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AP Lit Mods 11-12 Class Blog About Me
Monday, February 22, 2016
Ms. Podvesker
Beloved Blog #2
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Beloved (Part II-III) Blog Archive
*Answer any 2 of the following guided questions:
t 2016 (8) April (4)
1. Memory is fluid in the text. Locate other powerful moments of memory or “disremembering.” What does memory mean for Sethe? For the other characters? Why have the past and present as ONE entity? What is Morrison trying to do with the juxtaposition of remembering vs. forgetting? 2. How did you interpret the symbolism of the ice-skating adventure? And discuss how this scene leads into Sethe’s realization that Beloved is her daughter and what she says to Beloved in her thoughts.
March (2) t February (2) Beloved Blog #2 Beloved by Toni Morrison *Please answer any 2 que... 2015 (13)
3. Analyze the four chapters that reflect monologues in the stream-ofconsciousness structure and how the voices of the 3 women intermingle. Unpack these chapters and the way in which they explore the motif of “mine” and possessing another person. 4. In part III, we start to see how the relationship between the 3 women begins to deteriorate—analyze how this happens. What’s the resolution? Discuss the role of the community in this section.
Posted by Ms. Podvesker at 5:30 AM
21 comments: Artin Mohammadish February 24, 2016 at 3:37 PM 2.) The ice-skating adventure with Sethe, Denver, and Beloved appears to serve as a symbol/motif bearing various significances. For starters, this partly shows that Sethe is not completely devastated by Paul D's desertion from 124. Later in the scene, Sethe listens to Beloved humming a vocalization that Sethe herself had crafted to sing to her children as some sort of lullaby. Immediately thereafter, Sethe realizes that Beloved is the immortalized and experienced resurrection of her perished daughter. Sethe is therefore able to desist from dwelling upon the lamentable past and the uncertain future now that her revived daughter has returned to rejoin her. Sethe instead decides to focus on the "timeless" present that is 124. From my perspective, this seemingly supernatural and epiphanic moment of realization breaks yet another chain asunder that had metaphorically bound Sethe. Sethe is able to stop worrying about the past and the future of her children (since she only sees the best of herself within them) and focus on the present now that she is reconciled once again. 4.) In part III, the relationship between the 3 women and the life at 124 both start to become rather decadent. While Sethe becomes divested of the energy and will to work by Beloved like a parasite (who represents the harrowing past history of African American culture), Denver (who represents the future) appears to be unable to discern between Beloved and Sethe's demeanor as their roles begin to interpolate and replace one another's. As we have previously discussed, the relationship between a mother and a child has been of paramount significance throughout this text. However, that relationship can turn rather sour if it is not maintained in a way that the child can be nurtured and grow up to become independent (not to depend on the parent permanently). The scenes presented in part III are examples of such negativity. After Sethe regresses back into an infantlike state thanks to Beloved, Denver finally matures into a responsible woman and leads the community in exorcising the harrowing past that Beloved represents. The community views Beloved as an entity that can never be truly satisfied; it can only roam and leech off others. Therefore, the community expropriates Beloved in order to impose an indefinite moratorium upon the seemingly never-ending suffering. In my opinion, I observe part III as the excerpt whereby the protagonists must come to terms with the gritty reality that has been haunting them for many years. It is only when the community stands up against Beloved and her nefarious tactics that it all comes to an end. Sethe is reminded that she holds personal significance above her own children, which allows her to hope for a fruitful future with Paul D. Reply
hannahr February 28, 2016 at 6:44 AM 2. Beloved found a pair of old ice skates and Sethe hesitantly agreed to let the girls go ice skating. The three of them tripped, slipped, and fell but each of them watched out for eachother. When one would fall, the other two would help them up. They laughed at their inability to skate and seemed to genuinely enjoy eachother’s company. An overwhelming feeling of comfort and security comes over Sethe and her laughter turns to tears. She realizes that it was meant to be today. Being with her two girls felt right and she felt oddly at peace. This leads into her discovery that Beloved is her baby daughter she had killed. After they finished ice skating, they went inside to warm up, and Beloved began to hum a specific tune. Sethe told Beloved that only her children know that song because she had made it up herself. Beloved simply smiles and says, “I know it”. This strikes a nerve in Sethe, suddenly aware that Beloved is her child. She then realizes that the shadow of Paul D, Denver, and herself did not represent “us three” with Paul D, but “us three” with Beloved. Their little family was meant to live on despite the past. 3. These four chapters follow the train of thought of Sethe, Denver, and Beloved respectfully. Sethe finally comes to the conclusion that Beloved is her daughter. She feels as if she was given a second chance and she does not want her daughter to slip away from her again. Repetitively, she says that beloved is “mine”. To Sethe, possessing someone is the greatest type