, especially as it occurs in the protagonist. To what extent is Sula evil and how does she manifest this trait? What are the sources of her evil and what is its ultimate significance in terms of her relationship with the Bottom residents?
- Death is a dominant motif in Sula. The text begins, "There was once a neighborhood," signifying that the community no longer exists (3). Morrison portrays death as an event that purifies, renews, and brings freedom to the deceased and/or their family and friends. Death is also an event that is often witnessed in the text; it is a spectacle that demands attention. Consider how this notion of death subverts more traditional depictions and why Morrison uses this strategy.
- Add your own guiding question or idea here! There are so many to choose from, from motifs to the circular nature of life to Biblical allusions in the book. If you come up with a good question, email it or submit it to me and I will post it on the blog as a potential discussion question.
Toni Morrison’s depiction of death as a sense of relief highlights the complications of human nature as a result of war. Although Eva loved her son, Plum, “to whom she hoped to bequeath everything…” (Morrison 45), she decided to kill him after he came back as a mess from the fighting in World War I. While the traditional view of death would consider Eva’s action as murder, Morrison makes her action seem as a means of salvation. Plum’s inability to fully demobilize and rehabilitate from the horrific experience in war completely overtook his life. His reaction to her mother pouring kerosene over his body as “some kind of baptism, some kind of blessing…” (Morrison 47) emphasizes the faultiness of the traditional depiction of death, given that he feels he is essentially rescued from destroying his own self as a drug addict. Instead of suffering from a slow, painful, and unpredictable death, Plum can now be at ease as a “purified” soul. In this way, Morrison is able to not only showcase the complexity of death, but also the complexity of human nature. Even though it seems incongruous that his mother would choose to burn his son out of love, she sought to preserve his identity and end his life with her own hands after the war had already destroyed him. Essentially, Morrison utilizes death as a motif to bring about the idea that true human capabilities can only be revealed in times of hardship.
ReplyDeleteI totally agree with Jennifer's statement of death in the novel. Toni Morrison's portrayal of death is freedom and the structure of nature, emphasizing the unlikeness of a mother to kill her own child. In a typical overview it will often make it seem like it was evil, but its usually because it dramatized as tragic and unforeseen. Death in this novel is what leads to Shadrack creating National Suicide Day, Eva murdering Plum, and Sula "accidentally" killing Chicken Little. It is near impossible to fully justify Eva's matriarch position, in setting Plum on fire. She was just probably ridding herself of a financial burden, or Eva was thinking that he would be in a better state. Eva has no capacity left for nurturing anymore. Even if Eva did not crush her leg under a train to financially support herself and her children by collecting health insurance, which may be very well the truth, Morrison's depiction tells us otherwise. Plum was dearly loved by his mother, but Eva had a rough time raising him, in the result of the war, which had changed him. We see another character like that, Shadrack whose experience in the war lead to the "holiday", and becomes the center reason of many characters perception of death, it brings out the character within the character(charception). I would like to point out the quote that was being used on page 47, because it truly exemplifies Morrison's view on death, he see's it as an act of God, ridding himself from suffering. I would also like to add Chicken Little's death, while it was a time of mourning and grief, "Butterflies flew in and out...lying in a small heap at the edge of the grace. The heat had gone..."(Morrison 66). Chicken Little as well as Plum 's departure from Earth will be safe and grace full.
DeleteEva showed her unconditional love for Plum by killing him. Plum just got back from World War I and he was traumatized by that experience. He tried getting rid of the stress and memories by becoming addicted to alcohol. His addiction got out of control and he couldn't even function anymore. It was so hard for Eva to see Plum just collapse because Eva loved him too much. Since Plum couldn't control his life, Eva thought that the best choice was to kill him. Morrison shows that people portray love in many different ways. People normally show their love for the other person by doing something kind or beautiful. But in this book, people can show their love for someone by doing something horrible, like killing someone.
DeleteSula is uncomfortably evil even on my standards. Yep. That could some up my entire analysis but I know that wouldn't help my writing in any way. Sula, even before her character is discussed, is presumably going to be evil just based on her family. Her grandmother, a once kind woman, was twisted by the hardships she faced. She seems to lose her grace as she ages as well, as she was described as a so beautiful that even her missing leg didn't stop men from flirting with her. With her fleeting grace, she also loses her kindness, as the people who she lets live in her house are either brainwashed servants, random people, or depressed drunks, and she treats them as such. Sula's mother, brought up in this environment, ends up becoming a broad of sorts, and simply lives for pleasure, and definitely not for love. With this environment growing up, it is obvious that Sula will turn out the same way as her family, as the people of Medallion are in no way better role models than her family. In fact, mostly everyone in Medallion seems just as resentful and cruel as the rest of Society, which has pushed these people into this terrible town. However, not only is Sula evil, but like Pearl in, "The Scarlet Letter", Sula has an unnatural evilness to her. She is rebellious, cruel, and at points, seemingly unaware of the atrocious acts she commits. Especially when the Irish boys corner her, as she slices the end of her thumb off to scare them off. Even though Sula did this in self-defense, the mindset of one who would go to such lengths to scare off a couple of boys screams that something is very off about Sula. Self-injury is not a common trait of children... nor any normal human being for that matter, which suggests that something is very off about Sula.
ReplyDeleteThank you Kyle <3 for connecting Sula and the Scarlet Letter, however I unfortunately must disagree with you. In the Scarlet Letter, at the beginning of the book Pearl was deemed as a child of evil but by the end, she proved to be a prime example of innocence and curiosity. Similarly, many believe that Sula possesses evil within her through her hellish actions (which isn’t unreasonable), but I interpreted these acts in a completely opposite direction and thought that they were justified by her innocence and perhaps even her playfulness. In the heat of the moment when she was confronted by those bullies and she decided to make a quick move and slice off her own finger, I actually saw that as an act of self-defense (and self-decapitation) in a desperate attempt to scare off the boys and to protect herself and her friend. A possible counterargument to this could be that Sula only executed the head of her finger just to prove a point and to impose a threat on the boys with evil and malicious intent. But as I stated earlier, in a time of dire need, sending a message is the last thing someone should do when they’re the one in the hot seat and her innocence is shown by her willingness to resort to extreme measures through a snap judgment in order to gain protection. I would have done the same. Another possible counterargument to my observations is that only an evil and demented psychotic child at this age would even think of performing hara-kiri on their fingertip. But as stated before, I do not believe that this was an act of evil, but I also don’t think that this thought expresses her innocence in any shape or form. Obviously enough, Sula is not your average pre-teen. I think that it is important that this early in the book, every reader should register in their mind that Sula is super hardcore and a total die-hard.
DeleteWhile I do not completely disagree with Kyle's comment, I have to say I believe that Sula's family's actions as well and herself cannot be defined as purely "evil." Eva's has had to grow in order to survive and take care of her children as well as herself. When she comes back after being gone and her leg is gone, Eva still takes care of herself and her one good leg. She moves on from her injury and tries to keep living and be happy, rather than become lost in the pain and loss that could have take over her. In this way, she continues to visit with men - not letting her physique from keeping her from enjoying herself. The people whom Eva lets into her house would still need homes if she did not give them a place to stay. And if she did not let them into her house would it not be more cruel? People who are depressed need a place to stay just as much as any person, and many boarding houses are less open to having people with different problems stay with them - in this way Eva's kindness in insurmountable. When Eva kills her son, this too is out of love for him and his well being. She was afraid of him and his self destruction, and in her eyes killing him puts him in a better place. Sula's mother, Hannah had loved before and lost him. The way she is now, is how she copes with her loss, but definitely does not make her love before any less meaningful. In addition, Hannah does love now too - she loves her daughter and says so when she is talking to the other mothers in chapter 1921. Love between a mother and child can sometimes be more important than between spouses. Sula herself is a complex character and while I admit she can seem to be evil, there is no defining her as solely so. She was a lonely child, and lonesomeness can bring people to act strange around others in the beginning, but by being around Nel she finds friendship and opens up to someone. When the two of them kill the little boy, it it on accident and when its over the "laughter" and "butterflies" are no more. Sula feels bad about what she has done.
