Themes In Toni Morrison's Beloved, Song Of Solomon

An American Slave,” Douglass discusses the horrors of being enslaved and a fugitive slave. Through Douglass’s use of figurative language, diction and repetition he emphasizes the cruelty he experiences thus allowing readers to under-stand his feelings of happiness, fear and isolation upon escaping slavery. Figurative language allocates emotions such as excitement, dread and seclusion. As a slave you have no rights, identity or home. Escaping slavery is the only hope of establishing a sense of self and humanity.

Ex slaves, penned their personal experiences of slavery and contributed to the creation of a new literary genre namely the slave narrative. The importance of slave narratives in modern African American literature is such that the latter could not be understood without an analysis of the literature written by ex slaves. Slave narratives played an important role in the genesis of Afro American literature. As seen in any other genre, in slave narratives too there can be seen some differences between slave narratives written by men and slave narratives written by women. In the case of bondwomen they lived through two-fold submission.

To voice their burden of being slaves, female slaves had to struggle a lot whereas male slaves recorded their anger, frustration and feelings of powerlessness, nonetheless, their common experience of dehumanizing conditions of slavery creates a powerful communal voice. Through their narratives, the black managed to esteem and preserve their value system including, music, songs, voodoo, beliefs, spirituals, religion, ancestors, kinship-ties, herbal medicines, food habits etc. The slave narratives have been read by critics as rerecording of history of slavery, as of humanity of the blacks as they also carried with them from ‘South’ by forging their cultural principles into new forms of expression that would sustain the conditions they met in ‘North’. Through these forms they were able to respond to social, racial and economic exploitation under which they

Identity and the Future in Beloved In every time period and place, storytelling is a way to connect to one 's cultural and personal identity as well as pass on wisdom to the next generation. In Beloved, author Toni Morrison uses storytelling 's impact on identity in the context of the horrific institution of slavery. Though the legacy of slavery is painful and it often seems like forgetting it completely is the best option, the truth is that one 's past and one 's identity are deeply, unalterably connected.

In particular, Whitehead’s use of imagery, character interactions and figurative language brings to attention aspects of race relations that were and are still often misunderstood or disregarded by society. It is important to note, however, that the oppressed do not remain oppressed forever as demonstrated by heroine Cora ’s persisting efforts to break free. Thus, through his uncensored narrative of slavery, Whitehead sets precedence for the impassioned social resistance movements in the modern era by arguing that the most enduring road is

African American literature, which has its origin in the 18th century, has helped African Americans to find their voice in a country where laws were set against them. The position of African Americans in the dominant society of the United States of America has not been an easy one. African Americans needed to find a new identity in the New World and were considered an underclass for a long time. In literature, African American writers have been telling the story of their complex experience and history. The mission to find their own voice was even more difficult for African American women who became targets of numerous insults, both during and after slavery, and were forced to be silent and to stand in the background for a long time.

Therefore, what ways do Morrison explore the psychological impact of slavery? What are the trials and tribulations that each character faces in the story? In the novel, Toni Morrison expresses the

Still, Taylor 's professionalism emerges by linking her goal to demystify the African-American history in Mississippi in 1930 's, and the role of parenthood; throughout a contrast of a loving family located underneath a society of hatred. Therefore, and as an African-American writer, Taylor fictionalizes an extended black family of seven; Papa (David Logan), Mama (Mary Logan), Big Ma (Caroline Logan/Grandmother), Uncle Hammer (David 's brother) and children (Stacy, Cassie, Christopher-John and Little man Logan); in their quest to survive their ordeal, physically and emotionally. However, it is on the lips of the child protagonist, focalizer and narrator, Cassie, where Taylor presents quite a description of mothering performances at its best, as well, states a nation wise anxiety of freedom, justice and respect. For that reason, and being the foremost school for any child, mostly, Mary Logan (Mama) is one of the principle characters to translate Taylor 's vision about motherhood, whom she loves, cares, teaches, protects, guides and empowers her children in such harsh surroundings. Moreover, the author weighs both motherhood and fatherhood on the same plate, and celebrates the David Logan 's (Papa) character as important, and as an equivalent, as Mary 's (McDowell

Hannah Tay Yee Ern Mrs. McNeill 3A 5 November 2014 Psychological Impacts of Slavery As Harriet Ann Jacobs (1813-1897), an African-American writer who escaped from slavery, once said: “When they told me my new-born babe was a girl, my heart was heavier than it had ever been before. Slavery is terrible for men; but it is far more terrible for women.” Indeed, slavery was an obstacle to emancipation.

patchwork of flashbacks, memories, and nightmares that is channeled to unearth those unspeakable horrors of slavery while giving them life through a life-giving eternal story. Toni Morrison joined the league of slave narrators, by producing a text which is set to make the horrors of slavery once again alive and saved from the oblivion which forced by some Americans who were chewing historical facts and order to adopt a less disturbing and more favorable account of slavery. In this light, Toni Morrison's Beloved worthy of study in relation

For Dana in the book, Kindred slavery was an unexplored path in her life.

Whether they wished to assist Celia or not, Newsom’s husbandless daughters were utterly dependent upon their father (McLaurin, 32), a fact that made confronting him dangerous. The importance of this master-slave structure in Southern life, as well as the value of slavery itself, may explain the actions of the Judge presiding over Celia’s trial. By choosing to sustain the objections of the prosecution, Judge William Hall sealed the fate of Celia the slave. Had he acted against the established institution, Celia might have been spared. He chose instead to protect it, probably guided by the

Both novels, Invisible Man and Up from Slavery, depict mainly the realities of facing prejudices; however, there is different in terms of genres, one is an autobiography and the other is fictional. Up From Slavery is an autobiographical novel which depicts Washington 's struggles to gain an education and, later, educate other African Americans on the importance of education. Autobiography is a true story about a real person happening in the real time; therefore, it has the power of convincing readers. Moreover, by focusing on detailing Washington’s personal experiences in working to rise from the position of a slave child during the Civil War, his autobiography also has inspirational and motivational effects on society at that time. It brings

The significance of a name in both literature and reality are often overlooked as something of little to no importance. In Toni Morrison's novel, Beloved, she proves just how important a character's name is in conveying a story's theme. Beloved's character is intended to act as a living embodiment of the 60 million slaves who refuse to be forgotten, however, she could have easily done so while having a name. Instead, Morrison takes the opportunity to further display the effects of slavery in her portrayal of Beloved. Author, Toni Morrison, displays society's refusal to acknowledge their past mistakes in order to move progressively forward by giving Beloved a label rather than a name; which serves in providing a voice for the 60 million Beloved