of love she can give. Since Beloved is hers, she would die for her, she will give her whatever she needs. Calling Beloved “mine” insinuates that her daughter is a part of her and you love someone that completes you unconditionally. Denver also believes that Beloved is her own. She convinces herself that Beloved came back for her. She reflects on their short life of sisterhood together and believes that she has returned to regain that relationship. Denver’s obsession with her stems from the fact that she is afraid Sethe will attempt to kill her again. She had feared for her life since Sethe tried to kill her and is trying to protect Beloved’s life as well. Beloved’s stream of consciousness is extremely muddled. Since she is a supernatural figure, her thoughts are more abstract than Sethe and Denver’s. It seems as if she is trying to find herself, her mortal self amidst her ghostly being. She wishes to be real like Sethe and regain both physical and emotional feeling. She resents Sethe yet she is obsessed with her and the way she looks and acts. The final chapter is extremely paradoxical in the form of a poem. Denver tries to not love Beloved too much and Sethe believes that there is no such thing as “too much”. Beloved believes that Sethe had abandoned her but she is desperate for Sethe to accept her as a person. The concept of possession correlates with their dire need to find their purpose in life and to have an identity. Calling something their own gives them a sense of individuality and meaning. Reply
Erika J February 28, 2016 at 12:02 PM #2: After fighting with Paul D, Sethe decides to go on an ice skating adventure with her children. There, she loses track of time and has a real family bonding experience. They skate together in joy regardless of the fact that they don’t have the right equipment or that they continually fall on the ice. They are in their own world, isolated like they had always been before Paul D had arrived in Cincinnati. Interestingly enough, despite the overall sense of escapism and happiness that they all feel, there is an undertone of something being slightly off. In the passage, Toni Morrison repeats the phrase “Nobody saw them fall” which emphasises their isolation and in a way, their lack of awareness of their own instability, literally and metaphorically. The characters in the scene believe that their presence for each other is enough and that everyone else doesn’t matter, but as we learn later on, community is important, support is paramount, and stability is essential. This scene is foreshadowing how intoxicated they are with one another, unable to see the instability that surrounds their complicated relationship with one another. It also demonstrates how the community really has no idea what is going on in 124. This scene leads into Sethe’s realization that Beloved is her daughter. She comes to this conclusion when snuggled by the fireplace, Beloved sings a lullaby that Sethe made up and only sang to her children. In her thoughts, Sethe believes that Beloved understands all of her past actions, and how they were all made out of love. She wants to make everything up to her by spending every minute of her day with Beloved, trying to wipe her conscious clean. Reply
Erika J February 28, 2016 at 12:04 PM #4: The relationship between the three women deteriorates as Beloved becomes greedy for Sethe’s love. The more greedy Beloved becomes, the more subservient the once strong willed Sethe becomes. Toni Morrison makes it so their relationship is essentially flip flopped. Beloved is the one dictating her mother’s every action while Sethe obediently listens. Uncharacteristically, Sethe deals with Beloved’s tantrums because she feels that it is her duty to devote her every second to her daughter in exchange for a sort of validation that what she did was out of love. It is a toxic relationship where Beloved and Sethe only see one another which pushes out Denver. Having once thought that she had to protect Beloved from Sethe, Denver becomes increasingly worried about what Beloved’s neediness is doing to her mother who has lost her job and any sense of responsibility. Sethe has even lost an immense amount of weight while ironically Beloved has gained a significant amount of weight. Beloved is literally draining the life out of her guilt ridden mother. In danger of starving, Denver takes initiative and looks for a job to take care of her family. The resolution to all of the problems in 124, however, only arrives when Denver shares her story with Janey, a servant of the Bodwin’s and who she came to for a job. The story spreads like wildfire around the black community. They put the past behind them and rally together upon hearing that Beloved has entered the mortal world to haunt her mother. In the climax of the book, certain parallels from the evening of the Misery appear. For one, a white man , Mr. Bodwin, is coming to 124 to take one of Sethe’s children (but, in a non malicious way) and another, Sethe once again is overcome with that same animal instinct to protect her kin when she sees the familiar sight of a white man coming into her yard. The only differences are that instead of trying to kill her children, Sethe tries to attack Mr. Bodwin to protect her children and also that a large part of her community is there to support her rather than abandon her. The presence of her community prevented her from killing Mr. Bodwin with an ice pick and making another grave mistake. Even more, their prayers also seemed to affect Beloved. They were there to support her, and that support made all the difference. After all, that lack of support drove Baby Sugg’s to her death. More than anything though I believe that Sethe’s immediate reaction to protect her children seen by Beloved is the proof that Beloved needed to understand that it really was an act of love. It set her free. Reply