DeleteToni Morrison utilizes male characters that exhibit undesirable traits as a foil to the women characters. The character BoyBoy is one of the males that possesses many negative traits. He beats his wife, leaves her, comes back with a new girlfriend, and “didn’t ask to see the children” (Morison 36). In contrast with BoyBoy, Eva is very loving towards her children. Even though she leaves them, she returns with enough to provide for them. It is even rumored that “she stuck [her leg] under a train and made them pay off” (Morrison 31). Even though this might not be true, it attests to the fact that Eva would do something so drastic to herself to be able to provide for her children. BoyBoy, on the other hand, does nothing for his children, even though he was full of “prosperity and good will” (Morrison 35). Another male character portrayed as weak is Tar Baby. He bothers no one and is “intent solely on drinking himself to death” (Morrison 40). He lives his life only to die and does not even try to hide it. On the other hand, there is Hannah, who cannot “live without the attentions of a man” (Morrison 42). Her dependence on this attention contrasts greatly with Tar Baby, who does not seek any attention at all. Even though Hannah may act promiscuously, men always stop gossip about her from surfacing because of her kindness and generosity. Tar Baby isn’t talked about though because of the seriousness of his reality, not because he possesses positive qualities. All in all, these two characters contrast Eva and Hannah to help portray them in a better light.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
DeleteAlthough I agree with Angela and Alex that men play a role in Sula that empowers women when put in contrast, I was more curious about the first part of the guiding question where it states that this novel celebrates women in many ways. I understand that when shone in the light of men, the women characters in this novel are clearly more preeminent through a sense of feminism, but I was interested to find out in which instances where they are “celebrated” through individual acts without any supporting characters. As stated before and above, Morrison demonstrated Eva’s integrity to care for her own family plus more and her sacrifice to provide her loved ones with a newfound wealth in order to make Boyboy look bad. However, I think that these acts in general show the power and potential of women. Similarly to all the other single mothers out there in the world, they all have their hardships and struggles but in Eva’s case however, despite her handicap and life as a minority, she is successfully able to take her role as a mother above and beyond. So to answer how Sula celebrates women, I guess that you could say that the character Eva is portrayed as what the epitome of what a strong and independent woman/mother could or should look like.
DeleteI believe Angela made a great point about BoyBoy and his negative traits, but what I noticed before anything else, was his strange name. BoyBoy. A boy is young, usually immature (sorry, guys but do note the "usually"), and the word is also repeated twice in his name, placing even more emphasis on it. Now connecting to what Angela said, BoyBoy is clearly immature - beating his wife while having multiple lovers, then leaving her without a care as to what happens to his children, and finding a new woman. Perhaps he has changed since then, but from what we see of him, BoyBoy is only out to have fun. He was not able to have as much fun as he wished with Eva so he got it from other women. In addition, he does not seem to have been ready to have children since he paid no attention to Hannah, or Pearl, or Plum and not even when he visited later on. Speaking generally, boys are not ready to have children of their own or should not anticipate it any time soon because they're simply too young to be able to hold their own family. Clearly, BoyBoy was unable to keep his family together. Well, who am I kidding? He couldn't even keep himself together at the time. Through his name, it is evident that his personality will yield some form of immaturity, childishness, or unpreparedness.
DeleteI completely agree with Angela. It seems that all of the male characters described had a long list of faults about them. BoyBoy can’t respect women, control his emotions, or take care of his children. Eva is portrayed as a strong, independent woman who knows how to raise a family and how to be a caring, supportive mother. Not only that, but she even outdoes BoyBoy by buying a more nicer house than he, despite raising three kids on her own and often times being emotionally unstable. I believe Morrison used such a contrast between the male and female characters to assert more power and importance to the women, particularly Sula and Eva’s daughters. She continuously paints them in a positive light, and in reference to Eva, she writes, “those Peace women loved all men. It was manlove that Eva bequeathed to her daughters” (41). When reading about BoyBoy, what we hear is all about the bad stuff-- “his did whatever he could that he liked, and he liked womanizing best, drinking second, and abusing Eva third” (32). Morrison describes her characters in a way that, not often enough, the women are competent and capable and the men are foolish and incompetent.
DeleteI agree with Angela, and I also believe that Morrison uses male characters to help emphasize the actions and the cause/effects seen through the lives of the women. As Angela stated, Boyboy was an ungrateful husband and that he doesn't deserve the things he owned. However, Eva one ups Boyboy by paying for a new house and building it 60 feet away from Boyboy's single room house. Which is incredible considering she is raising all three children, in contrast to Boyboy. Along with him, is his son Plum, who goes to war and comes back severely hurt. He was so messed up that Eva killed him. Though when it came to Hannah, she was a very respected woman in the household even though she was a high end prostitute, many men try to protect her and stand up for her.
ReplyDeleteIn Tom Morrison’s Sula, death roams throughout Sula’s community. Death appears to be a common theme after many people have returned from the recent World War I, of which many casualties occurred. It is not coincidental that the setting takes place during the 1920’s. This decade is an era where the community is beginning to find life after a recent, gruesome war. Ironically, to live life, or get freedom, many people believe death is the only option to choose from. For instance, many people including Shadrack, Tar Baby, and the Deweys “join on National Suicide Day” (Morrison 41). The effect that “National Suicide Day” is celebrated the same style as a typical holiday reveals an alternative view of death. Death relieves one out of all of their stress since they do not have to live through it anymore. As earlier mentioned, death is the “new life.” Another instance where death is viewed as “freedom” or “joy “ is when Chicken Little dies in a supposed drowning. After Chicken Little’s funeral “the bubbly laughter and the press of fingers in the palm would stay aboveground forever” (Morrison 66). Clearly as a result from death, Chicken Little will have joy and fully live through it in the afterlife. The use of death reveals a deep insight how humans view society. Death reveals a deep insight of freedom could be alternatively obtained. Morrison subverts the traditional view of death as mournful but rather as freedom because freedom and life can be obtained through many ways humans may not see it as. Death is more than what it seems to the human eye.
ReplyDeleteMatthew, I think you hit the nail on the head as to what Morrison was going for while writing Sula. Especially with regards to death, Morrison has challenged what death means to a society. Throughout the most recent section, we have seen characters who have died, were in a death-like-state, or were ready to die. When each character and their death or hypothetical death is mentioned, it is spinned as a positive, a relief, or a chance of freedom. Tar Baby only wants to die, so everyone in the town is willing to let him. Why? Our society might get him help without considering what he wants. In the Bottom, the people give him the Freedom.
DeleteBut two other characters lose their lives unwillingly. Plum is burnt to death by his mother because he has "shell shock", "war fatigue," or "PTSD" from the war. She had pulled together their household for most of her life, so she hated to see one of her own so lethargic and weak. The other character, Chicken Little, is thrown into the river by Sula. Morrison tries to spin each of their deaths alternative to the norm. Plum's death is seen as a release or cleansing from an abhorrent life, while Chicken Little's death is seen rather lightly by Sula and Nel, as illustrated by their actions after the funeral.
I still agree that Morrison was aiming to challenge social norms, but I don't agree as with you in thinking that the two unwilling deaths were very convincing pieces of evidence for her viewpoint. Chicken Little was not suffering from anything apparently clear, at least not stated in the book. Sure, the two girls took his death lightly after the funeral, but that does not mean that he was going to be happier in any after life or feel any release from death. And while Plum was in devastating mental health, he never explicitly stated a longing to die. While Tar Baby may kill himself or let himself die, someone (in this case Eva) actively kills Plum. Rather than talking to him or seeking help for him, she chose one of the most painful ways to kill her own son based on her inference, or possibly her insanity. I can not see as a release or a way to free her son. She took advantage of Plum's hallucinations, of an angel sprinkling water on him, in order to go ahead with would may or may not have been his desire.
I noticed a lot of the points brought up in the guiding question about death during the chapter on 1922. Like Matt, who actually said most of the things I was going to say (I'll try to think of more to add!) I was struck by the scene in which Sula and Nel accidentally drown the boy named Chicken Little. To make a long story short, it didn't go down the way I thought it would. I was shocked when Chicken Little went into the water and didn't come up, and how Sula and Nel just stood there. How they felt remorse for about 20 minutes, and then turned back to frivolous things. How they were more focused on the butterflies flapping around his grave than they were on the fact that his death was entirely their fault. What made this truly interesting was that Morrison appeared to feel the same way. She portrayed his death as full of hovering laughter and butterflies and dappled sunlight on the creek. There are a couple of possible reasons for this: first, Morrison may have been making a statement about life as a black person in the early 1900s, and perhaps it was better to die at an early age and skip all the hatred, suffering, and grinding poverty than it was to live a long life. The other possibility is more related to the question about evil. It's not only Sula and Nel's indifference but Morrison's perceived indifference too that seem evil. Maybe she's saying something about how life under such conditions makes evil a necessity for survival (think Sula cutting herself to get past the Irish guys).
ReplyDeleteAlthough Kylan brought up some great points about death in the novel, I disagree with some of his points. I thought it was interesting with Chicken Little and how, like Kylan said, the two girls seemed like they were just standing there and acting like it was okay afterwards. Why didn’t they try to save him. They didn’t even bother looking for the boy after; they just left him in the river. But contrary to what Kylan said that the girls focused on butterflies more rather than how the death was their fault, I thought that the girls felt really guilty. Sula “collapsed in tears” (62) at the river after Chicken drowned. During the funeral, Nel felt that a “pointing finger” (65) would accuse her of the death throughout the whole funeral and Sula “simply cried” (65). They’re only twelve years old so they wouldn’t know what to do in this kind of situation. It’s they’re first time going through something like this. Morrison uses this death to say that on an occasion like this one, a person can grow more mature. Death is complicated and a very gloomy happening, so when a person goes through seeing the death of a friend or loved one, I think Morrison is saying that it can help that person grow. It’s like going through multiple experiences to know more about the world and life.
DeleteI want to address the importance of both Ralph's (a.k.a. Plum) and Eva's names!
ReplyDeleteFirst of all, I found Plum's name to be particularly interesting because of the certain incident he had as a baby--the issue with his bowel movements. To save him, Eva had to loosen up his bowels herself, resulting in her pulling a "pebble" out of his bum. I brought this up because the plum fruits have pits in the center and you generally want to take the pits out before you eat them (It’s not really much, but I just thought it was pretty amusing…).
As for Eva, I did a little bit of research and found out that her name means "life." When I read this, I immediately thought about her decision to burn her own son alive, and how she gave herself the right to end his life. What's more interesting, remember when Eva and Hannah locked eyes that evening while Plum was burning? At that moment, I believe Hannah knew that Plum’s murder was Eva’s doing. Hannah did not say anything – (probably) not because she respected Eva’s decision – but because she accepted her authority. Connecting that to today, you can see that this is how many people react to life. Whether it is new life being introduced or life being taken away, no matter how upset or disapproving we can be of it—we have to accept it either way because there is nothing we can do about it. On a lighter note, Eva’s name meaning “life” could also represent her resilience for keeping herself and her children alive after BoyBoy left her. Even after taking care of her children’s lives, she continued to nurture further—accepting people who wished to rent houses in her room and even adopted the Deweys.
Interesting input on the names Jerica! Each of your explanations for the meanings behind Plum & Eva's names and your analysis of each help me to understand more about their personalities and pasts. Your analysis on Plum's name is one that I wouldn't think of right off the top of my head so it was great to get some outer input in making sense of his name. In thinking more about why Ralph has the nickname "Plum", I also began to think about how plums have hard pits in the middle, and are soft & sweet on the outside. When Eva went into Plum's room the morning she burned him, they held each other in their arms in a loving mother-son embrace. When Eva leaves, Plum has an inner thought, "She sure was somethin'" (Morrison 47). Plum's ability to feel so emotional & show his affection for his mother reflects the outer, sweeter & softer part of a plum. In this way, the the pit of a plum could represent Plum's hardened inner feelings that he keeps inside. Plum repeatedly says "I'm all right" (Morrison 47), which shows how he constantly reassures his loved ones of the sweet outside he portrays but does not possess on the inside. He may be hardened in his internal emotions from going off to war, and he might be struggling with similar issues presented in a different way from Shadrack. Plum's name reflects how he is emotionally - showing sweet and loving personality on the outside, but hiding his problems and negative emotions in the pit of his body.
DeleteAnthony Liu; AP Lit 6°; Ms. Delman; 4 – 10 – 14
ReplyDeleteBlog post for years 1921 – 1922 (option A)
According to the Oxford dictionary, the word evil means “profoundly immoral and malevolent.” Although there are several instances in which Sula behaves immorally, she never acts out of malice. Therefore, Sula cannot be considered evil. Sula’s first potentially evil act is her treatment of the white teenaged boys who bullied her and Nel. Before Sula threatens the boys with a knife, she “squatted down in the dirt road and put everything down on the ground” (54). The fact that Sula is so deliberate in her actions shows that she had a plan from the very beginning. Her sole intent was to instill fear; had she instead desired to harm the boys physically, she would have immediately begun slashing and stabbing. Not only did her shrewd decision ensure the safety of her and Nel, but it also prevented future skirmishes. In no way were her actions malevolent. Next, her accidental killing of Chicken Little is undeniably immoral, but it’s clear she never intended to murder the poor boy. The first description the narrator offers when she picks Chicken up and spins him around is “[…] his shrieks of frightened joy” (60). Granted, it was negligent for Sula to spin him around because she was ignorant of his inability to swim. Negligence is a long ways off malevolence though, so this act also falls short of being evil. Still, there’s no denying Sula’s peculiar nature and fuzzy morality. After all, Nel never gets in this much trouble. The origin of Sula’s personality is the sense of freedom instilled in her by her housemates. The narrator describes Sula’s promiscuous mother, Hannah, by saying, “Hannah exasperated the women in the town” (44), in reference to the fact that Hannah slept with everyone, including husbands. In contrast to the societal norms of the time, which dictated that men and women remain faithful to their spouses, Hannah demands absolute freedom when it comes to sex. Likewise, Sula doesn’t want to be constrained by rules and best practices (e.g. speak to adults about bullies, ask friends if they can swim before playing with them near rivers, etc…). If Sula’s personal growth continues along its current course, then she will be even less agreeable than her mother. She’s already incredibly independent (if one considers Sula and Nel to be a unit, as they themselves do), and she’s not afraid to get what she wants. I predict there will come a time where Bottom won’t have enough to offer her and she’ll be forced to satisfy her hunger “to explore everything that interested them” (55) elsewhere.