Gary DeOliveira February 28, 2016 at 1:19 PM 2) The ice-skating scene seems to act as a type of turning point. Sethe is able to act in a natural and normal way. It proves that the fleeing of Paul D is not insurmountable to her and that she could move on. When Sethe hears Beloved humming a lullaby she created when her children were younger, she has the moment of self-realization. Sethe now had it confirmed that Beloved truly was the reincarnation of her daughter who she killed. This realization allowed Sethe to grow as a person and forget the ills of the past. Sethe now only saw the positives in both of her daughters. Her regret of the past, and her worry for the future both left Sethe entirely. She was now able to focus solely on the present and the life of Denver, Beloved, and herself at 124. 4) In Part III, it is clear that the relationship between the three was deteriorating rapidly. Beloved begins to treat Sethe with disrespect, and the roles of the two seem to be reversing. Beloved takes a motherly role while Sethe acts more like the child of the two. As the situation continued to worsen, Denver matured and acted in the correct manner in going to the community for help. She has been pictured throughout the book as the future of society and acts in a very reasonable manner that allows her to show that trait in her. She holds the key to future generations and seems to be maintaining that role honorably. After the community came together to exorcise Beloved, Denver and Sethe join Paul D in an attempt to move onward with their lives. Sethe has a downturn and she felt that her only worth was in her children. Yet, Paul D came in and told her that she had more worth than just her children. It was the right thing to do, as Paul D was reminded of the death of Baby Suggs when he saw Sethe in that state of mind. Reply
Sammy Felten February 28, 2016 at 2:12 PM 2. The ice-skating adventure that Sethe, Denver, and Beloved share seems to be a joyful, family bonding experience. The three have fun attempting to ice-skate and are side by side throughout the whole experience. No one disturbs them and it all seems so peaceful. This kind of creeped me out because this was finally what Beloved had wanted. Beloved wanted to spend time with Sethe with no one in the way and though Denver is there, Sethe is finally paying more attention to Beloved. This leads to Sethe realizing that Beloved is her dead baby. By focusing so much on Beloved, Sethe realizes that by Beloved humming a tune that Sethe only sang to her children that Beloved must be her child. This doesn't creep Sethe out, surprisingly, but only leads her to enjoy their ice-skating adventure even more. It seems as though Beloved is finally forgiving her. 4. The deterioration of Sethe, Beloved, and Denver's relationship begins to happen in Part 3. It begins with Beloved taking advantage of Sethe's guilt. Beloved orders Sethe around and convinces Sethe to give her anything she demands. Sethe gives in since she wants her dead child to forgive her for what she had done to her. Beloved's demands include spending so much time with her that Sethe eventually gets fired from her job because she wasn't showing up on time. Beloved's demands also include feeding her as much as she wants, which lessens the amount of food that Sethe and Denver have to eat. Sethe begins to shrink and grow sickly where as Beloved is growing bigger and bigger, so in both physical and mental states, it's as though their roles has switched. Denver notices what Beloved is doing to Sethe and wants to help the family out. So she searches for a job in attempt to feed her family and protect Sethe from ultimately dying. By word of mouth, the community hears what the ghost of Beloved is doing to Sethe and decide that they need to help her. This kind of surprised me due to the fact that the community had such hatred toward Sethe for killing Beloved in the first place. However, the community had so much love for Denver and the great woman she was becoming in the society due to getting a job, trying to gain an education, and give back to her community, they decided it was the right thing to do. In an attempt to rid of Beloved from 124, the community succeeds when Sethe tries to kill Mr. Bodwin to "protect" her children. Sethe seems crazy in this moment and it's a parallel to when she was crazy when the other whtie men came to her house. However, this craziness and motherly instict to protect must be the reason that Beloved leaves because after the community and Denver stop Sethe from killing Mr. Bodwin, Beloved is nowhere to be seen. Reply
Brad Banaszynski February 28, 2016 at 3:18 PM #2- The ice-skating trip seemed to be the only joyous occasion thus far in the text. This scene is essential to the plot of the story in a couple different ways. First of all, they took this trip short after Paul D's departure which had the potential to really send Sethe into a downwards spiral. However, it turned out to not affect Sethe to that magnitude and instead she spent a large majority of the trip focusing on Beloved. After they were finished skating, Sethe noticed Beloved humming a tune that she would recognize anywhere: a song she had created that only her child would know. This specific point in the text is when Sethe accepts that Beloved is a supernatural, reincarnation of her deceased child. Instead of being frightened by this, she thought of it as a way of her child forgiving her for her actions and rejoining her. At this point, Sethe feels like she can forget about the past that haunts her and just live her life. #4-In Part III, Beloved starts taking the form of a leech, sucking the life out of Sethe and using it herself to thrive. At this point of the text, Beloved is effectively in control of Sethe's whole life. Her lust for undivided attention lost Sethe her job and has put the rest of the family in a tight situation. Denver really showed poise and maturity by realizing the situation that her mother was in and accepting more responsibility for herself to do something about it. Once she started fearing that her mother's life was in danger, she saw no other option that going to the community for help. Without the help of the community to exorcise Beloved and Paul D for nurturing Sethe on an emotional level I truly think that she would have died. I think now that Beloved had come and gone Sethe can finally cut ties with her past and pursue a normal life with Paul D that she deserves. Reply
Cameron Reagan February 28, 2016 at 3:52 PM 1.)Memory and rememory continues to cause Sethe a lot of angst within the second part of the novel. To Sethe, memories never go away, and still affect her as if they were happening in the present. She believes in “rememory,” meaning the past never leaves you. She doesn’t feel that her memories belong to her, but are events that are always happening. This demonstrates the pain she has suffered, and how she doesn’t feel that she really possesses anything. Her inability to let go of her horrific past is part of her torturing herself for the death of her daughter. Beloved forces Sethe to remember parts of her past that are painful, such as the death of her mother. The complex relationship with Beloved is somewhat revealed with the concept of memory, since Beloved represents the past. The death of Sethe’s mother prompts her to revisit her actions again, as she believes her mother was hanged because she was trying to escape. This meant she was leaving Sethe behind. Sethe compared her own actions to this, and concluded they were different because Sethe was doing everything she could to protect her daughter, while her mom was abandoning her. This memory reflects how much pain her actions have caused her, but reiterates that she stand by what she did. Furthermore, it further delves into the complex relationship between slaves vs. family. Her mother was leaving to save herself, because she put herself first, and didn’t get too attached to anyone, whereas Sethe put her kids first. Paul D also dealt with remembering his past, and allowing himself to move past it. He realized all he did in his life was run, even away from Sethe, someone who he actually cared about. After realizing this, he was able to move forward, especially once Beloved disappeared and subsequently allowed Sethe to move forward. In the end, everyone forgot about Beloved. “It took longer for those who had spoken to her, lived with her, fallen in love with her, to forget, until they realized they couldn’t remember or repeat a single thing she said, and began to believe that, other than what they themselves were thinking, she hadn’t said anything at all. So, in the end they forgot her too.” (323-324). The family forgetting about Beloved contrasted everything that they had been previously. The concept of rememory is undermined with the disappearance of Beloved and the memories involving her. This represents the newfound ability of Sethe, Denver and Paul D to move forward. By letting go of Beloved, and the memories of her, Sethe is also letting go of the guilt that has been consuming her. By letting go of the past, she is now able to move forward, and create a future with Paul D and Denver. Reply
Cameron Reagan February 28, 2016 at 3:52 PM 4.) In part III Sethe begins to focus all of her attention on Beloved, and ignores Denver completely. Beloved craves Sethe’s attention and it seems as if she is trying to make Sethe feel even more guilty about her actions. It sort of reflected the stereotypical relationship between a mother and daughter. Initially Beloved craved Sethe’s attention, and relied so heavily on Sethe, as a child does on a mother. Later, they bickered nonstop, reflecting the “teenage” period of one’s life. Then Sethe became so weak and worn out that it was as if Beloved was taking care of Sethe, as children do when their parents grow old. Beloved began to suck the life from Sethe, and became stronger as Sethe grew weaker. Denver also matured during this time, despite being completely ignored by her mother and sister. Denver left her house, and entered the community by herself. She began to make relationships with the community, and take responsibility by getting a job and taking care of her mother. Denver also allowed the community to reconcile with Sethe. When the community comes to get rid of Beloved, Sethe mistakes a man for schoolteacher, and has a similar moment to the one outside of the shed where the birds come to her hair and her instincts kick in. This time, she heads to attack the man, instead of killing her child. The community steps in and stops her from making a mistake, which is different from the last time, as last time they didn’t warn her that schoolteacher was coming. This redemption of the community allows the community to move forward, and allows Sethe and Denver to be a part of it. Reply