(option C)
DeleteAnthony, although you bring up some decent points, like the necessity of malice in declaring something evil, I think your argument only holds up in the examples you gave. For instance, if one determines malice solely through an analysis of a character’s intentions, then Eva’s killing of Plum wouldn’t be considered malevolent. Taken out of context, the quote, “She [Eva] rolled a bit of newspaper […], lit it and threw it onto the bed” (47) is clearly an instance of a premeditated wrongdoing (essentially the definition of malice). Only by appealing to the fact that Eva killed her baby Plum out of love can this gruesome murder be made to seem necessary. This reasoning is dangerous though because it allows for evil acts to be committed so long as the person doing them believes they’re acting justly. This reasoning fails to label certain suicide bombers as malicious. However, one could argue that Plum consented to being burned alive by communicating that he was okay with being soaked in kerosene: “pouring a wet lightness over him […] Everything is going to be all right” (47). Perhaps Eva’s motherly instinct enabled her to pick up on his subtle enjoyment of the kerosene bath, thereby giving her the O.K. to set him on fire. This argument is a bit more convincing than the last, but it completely ignores the fact that Plum was doped up and totally incoherent: “Mama, you so purty” (47)! Applying this inconsistency to Sula, although her cutting off her own finger may seem wise to utilitarians, you admit to her malicious intent yourself when you wrote, “Her sole intent was to instill fear”. This intention in itself is malicious because it leads to the scarring of those boys’ psyches. Therefore, Sula was acting both immorally and maliciously. I do agree with your description of the origins of Sula’s personality. I think that she is currently evil and will continue to grow more evil as she develops.
Even at a young age, Sula has power over men. Much like her mother she can lure men to her, but in the case of Chicken Little (the boy), it seemed like how a venus fly trap would lure a fly. When they go up the tree, it is Sula who is “steadying”(60) and “reassuring”(60) the boy; also Sula swings and leads the boy to his death, all these are examples of female dominance in the book. Hannah has the ability to subtly seduce men, and in a sense, bring them under her control. While Sula doesn’t have the flirtatious nature of her mom, with words, she still manages to draw Chicken Little away from the altercation with Nel and to the tree with her. Come on”(59) “Come here”(59), Sula calls repeatedly to draw the boy nearer. Like her mom would pull a man into the pantry or cellar for sex, Sula “took him by the hand and coaxed him along”(59), and once up there he felt it was the best view he had ever seen and he never wanted to come down. The view from the tree, while probably nice, was significant to him because to Chicken Little that was Sula’s place that he was being safely ushered into. This can be thought of like when Hannah brings men into her, and in that moment she is the one in power, inviting a man to “a view” they never want to leave, one only she can offer.
ReplyDeleteI agree with this statement describing how Sula and Hannah show female dominance. This is how women are celebrated throughout the book and although Sula and Hannah’s methods are different, Hannah using a more promiscuous method, they both have a way to show their strength against men, which historically goes against the status quo. Usually the men are the dominant ones, but Sula and Hannah show that women can hold the same strength and power that many people view men always have. Whether it is seduction or the battle with words and aggression, Sula and Hannah both have a way to strip men of their power.
DeleteAlthough I agree with Forest, I disagree with Reniel. Their 'methods' are barely different. Both seduce men in a sort of comforting way to do something that the man finds remarkable and the woman finds casual. They do end in different ways though, Hannah with sex, and Sula with more innocent things, like climbing a tree. We can imagine that when Sula is old enough, she too will be having casual sex. She has already begun thinking about it, when Sula and Nel are walking along the road lined with men. So, their methods are almost the same, Sula's are only more innocent because of her age.
DeleteThe nature of evil in Sula is prominent due to the environment and situations that Sula and Nel find their selves in. Sula already comes from a background filled with accounts of malicious activity, especially regarding her mother Hannah, who slept around with many men. Growing up with this type of environment around her at the Bottom, Sula became accustomed to it, and therefore it appears that her actions are evil, but are probably just a result of the factors she lived with while growing up. She even became aggressive to the point where the tactics she used in the book have a feeling of malice in them when there is a situation at hand, but are actually a smart way for her to go about these. For example, the confrontation with the boys who were harassing Nel and Sula, looked to contain wicked and evil intentions, as she used the knife as a way to ward the boys off. However, this action that she used had no real intention of harming the boys, as an evil person would probably have, but instead solved the problem of harassment, and stopped it from then on. There is a chance for evil to take over in Sula later on in the book, but for now, she is still too young to fully develop that characteristic. I believe that she is just acting out due to the way she was raised, and her naturally aggressive nature makes others believe that she is evil.
ReplyDeleteAlthough it is too early to determine how evil Sula is, she shows signs of being immoral. Her encounter with Chicken Little led to his death due to drowning shows where her morals lie. Even though the whole situation was an accident, she left him to die. She made no attempt to help him, whether it's jumping into the water to save him or to go get help. Sula also chose not to tell anyone about what happened to the boy and no one but Nel and Shadrack know. His family deserved an explanation as to why or how he died. Another sign of evil is shown when Nel and Sula encountered the boys that were bothering them. Sula threatened the boys by cutting the tip off of her finger, showing that she had bad intentions. Sula's wickedness seemed to come from her family. Her mother is a widow that sleeps around with men and breaks up couples' relationships just because she needed the touch of a man, which is immoral. Sula's grandmother had set her own son on fire because she couldn't stand to the person he's become. These examples that she grew up looking up to shows an influence on the person she's becoming. The environment a child grows up in always plays a factor on the type of person the child grows up to be.
ReplyDelete(Option C)
DeleteI think Florance makes a very valid point in what could potentially prove Sula to be labeled as evil. Clearly, even at a young age, she shows attributes of immorality and questionable values. Sula played no role in helping Chicken Little as he drowned, and she showed no sign of remorse or bad conscience. Her lack of guilt might come from the ways of her elders, her mother and grandmother, narrowing in on the resolute death of Plum, and the sexual prowess of Hannah, who essentially believes that men are disposable. Florance's ideas are very understandable, as they clearly articulate the reasoning behind Sula's ill nature.
While I do agree with Florence to a point, I will play devil's advocate. First off, it is necessary to consider Sula's age. During the incident at the river, Sula is only twelve and aware that she is becoming a young woman. Some may view her effort to entertain Chicken, although disastrous in result, as her first steps into becoming a young adult who will eventually have to care for and entertain children of her own. The same can be said for the incident that occurred on the road. It is a common belief that when things that women,especially matriarchs, hold dear are threatened, that they will do the inconceivable to ensure their beloveds' safety. By injuring herself rather than resorting to futile combat, Sula was able to secure Nel's safety and peace of mind, as well as assert her dominance. So saying, I believe that the situations that were presented can have multiple meanings.
Delete(Option A) Guiding Question: Death
ReplyDeleteDeath plays a very active and prominent role in 1921-1922, acknowledging the passionate murder of Plum and the manslaughter of Chicken Little. The killing of Plum comes from a very deep part of Eva, who has cherished his presence as her son, more than any of her other children. By killing her son, it’s as if she is liberating him of his physical ailments and his mental strife against addiction. When Eva kills her ‘favorite’, she makes a great sacrifice by choosing to end her own son’s life, in exchange for watching him drown in constant suffering. While Eva’s actions may appear strange and quite evil in some lenses, her motive in his death seems rather justified, as the slight burn of the kerosene fueled fire allude that Plum must first experience Hell before he reaches Heaven. Eva’s choice to kill Plum is a complex act fulfilled to prove that freedom doesn’t always mean experiencing the joys life, but finding relief through death.
Chicken Little's death clearly goes against the traditional reactions of death. After, he falls into the river, Sula and Nel's next actions are only significant in the way that they display slight nonchalance. They witness death, they go off to Shadrack, and then they continue on with their childish ways. Its kind of ridiculous.
In this book, the men are portrayed weaker than the women. When Eva's husband, Boy Boy abandoned her, Eva stayed strong by fighting to support her family. For example, she cut off her leg for money so that she could feed her family. She also built a house for her and her family to live in. The ways that Eva supported her family when her husband left her with nothing show that Eva was a tough and independent woman. The men in this book are portrayed much weaker in this book. For example, Tar Baby couldn't get his life together because he was so addicted to alcohol. Another example is how Plum just collapsed after World War I. Plum coped with his stress by becoming addicted to drugs and eventually, Eva had to take control by killing him. This chapter shows how women were rising in power while men were losing control of their life.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteQuestion from Farah: In what ways are Nel and Sula becoming more aware of their sexuality (feminism, becoming of age), can this raise a possible breaking point within the relationships of the characters, and ultimately change the characters? Use the scene where they are playing together in the field and discuss any possible themes, some questions are what is the reason they dig so far into the ground and add a bunch of random items?
ReplyDeleteQuestion from Ellis: "Explain Sula's experience with Shadrack. What purpose does it serve within the story? Why does Shadrack say, "Always."?
ReplyDeleteQuestion from Florance: Why does Eva only have one leg? Why does Eva kill her own son, Plum, and would the act be considered out of selfishness or sacrifice?
ReplyDeleteQuestion from Stephanie: What is the significance of the Deweys? What is the importance of their names all being the same and what does their name mean? How are the Deweys similar and different to Nel and Sula?
ReplyDeleteQuestion from Forest: How does sex play into Nel and Sula's life? For such young girls, I found it interesting how surrounded Nel and Sula are by sexual themes. The valley of eyes drew me in, at first I thought it was just guys creeping on them, however as the book went on, it seemed that it was this that drew them to the walk. Also when Toni Morrison suddenly throws in ice cream related sexual symbolism with "smooth vanilla crotches" (50), when talking about their future thoughts about it all. The other part that stuck out, although not explicit, was the part when Sula and Nel were digging holes. I felt that Morrison was trying to imply more than simply two girls digging holes when she wrote that Nel, "poked her twig rhythmically and intensely into the earth"(58). Other then these events, Morrison keeps describing the way the young girls look physically.
ReplyDeleteQuestion from Monica: When Eva had two legs, she was unable to support herself, struggling to provide for herself and her children; however, as soon as she came back one-legged, Eva was stronger, suddenly able to bring food to the table and purchase a house. What is Morrison trying to allude to with the irony of the situation?
ReplyDeleteI know this is specific to these chapters but it would be interesting to discuss in class. A more general question would be:
What is the significance of Eva's disability?
Question from Maddie: What is the significance of the appearance of Shadrack's home (when Sula runs to his home seeking help) in contrast to his actions & what we already know about him? How could the order in his home compare and contrast to the homes of Sula & Nel?
ReplyDeleteQuestion from Jerica: What is the significance of body marks in Sula? Sula herself carries a birthmark under her eye and a self-inflicted scar on her finger, while her mother is completely missing a leg. (Including Shadrack on this list would be a stretch, but if we were to include him, it would be because of his "growing" hands.)
ReplyDeleteAlthough I don't pretend to know really why these aspects were included, I have some ideas of what Sula's mark could mean.
DeleteFirst off, in our fish bowl last class Florence brought up the point of how Sula's mark on her eye is said to look like a rose in the beginning and as the story goes on it morphs into a shape more like one that looks like the pile of ashes that was formed when her mother died. One idea I had about this was that maybe in the beginning Sula is pure and as she goes through her life she becomes less so. Also the rose is accepted as being a symbol for sex and love, and as she grows up - Sula starts giving into sex very freely (one example of her nonchalant view on sex would be Jude) - thusly loosing her purity.
Another view of her mark was a fish, which Shadrack spoke of in the second to last chapter. Fish are often accepted as symbols of emotional well-being and social healing. Sula's name means Peace Peace, and she makes the entire society come together during her life (social healing) - and even thought she herself does not have a good relationship with them - through hating her they all become better people (emotional well-being).
Question from Kyle: How does Nel's friendship with Sula impact the actions that the girls engage in? Is Nell simply an observer of the havoc that Sula creates or does she play a a more prominent role in their actions?
ReplyDeleteQuestion from Taylor:
ReplyDelete“Always”, the single word Shadrack says to Sula after witnessing her manslaughter before she even asks him a question. And Sula isn’t even sure of what question he answered. Was Shadrack answering a question? Or was he trying to make a statement to her about something she now has to deal with after experiencing death? What impact could this have on Sula as she grows up? And does Shadrack not reveal to the town what she does because he feels there is no point as the death is already over, or does it have to do with a deeper sentiment he has with National Suicide Day and the idea of organizing death?
Taylor Womack
ReplyDelete4-10-14
AP English Literature 6*
Ms. Delman
Sula’s name meaning peace is an oxymoron when juxtaposed with the circumstances of her life, and illustrates the backwardness of her life which could be the cause of her strange behavior. Although she is not even a teenager, Sula has already seen “her mother in the bed, curled spoon in the arms of a man”(44). Most children are only somewhat aware of the true act of sex before they are teenagers, and still have a lot of questions as teens, yet Sula is only a young girl and has the notion of the act of sex. By observing this extremely mature and complex act being so common and shallow as a child, Sula could become desensitized from the emotional connection that is normally associated with the act of sex, and may lose some other normal emotional responses to extremely stressful and straining situations. This can be seen in her intimidation tactic towards the bully Irish boys, where “she slashed off only the tip of her finger” (54) to warn them of her violent intentions if they assault Nel and Sula. Some people do cut themselves, but they are under extreme depression and emotional stress, the fact that Sula could hurt herself without as much as a flinch shows that she’s lacking some emotional tendencies from the norm. Furthermore, Sula’s early encounter with death, death that she inadvertently caused, is bound to cause heavy emotional damage later on in her life as it is something that most people don’t deal in their entire lifetimes, much less before they’re matured adults. She will feel an immense guilt, possibly forever, which could have been implied by Shadrack’s grinning “always” (62) when Sula checks if he saw her manslaughter. Sula’s name acts as a foil to exemplify the absurd and chaotic life that she experiences.
I believe that Hannah can be seen as a strong feminist character who finds power in her individuality and sex life.