Jackie M February 28, 2016 at 5:16 PM 2.)The ice-skating adventure was very symbolic for Denver, Sethe and Beloved in many ways. It symbolize’s Sethe’s independence from Paul D, and the strong and comfortable relationship the three girls are developing. This scene also demonstrate’s Beloved’s ability to accept and love her mother, because with the help of Denver, each time Sethe would fall, they would help pick each other up. This scene in the book was one of the most uplifting scene’s so far, and it symbolizes the girls ability to identify as a family and not feel out casted for the first time in years. Their comfort with each other advances as the girls are sitting by the fire in an intimate setting and Beloved’s humming a tune only she would know, and this is when Sethe realizes that Beloved is her murdered daughter. This revelation allows Sethe to move on from her memories for the time being as she feels at peace with Beloved, Denver and 124 for the moment. 4.)The shift in the relationship of the three women deteriorates as Beloved guilts Sethe into ultimately doing everything she asks for. Beloved becomes powerhungry over Sethe, and her true motives are revealed as Beloved grow’s stronger while sucking the life out of Sethe. At this time, Beloved and Sethe’s roles are reversing I believe Beloved is trying to show Sethe what it feels like to be powerless as she did when she was killed. However, Denver acknowledges the deteriorating health of her Mother, and she takes initiative by getting a job along with the support of the community. The community and Denver succeed in driving out Beloved when Sethe attempts to attack Mr. Bodwin in an effort to save her kid’s, as Beloved finally understands Sethe’s act was an act of love, not selfishness. With Paul D’s, Denver’s, and the communities support, Sethe can finally move on with her life. Reply
Keren I February 28, 2016 at 6:34 PM 2.While on the surface the ice-skating scene could be depicted as an innocent and good time between Sethe, Beloved, and Denver, it was definitely a lot deeper because of the symbolism that Morrison utilized. First, when Beloved approaches Sethe and asks what the ice skates do, Sethe immediately gets up from scrubbing the floor and finds gear for the girls to put on a skate with. Here, we see the beginning of Sethe’s desire to please Beloved and her wishes. She would do anything in this instant to prove to both the community, including Paul D, how amazing and selfless of a mother she was. The adventure begins with the three of them “step-gliding over the treacherous ice.” Sethe quickly loses her balance and falls as the girls giddily laugh at her. Sethe struggles to stand and loses her balance and hurts herself while trying to do a split on the ice. This entire scene could symbolize the dangerous nature behind Beloved and Sethe’s relationship to come. It almost foreshadows how hard Sethe will try but how hurt she will get in the process of pleasing Beloved. Throughout the vivid imagery of the “delightful” afternoon, Morrison repeats that “no one saw them falling,” meaning that no one would would see how the relationship between Beloved and Sethe would mentally, physically, and emotionally drain her. They return to 124 and drink hot milk in front of a warm fire. Beloved begins to hum a song and Sethe, shocked, says that it is the song she once sang to her children and that no one else knows that song. Sethe thinks that Beloved knows and everything about her past. She remembers burying her child, and how she slept with an engraver so that he would engrave something on the baby’s tombstone. Sethe is now convinced that Beloved is the returned spirit of her dead child. Here, is the turning point where Sethe realizes that Beloved is her daughter. 4.Sethe is getting progressively weaker, quieter, and hungrier. She has discovered a scar under Beloved’s chin (where she cut her with the saw) and is fully convinced that Beloved is her daughter. Denver feels excluded by the strong bond between her mother and Beloved. Beloved begins to dominate in her relationship with Sethe, not listening to her mother and throwing angry fits whenever Sethe tries to assert herself. Denver starts worrying about Sethe and realizes that it is up to her to leave find help. She eventually goes to Lady Jones who recognizes Denver and welcomes her into her house. Denver asks for work, and Lady Jones says that Denver only has to ask for help and the church committee will give her food, but Denver doesn’t want to ask for help from strangers. A couple days later, though, Denver finds food left around a stump near 124. Various packages of food are left and Denver begins going to Lady Jones’ house more often, as life at 124 deteriorates. Beloved seems to be going crazy and Sethe is now childlike and weak. Denver probably thinks that Beloved is making Sethe pay for killing her as an infant. In this section, the community aids Denver even though they know who her mother is. One day specifically, a crowd of women come to 124 and sing and pray at the doorstep. This moment is pivotal because it shows forgiveness, compassion, and most of all, empathy for Sethe. Reply
Jamie Campion February 28, 2016 at 6:39 PM 2. The ice-skating adventure seemed to symbolize the three women’s unity as a group. Now that Paul D was gone, they could still survive on their own like they had before and even appear to be stronger and better than ever. The ice skating trip was one of the only times laughter was mentioned in the novel. And it was very symbolic how each woman would try to skate on her own, but when she fell the other two were there to pick her up. This seemed to solidify the bond the three of them had formed. When they get back to the house and are cuddled up by the fire, Beloved starts humming a song Sethe made up and sang to her children when they were growing up. Sethe had had brief suspicions in the beginning with Beloved, but now the humming proved without a doubt that Beloved was a reincarnation of the daughter she had killed. I think the peaceful and joyous bonding experience that had just happened when they went ice skating helped keep Sethe calm during this realization. Instead of being creeped out or scared, she instead accepted Beloved finally for who she really was and was even hopeful that maybe her presence showed forgiveness on the part of the murdered child. 