ReplyDeleteHannah is harshly criticized by the women of the town. I couldn't help but think of The Scarlet Letter and how it was the women who judged Hester the most severely, such as in Hannah's case. The women of the town resent Hannah because she "seemed too unlike them, having no passion attached to her relationships" (44). Instead of primarily judging Hannah for sleeping with married men (which I would think would be the most troubling aspect), their resentment mostly comes their lack of understanding of Hannah's lifestyle that differs from theirs. Hannah doesn't fit the status quo, she's not interested in finding a man to love and support her. She simply wants a quick fun time with no attachments. Morrison expresses this herself when she describes that "she would fuck practically anything, but sleeping with someone implied for her a measure of trust and a definite commitment" (44). The women of the town are unable to accept this mindset, instead labeling Hannah as a "nasty woman" (44) even though Morrison says directly that "she was unquestionably a kind and generous woman" (44). Regardless of the criticism, Hannah doesn't let any of this phase her, instead choosing to live her life as she pleases. She doesn't want anything more than a good time, and she doesn't care what others think about it.
I can't help but think of the discussion we had in class a while ago with the different Biblical stories, and how one of them (I can't remember which one now) dealt with refusing to conform to society's social norms. I believe that this is definitely a main theme in Sula, and Hannah is a good example of that. I believe that Morrison is trying to express that she believes that women should find the power to embrace individuality, regardless of judgement, instead of living how society wants them to live.
Toni Morrison's depiction of death as an act of love exemplifies the complexity of death. Eva's decision to kill Plum, her beloved son, challenges the accepted values of death. Instead of viewing one's demise as a sorrowful and depressing subject, it is expressed as a way of release and salvation. Eva killed Plum believing that ending his misery would be better than him continuing to suffer from heroin addiction. Traditional ideals might consider this irrational murder but Morrison portrays this as an expression of love. She cannot bear the pain of having to watch him attempt to live his already ruined life, so she ends it for him. When she is pouring kerosene on Plum, he calmly accepts it, also believing death was indeed better than living. This goes against the concept that death is a horrible thing, but instead describes it as a virtue. Through this incident, Morrison conveys the idea that death can be an act of love.
ReplyDeleteResponse to the guiding question about death.
ReplyDeleteMorrison's use of death in the novel is a dramatic contradiction to every day societal views of death. He uses death, and the taking of life, to depict care or purity. In the present day, taking anyone's life is strictly looked down upon by the general public, unless it is war (but this is for another discussion). Morrison uses instances of these types of feelings to flip the reader's understanding of morals in the novel. Eva decides to take the life of her son, Plum, because of his harrowing addictions he picked up from being in the war. Speculation on this act is very open ended, ranging from the selfishness of preventing her own suffering to the selflessness of putting him out of his. The open acceptance of death, murder, and suicide in the novel spin the perception of morals to something more abstract and up for debate; Morrison supports this through the undying (pun) support of the death motif. Altogether, it works towards a theme which reconsiders morals about death. One's morals may be completely different if they weren't subject to major bias from societal and interpersonal beliefs.
Death is definitely a dominant motif in Sula. It has a strong presence and can be found anywhere so far in the book. Although death can often seem something so heinous, the matter of death and the act ending one’s life in Sula doesn’t always seem to be so malevolent. Plum’s death, for instance, is brought about by his own mother, Eva. This was perhaps her way of putting an end to his polluted lifestyle especially after Hannah discovers the “bent spoon black from steady cooking” (Morrison 45) for his own drug use. Plum’s death by fire as seen by Eva is described as “some kind of baptism, some kind of blessing” (Morrison 47) that will bring him out of his addiction and ultimately “cleanse” him. Death usually should be more depressing and sorrowful; however, this novel doesn’t necessarily focus on that topic. In this community, the matter of death gives the idea that it is their way of finding their own liberty and an act of love and it happens so often that it practically associated with freedom. National Suicide Day is a big example of this since people in the Bottom started seeing this day as a holiday like any other.
ReplyDeleteAlthough death is usually depicted as an unfortunate event, Toni Morrison portrays death as a sense of freedom. Eva sees her son, Plum, in a great deal of distress after he returns from the war. In her eyes, the only way to save her son from his own misery is to end it forever. She viewed his addiction as something that got entirely out of control. The act of killing Plum shows how much love can blind people into thinking that their actions are rational in that moment. In her eyes, Eva has released her son from the hardships he was facing due to his trauma. Morrision proves that death can be quite complex; she shows that killing someone, even a loved one, could be done out of love. Even though it contradicts the traditional outlook of death, Morrison utilizes death to show that it can be both beautiful and horrible at the same time.
ReplyDeleteIn “Sula”, men seemed to be fated to an inglorious end. For example, Eva’s son Plum meets his end at the hands of his own mother, as he lies on his bed where his mother lights a newspaper and, “threw it onto the bed where the kerosene-soaked Plum lay in snug delight” (47). From the text, it can be inferred that he was high when his mother put him out of his post-war misery. It must have been immensely difficult for Eva to do such a thing, especially to her own son, who had been ruined by the war. In this way, it was necessary for Eva’s peace of mind and closure, to see her son free of a poison that sapped at his life. This is a defining moment for Eva, as it reveals that she is willing to take her own son’s life away, just so that no one in her family is living a life tainted by troubles that pushed upon them. In a way, this aspect is also evident in the mystery surrounding her missing leg. Moreover, another male character’s death is similar to Plum’s in that his end was met suddenly and unexpectedly. Chicken Little, who ended up trusting Sula despite initial hesitance as, “He moved slowly toward her” (59). The main difference is that Chicken’s death at first, held little meaning. Many would say that a child dying so young is one of the world’s worst, reasonless injustices. However, through the trauma of being responsible for his death, Sula is able to grow and become closer to Nel. Their companionship helps Sula to handle the burden of killing a child and confining, “all that life and death locked into that closed little coffin” (65-66), thus deepening their already close bond. In all, it seems that through the death of men, the female characters are able to show their true human nature and that the men in their lives, although necessary for brief pleasure, serve only to hinder the female character.
ReplyDeletePost from Stephanie: Toni Morrison portrays death as a choice and as an escape from life. In the novel so far, characters are choosing death over life. It seems like every character is influenced by death in some way. After seeing death in the war, Shadrack goes and lives off by himself and creates National Suicide Day. He creates National Suicide Day so that people have a choice to end their life. He is afraid of death and of people having no control over their lives. He believes that some people will have the peace in death that they never had during life. Plum gets back from the war and is obviously devastated by what he saw for he begins to struggle with addiction. Eve takes matters into her own hands by killing her so. She does so because she loves him and because she can’t watch him fall into this life of despair. Thus, she crosses the line with who has the right to decide who lives and who dies. She believes that Plum and herself will have a better life if he is dead. Tar Baby is an alcoholic and is slowly killing himself because of it. Sula unintentionally kills Chicken Little, and it doesn’t seem to have much of an affect on her. Later in life this might change because of how young she was when this happened. At the moment Nel seem to feel guilty and dismal for what happened, but she also pretends like nothing happened. I’m sure later in their life the death of Chicken Little will affect their life drastically. In conclusion, Toni Morrison portrays death as an escape from a horrible life. Death is always walking beside you and it is your choice to succumb to it or not. Everyone should have the right to choose to live or not to live. Death is no the end, it is a new beginning. It is a journey waiting to be experienced and fulfilled.
ReplyDeleteQuestion from Kanchan: How does the connotation of the men (like the ones who comment and look at the woman characters) in Sula add a theme to to story? And is it good or bad?
ReplyDeleteI do not believe that the connotation of men in this novel is a good one. Granted, women in this novel also have a bad connotation, but to answer the question I am only going to refer to the males. On one hand you have Jude, who betrays his wife by sleeping with her best friend. Then you have Ajax who left Sula as soon as he believed that her ideas about their relationship had changed. This is when he longer treats Sula as an equal, but as an object, just like the other men in the town. You also have the men who condemn the actions of the women who sleep around, but then they go and cheat on their wives by sleeping with these women. The themes that could be applied to this is good vs. evil. What makes a person a good person and what makes them a bad one? Is it one’s actions that define them as good or equal, or something else? Then there is chaos vs. order. Chaos is the way that the people in this society interact with each other, while order is the way they fix their interactions. Then, of course, you have the independence of women. How the woman interact with the males and what they do to defend themselves.
DeleteQuestion from Johann: Eva's love for Plum causes her to end his life for his own good. Hannah says that she does not like Sula although she loves her. How is the portrayal of love different from traditional values? What is the significance of this difference?
ReplyDeleteQuestion from Jesse: Why does Morrison decide to justify the murder of Plum with narcotics and alcohol, rather than just trauma from the war or Eva's selfishness? Connect it to reasons we may have come across in the book, such as socioeconomic status, social status, etc.
ReplyDeleteQuestion from Christian: How does segregation in the 1920s influence how Morrison makes characters interact with each other. Consider the literal and symbolic barriers that divide the races and how these divisions adds to the meaning of the novel. As well as discuss how segregation effects the characters themselves.
ReplyDeleteIn the first few pages of Sula, Morrison shows segregation through The Bottom and the valley. The first think the readers learn about the novel is the separation between blacks and whites (Coincidence? Probably not). The first time Nel leaves her home and travels with her mother, she is faced with the unjustness of segregation. The people leaving in The Bottom are angered that they were tricked by the whites to live in that area. It is hard for them to get jobs and get an education which feeds into their hate of the world. They city has all the power and controls them. I wouldn’t go as far to say that the reason their society is so hateful to each other is because of racism, but I believe it does play a role. The African Americans in their society start to embody some of this racism by targeting those of a darker skin. The same thing the whites are doing to them is what they’re doing to their own people. Sula feels torn between her African American society and then the white outside world. Sula alienated herself from her community, which angered the townspeople because she was conforming to the white society. This caused the people to mistrust Sula and her intentions. Nel embraces racism by complying to the ideas placed on her for being an African American women. Segregation affects Sula in the exact opposite way that it affects Nel. Sula leaves her African American town and goes to live around white people. When she returns, she continues to sleep with white men. This shows how Sula is rebelling against the constrictions placed on her for being African American. This adds to the meaning of the novel to not conform to ideas that people have, place on you, or force you to have. Also, to fight for and stand up to what you believe is unjust.
DeleteAnother thing I just thought of- This could also add to the theme of chaos vs. order. Segregation- chaos & Integration- order.
DeleteQuestion from Lian: The name Eva is derived from a Hebrew name that means “living one” or “life” and is essentially a different form of the Biblical name of Eve. What do you think her name signifies in the novel and do you think it’s fitting for her? (Consider Plum’s death)
ReplyDeleteQuestion from Kayla: What are the gender roles in Sula? How are men expected to act? How are women expected to act? Who is expected to run the household, and how are they expected to run it?
ReplyDeleteQuestion from Nika: Why is it that only men celebrate National Suicide Day? What is Morrison trying to tell the reader with this?
ReplyDeleteQuestion from Ysabel: What is the significance of BoyBoy's name? Does it reflect certain traits that he has or any of his past actions?
ReplyDeleteAnthony Liu; AP Lit 6°; Ms. Delman; 4 – 23 – 14
DeleteBlog post for years 1941 – 1965
What is the significance of BoyBoy's name? Does it reflect certain traits that he has or any of his past actions?
The repetition of “Boy” emphasizes his utter immaturity. Nel’s possessiveness of Jude and the townswomen’s lack of patience for Sula’s promiscuity show that Medallion’s cultural norms require that husbands and wives remain faithful to one another. This is in contrast to Sula and Nel’s behavior as kids: “They had always shared the affection of other people: compared how a boy kissed” (119). Marriage in Sula is portrayed as a transformative milestone that requires people to abandon their sexual freedoms. Boyboy’s “preoccupation with other women” (32) is therefore indicative of his failure to grow up. This disease of his must be hereditary because the only other Medallions who follow in his footsteps, Hannah and Sula, are related to him. Both Hannah and Sula sleep with other people to no end, and both their names follow the same repetitive formula. Hannah’s second syllable mirrors her first, and Sula’s name translates to “Peace Peace”. Moreover, when BoyBoy returns from his assumed abandonment, he arrives lavishly, with the narrator writing, “Boyboy danced up the steps” (35). Sula also leaves Medallion and returns in a similar fashion, judging by the fact that the narrator described her as “dressed in a manner that was as close to a movie star as anyone would ever see” (90). These two points, repetition and wealth, are linked to liberal sex and consequently to an ability to mature, (ironically).
Question from Angela: In Sula, Nel and Sula are called "pig meat" (Morrison 50). Hannah is described as having many sexual relations with different men. Both of these things are not portrayed as anything negative. Traditionally, being cat called and sleeping around are viewed as "un-feminist." Why do these events, and similar events to this, empower the women instead of degrading them as they would in a more "traditional" society?
ReplyDeleteFirst off I would like to say I really like this question, as it invokes a very contradictory view point to how these things would generally be perceived. I think that these things can be empowering to the right women, and in Sula, I think this is the case. I think that the reason this contradicts and empowers is because in a society where women are oppressed, or at least considered to be less, the attention they get from these men give them power. It gives them the power to sway and control men by being desirable, and basically twisting the intentions back at them. For example, Sula uses Jude for her own personal gain, and although he is married, the attraction she imposed was enough to sway a committed man. This shows the degree of power Sula has obtained; she could create or destroy at will, and if it wouldn't be by the power she has (or doesn't have), then it would be by the manipulation of those around her, specifically men, therefore a "traditionally" degrading event is now spun to be empowering.
DeleteQuestion from Robin: What is Sula and Nel's relationship like exactly? Are they lovers? Partners in crime? They are alone, yet together, they seem so close and connected. They seem naturally drawn to each other.
ReplyDeleteSula and Nel are really close friends and the book is essentially about their friendship. In the second chapter, Morrison introduces Nel who is brought up by a strict mother that “drove her daughter’s imagination underground” (18) anytime Nel showed signs of enthusiasm. She grows up to be “obedient and polite” (18) under a very clean and orderly home. While Sula on the other hand, is raised in a disorderly home where there is always “a constant stream of boarders” (30). Her grandmother, Eva, is always busy taking care of others and her mother, Hannah, doesn’t seem to pay her any close attention, leaving Sula free to do whatever she wants. When the two first meet, they instantly connect and become the best of friends despite being total opposites. Although, it is most likely because they are opposites that they become friends since they both seem to complete each other. Helene claims that Sula loves Nel’s orderly home and would “sit on the red-velvet sofa for ten to twenty minutes at a time—still as dawn” (29). Interestingly enough, Nel preferred Sula’s warm and busy house “where the mother, Hannah, never scolded or gave directions; where all sorts of people dropped in; where newspapers where stacked in the hallway, and dirty dishes left for hours at a time in the sink” (29). They are friends because they each desire something from the other and put each other at ease. Even as they grow up, they continue to be opposites of each other. As an adult, Nel marries and stays in the bottom and has children, while Sula, free-spirited and independent, leaves the Bottom and travels. Once Sula comes back however, she creates a huge conflict by sleeping with her best friend’s husband. Both characters are opposite creating a relationship between someone simple (Nel) and complex (Sula) and between someone “good” and “bad.”