4. Now that it is common knowledge between the three women who Beloved really is, Beloved takes it upon herself to use her position to guilt and ruin Sethe’s life. It starts with Sethe losing her job due to her inability to get there on time because of Beloved. Then, because of Sethe losing her job, there is less food available for the women so Sethe gives her portions to Beloved. Denver starts realizing what’s happening and becomes concerned for her mother’s health and goes out to get work and food for Sethe. Surprisingly, the community responds positively and does help Sethe by leaving food and Denver gets hired. Although there’s a very good chance the only reason the community rallies is because of Denver’s innocence and relation to Baby Suggs, the community helps regardless the reason and ultimately save Sethe. They go to get rid of Beloved, and Sethe has a mental breakdown thinking a white man is schoolteacher and rushes at him. During the commotion Beloved somehow disappears. The community was able to show Sethe some compassion in a time when she most needed it and redeemed themselves as neighbors and acquaintances. Reply
Jennie Soccio February 28, 2016 at 8:49 PM 2. The symbolism of the ice-skating scene is an important aspect to better understand the relationship between the three women. When Sethe decides to take the girls skating, she could only find three skates. Beloved wore two, Denver wore one, and Sethe just wore her normal shoes. The number three symbolizes the three of them, and shows a unity as a family. How the skates were distributed can symbolize Sethe’s mothering. Sethe sacrificed the skates for her children to have, but Beloved had more than Denver. Additionally, Denver wore the singular skate, the men’s one. This could possibly be inferred as Halle’s, and may portray how Denver reminds Sethe of her past and this is why she is not quite affectionate towards her. When Sethe believes that her two shoes would anchor her but thought wrong, this is a metaphor for how she thought she could live happily like those 28 days but was mistaken. When she falls, the other girls try to hold her up. The three of them are dependent on each other not to fall, and when one does, they all do. The line, “their skirts flew like wings and their skin turned pewter” (205) gives them bird-like characteristics and can symbolize how they felt free as birds in the enclosed forest. The phrase “no one saw them falling” was repeated, and this could symbolize how people could not see the downfall of their relationship. This scene continues into 124, where the three of them curl up by the cooking stove and drink hot milk. Beloved hums a song that Sethe made up when they were young, and this proves to her that she is in fact the reincarnation of her daughter. Sethe was not surprised in the slightest, and thinks that the true magic of miracles lies in the fact that you knew it all along. When Sethe was at the ice with Beloved and Denver, she “entered the perfect peace” offered by the stars. After she leaves the girls at home, the “peace of winter stars seemed permanent.” 4. Part III of the novel initiates the deterioration of the relationship between the three women. This happens because Sethe is literally deteriorating, since there’s little food at 124 and she lost her job. Beloved drains Sethe of all her energy, and this is obviously a strain on their relationship. Beloved wants more and more and becomes demanding of Sethe. Denver notices this change in dynamic and tries to help. Sethe is overcompensating and giving Beloved everything she can because of guilt, and Beloved seems to be going in reverse, becoming more childlike. When Denver notices that Sethe is actually sick and in need of protection, not Beloved, she takes it upon herself to leave 124 and do something. When the women in the community learn about Denver needing food, they start leaving it outside of 124. Denver then visits the women and becomes part of the community. Meanwhile, Sethe and Beloved’s relationship has completely switched roles. Beloved now has all of the power, and is holding it over Sethe. When Denver gets a job, things look up for her. The women of the community decide that it’s time to do something about Sethe and Beloved. Their singing outside of 124 cause Sethe and Beloved to come onto the porch, and when Sethe sees a white man, she tries to attack him. It is at this moment that Beloved disappears, and no one knows for sure where she went. I think this ambiguous ending to Beloved’s role in the novel leaves room for interpretation as to why she left and where. I personally think that Beloved knew this was as far as she could push Sethe, and that she did the damage that she came to do. Reply
Nicole B. February 28, 2016 at 9:47 PM 2. Sethe after losing Paul D should have been unable to think about having fun, but she instead showed that she didn't need him to survive by uniting the three women of the house. When the girls are ice skating it represents how each are intertwined and are apart of one another. This is very apparent when they hold each other up to protect each other from falling. This shows how Sethe believed her true ideal family is her united with her children. No matter if they fell no one on the outside would see. Sethe finally knew that Beloved was her daughter when she knew the song only her children know. 4. As time passes when the three women are on their own the roles of each woman is swaped. For example, the daughter Beloved at first is very needy and childish but as time goes on the story describes her as becoming more and more like Sethe. She seems to torture Sethe by making her feel guilty to the point where she becomes so thin and frail that she resembles Beloved. Then, Denver has to take the role of Sethe as a mother figure by providing for the family. Without Denver, both of the other women wouldnt have survived. The only way for this nightmare to end was for Sethe to finally reach her breaking point and eventually lose Beloved once again. Reply