DeleteQuestion from Genny: First I have a clarifying question. Why did Sula or Nel not try to save Chicken Little? I'm just a bit confused on the context of the scene. That scene was a bit confusing for me when I first read it, so I'm not completely sure what happened with Chicken and with Shadrack.
ReplyDeleteWhat I noticed was that the characters in the novel seem a little calm when they witness a killing or hurting. Eva was calm when she put her own son on fire, Sula was calm when she cut the tip of her finger, Nel and Shadrack were calm when they witnessed Chicken drowning, and people had an overall calmness during Chicken's funeral. What is the significance of the relationship between this overall calmness and death?
Question from Jennifer: Race is a dominant theme in Sula. While race is what keeps the blacks appear inferior to the whites, race is also what builds a strong black community. The issue of race may also be related to that of gender. As Shadrack mentions early in the novel, “All their repugnance was contained in the neat balance of the triangles – a balance that soothed him, transferred some of its equilibrium to him” (Morrison 8). Analyze the role and importance of race in Sula and why Morrison conveys that idea.
ReplyDeleteMost men in "Sula" are displayed as inadequate or foolish in comparison to Sula. Men are portrayed as things of pleasure, not in the way that Hannah was portrayed. They live their lives with constant superiority over their wives, usually ending up cheating on their wife in some way. BoyBoy and Jude, while seemingly good men with good intentions, end up leaving their wives for their own goals. This depicts men in the book very poorly, as the women they leave end up devastated and incapable of living a joyful life. Ajax, however, breaks the trend, and does not marry nor truly love anyone. The only person he truly loves and respects is his mother, as she has lived a hard life. Sula is also depicted as a loveless woman, who unlike her mother, lives life craving to actually feel true emotions, instead of her inherently evil traits. This brings Ajax to the level of superiority of Sula in the novel, and his character sticks out from the rest of the men. Ajax shows self-restraint, and his breaking of the social norms of Medallion allows his character to rise above the rest of the men in the town. This is because, for the first time, Sula shows feelings for a man. He is no like the rest of the sad, dreaming men of Medallion, nor is he like the white men depicted as ignorant or domineering. Ajax also leaves Sula's life as quickly as he arrives, presumably realizing that Sula has shown feelings for him. While it seems that now Ajax is simply like the rest of the men of Medallion, he leaves in a similar manner as Sula. He leaves because he doesn't love Sula nor anyone in the town. This shows his superiority in moral values to the other residents of Medallion because he leaves Sula before a true connection is formed, and both can move on in life without each other.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteToni Morrison celebrates women by making them independent. Sula, Eva, and Hannah all drift from the traditional roles played by women in society during this time. They don’t settle down with men and raise their children like stereotypical mothers would. At the beginning of the novel, Sula and Nel believe that they are denied certain freedoms and independence because they are african american women. Nel is raised by a mother who teaches her how to be the “ideal woman,” by being an obedient housewife, while Sula grows up with two very independent women. Sula defies this idea of being a women by leaving for college for ten years. This clearly shows Sula’s independence and how she differs from the other women in society. Women during this time didn’t go to school and were uneducated. Nel stays behind, gets married, and has children. Look where this gets her- she loses her husband and is miserable. She no longer feels like she is part of society because she doesn’t have a husband. Woman during this time felt like their place in the community was with their husband. Sula violates this idea by returning from college but refusing to marry and have children. Her self-determination and independence forces her to leave the Bottom, which was not done very often if at all.
ReplyDeleteAjax and Sula are both drawn to each other because of their independence. Ajax is drawn to her because she was “the only other woman he knew whose life was her own” (127). Sula is brilliant and they are able to carry a conversation together as equals. Morrison states that “a lover was not a comrade and could never be- for a woman” (121). During this time, husbands were just lovers to women. Since women were never equal, especially in the education area, they could never be a “comrade” to men. Sula realizes that someone that she sleeps with could never have an intellectual relationship with her. She does eventually meet Ajax who she is able to a physical and intellectual relationship with, but this eventually comes to end when they realize that this relationship is not going to work. In conclusion, Sula defies the idea of the “proper woman” by going to college and becoming a free and independent woman.
I dig what you're saying about Sula and Ajax, I think in a lot of ways the fulfill each other in the same sense that Nel and Jude did. Ajax is looking for a woman who can intrigue him and bring him freedom. Flying seems like the greatest form of freedom to him, while it challenges him. Sula fills this for Ajax, however only until she gets attached to him, at that point she begins restricting him. Ajax fears the "possession"(131) that Sula begins to crave. It seems that Ajax will always want to fly, not be tied down by "death-knell questions"(133).
DeleteAs we get deeper and deeper into the book, Sula seems to be a worse person. Despite all of the things she's done in the past regarding to the boys that were bugging her to being a bystander while her own mother was dying, it didn't seem like she could get more evil. When she returns back to Medallion because she needed the company of a woman, Nel, she ends up stealing her husband, Jude. She betrayed and hurt her own best friend that she thought was her in another form. Then she described how she didn't consider how much pain she would cause her by doing such a thing, showing how careless and heartless she is towards others. She's inconsiderate of how her actions affect others and doesn't care that they have feelings. Sula slept with men in town only to use them for her own pleasure. She doesn't do things unless she gains something out of it. Sula also put Eva out despite the fact that she practically raised her. The way she acts becomes worse and worse as the book goes on, showing a prominent sense of evil inside of her.
ReplyDeleteDespite Toni Morrison’s claim that “evil preoccupied [her] in Sula”, I can’t necessarily agree that Sula is an “evil” character. She doesn’t really go out of her way to make others’ lives difficult; she simply lives by her own rules and always puts her needs before others, “Eva’s arrogance and Hannah’s self-indulgence merged in her and, with a twist that was all her own imagination, she lived out her days exploring her thoughts and emotions, giving them full reign, feeling no obligation to please anybody unless their pleasure pleased her” (118). Other characters call her selfish, along with all kinds of other degrading names, however, I don’t agree with those claims to the extent of calling her “evil”. Society tends to react negatively with change or anything outside its usual norm, and Sula’s character is nothing like Medallion has ever seen before, “Sula was distinctly different” (118). They simply don’t know how to react to a woman like her, the type of woman who goes with her gut, lives for herself, knows what she wants, is independent, and does not need a man to define or complete her. During Sula’s time, women were the opposite of that, and her behavior was absolutely out of the question. Furthermore, this relates to another recurring theme, the idea that Sula is a novel that celebrates women and challenges the power of men.
ReplyDeleteAnyway, my point is that just because Sula’s behavior is completely foreign to society at this point in history, I do not believe it is fair to call Sula “evil”. Her actions are not prompted by malice, she does not seek revenge on anyone (except maybe Eva), and she certainly does not mean to hurt Nel. The twisted events of her childhood do lead the reader to question Sula’s humanity, however, it’s her courage and her independence that set her apart from the typical, innocent woman, not the fact that her actions can, at times, be hurtful to others.