Lorenzo R. February 29, 2016 at 6:12 AM 2. After Paul D's departure, Sethe takes Beloved and Denver out ice-skating partly to distract herself and mainly to shift her focus back onto Beloved. As they skate, they are a family now more than ever. Beloved even sings a song of which Sethe would sing to them in the past. This gives Sethe a firm belief that Beloved is a reincarnation of her baby. However, this brief moment represents only a true family occasion for Sethe and Beloved of whom never had the time with each other that they want and obsess about. Without reincarnations of the sons and Halle, this family moment only exists for Beloved and Sethe who longed for its presence so much, they disregard reality. Furthermore, by attempting to give up the past and future for the present, Sethe and Beloved both fail to realize the unobtainable fantasy they are both chasing. The ice skating adventure represents a quick moment of fulfillment for Beloved and Sethe that is so fleeting as well as so unsustainable, that it is over almost as soon as it began. 4. The roles of each women change drastically within part 3. Sethe turns to only serving Beloved as she is living too far into her fantasy and fazes out of reality. This leads her into not taking care of necessities for herself and the household. Beloved takes in as much love as possible from Sethe, to the point of sucking the life out of her. This correlates to Beloveds feeling of lack of love coming from Sethe, as now she has it and desires as much as possible. Finally, Denver living in the background of all this, shifts her role to care taker and hero of sorts. Without her, Sethes transition into full insanity and escape from reality would have been unstoppable. The resolution is one of predictable nature, of which is an end to Beloveds presence. Sethe committed her horrible act of which she could not leave in the past. Beloveds reappearance was simply the past attempting to comeback, whether or not she was really there. Sethe attempted to convince herself she could forgive herself of the past if Beloved was in her current present. However, the illusion that Beloved could be apart of her present was only a coping mechanism and as seen, could not possibly last and as before, Sethes cruel action held by the unbreakable seal of the past was uneraseble. Reply
Lauren DeMunno February 29, 2016 at 6:34 AM 2. For starters I thought it was very ironic that Sethe had been looking for ice skates, and when she finally couldn't find them and moved on to cleaning, Beloved found them. Beloved brought her the very skates she happened to be looking for. So the two girls go ice skating with Sethe, sharing the one pair of skates. The three of them fall continuously, but they don't seem to mind. They're having fun and no one sees them fall. For Sethe, falling down on all fours gets her to laugh and cry at the same time. This clearly is a notation towards Sethe's trek out of slavery, when Amy found her. Sethe climbed on all fours, pregnant and tired, to get to freedom. The falls symbolize her memory of this day and she laughs because she finds it humorous that she's alive while crying because she so happy she's alive. The three of them walked home and Sethe started a fire for them. It's that moment, when Beloved starts to hum, and Sethe sees her profile that she realizes that Beloved is in fact her own daughter. The daughter she killed many years ago in the barn. Sethe made the song for her children, so only her children would know it, giving reason to believe Beloved is her daughter. 4. In Part III, the relationship between the three girls begins to deteriorate in a multitude of ways. Beloved starts to really grow up and find herself as Sethe's daughter, so she begins acting as a teenage daughter typically would act toward her mother. Beloved starts to treat Sethe with utter disrespect, basically switching their roles. Sethe becomes smaller almost, physically and mentally. Sethe becomes skinny and frail, acting like a child would, while Beloved begins to grow and grow, as a more motherly figure too. Meanwhile Denver is basically on her own, and she becomes more independent. Throughout the text, Denver was viewed as a scared child, scared of her mother and the community. But now we see a change, Denver becomes more and more mature and motherly. Denver makes an effort to get a job and get Beloved and Sethe food by facing her fears of the community and simply asking them for help. It's almost as if she became more fatherly than motherly, becoming the primary “breadwinner” as Sethe lost her job. The community really stepped up and played a huge role in the ending of the book. They exercised Beloved, making her essentially disappear. With Beloved out of their hair, although sad for Sethe, it was a breath of fresh air. They were able to live their lives again, so Sethe and Denver joined Paul D in an attempt to move onward with their lives. Reply
Julieta Cruz February 29, 2016 at 6:41 AM 1) The concept of memory heavily affects the way Sethe continues on with the present. Memory is something that will never go away and it’s something that will continue to influence everyone’s actions. For Sethe, caught up in the past and the way she brutally killed her child, she attempts to make up for that fact with Beloved. In the last few chapters, Sethe is completely submissive to Beloved and doing everything the other asks of her. As Denver notes, “Beloved accused her of leaving her behind… Sethe cried, saying she never did, or meant to-” (284). Beloved is incapable of understanding why her mother did what she had to do, completely focused on the memory of getting killed. Even Sethe is overwhelmed by the memory of the past and with everything she does, she tries to make Beloved understand why she killed her. Having the past and present as one entity shows just how much the past is affecting their future and seeing how caught up they are in the past shows that their present is becoming affected by it. As the book comes to a close, another issue of past affecting present appears where Mr. Bodwin, a man who played an integral part of the survival of Sethe, is arriving to pick up Denver and there’s the buzzing of wings again in Sethe’s ear when she sees him, the white man, thinking it’s schoolteacher. The juxtaposition that Morrison is expressing is the idea that in order to move on, you sometimes have to forget the past. If Sethe allowed herself to continue to mourn the fact that her child is dead, she’d die much like how Baby Suggs did. Forgetting the past is essential to healing and living her life with Paul D and Denver. 4) The relationships between the three women begin to get rocky and deteriorate. The change is most noticeable within Denver, on 283, she notes that she was at first nervous to leave Beloved alone with Sethe and when she noticed that Beloved was solely interested in Sethe, Denver began to drift away. Denver notices how the relationship between Beloved and her mother is taking a toll on Sethe, Sethe who was willing to do anything Beloved demanded and not once complain about it. On 286, Denver says, “The job she started out with, protecting Beloved from Sethe, changed to protecting her mother from Beloved.” The shift that occurs in Denver starts here, when she realizes that if she allows this to continue, the outcome will be bad or even lead to the death of her mother. For Sethe, her decline happens solely because she becomes overwhelmed with the desire of pleasing Beloved, to make up for the fact that she killed her. In Denver’s point of view, it displays how Beloved becomes verbally abusive and becomes rather big in appearance as she was probably likely of feeding off of Sethe’s energy, becoming big as Sethe becomes frail and tiny. The fascination that Beloved has for Sethe persists, she talks like her, laughs like her, walks like her, much of these things Denver points out and even Denver has a hard time in knowing who is who. The resolution to this mess is in the hands of Denver, who decides to leave to find work and provide of her mother, in this she finds that the community is more than happy to provide work and in her search she finds Janey and explains everything that is happening in her household. With this new information, Janey spreads it to the rest of the women in which some of them believed it and some were skeptical. Yet, with the women’s help, as they all arrive at 124, the spirit of the child that was causing havoc in there suddenly disappears. Without Denver taking matters into her own hands and without the community stepping up, the outcome would have been much different. Reply
erica blanco February 29, 2016 at 8:21 AM 2. Beloved finds an old pair of ice skates and convinced Sethe to go ice skating with her. When they are skating, they both keep on falling down and helping one another get back up. They do this in isolation with no one else around. Sethe feels so content in this moment with Beloved that she begins to cry. In this moment, they feel that all they need is each other, and they don't need anyone else to be happy. Just them, alone together. No one could hear their laughter and joy but it didn't matter to them because they had one another. I think that in this moment in the text, Sethe was sort of falling for Beloved's spell; all Beloved ever wanted was to be alone with Sethe and she is finally getting that. Sethe is so incredibly joyous in this moment and it doesn't matter to her that Paul D and her had gotten into a fight, she has Beloved and that is all she needs. 4. The relationship between Beloved, Sethe, and Denver begins to take a downward spiral in part three. Beloved manipulates Sethe into doing absolutely everything for her. She knows Sethe feels guilty about murdering her so she uses that to take over Sethe and take advantage of her emotions. Sethe is fired from her job for spending too much time with Beloved and less time at work, and she begins to lose weight as Beloved gains weight from eating all of the food and giving Sethe and Denver scraps of food to eat. Soon enough, the townspeople get word of Beloved and the stress she is causing Sethe. People come to Sethe's home to preform an exorcism in attempt to get rid of Beloved, and when they are there, a man named Mr. Bodwin comes to pick up Denver for work. Sethe is instantly reminded of the slave catchers that came for Beloved and her motherly instincts kick in once again. She attempts to kill Bodwin with an ice pick. The When she tries to do this Denver stops her. Then, Beloved is gone; she finally realizes that Sethe truly loves her and would do anything for her. She is at peace. Reply
Mike Nichols February 29, 2016 at 8:56 AM
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Mike Nichols February 29, 2016 at 8:57 AM 1) Memory is significant to the characters and the plot of Beloved. To Sethe, memory is important and helps her remember both the good times and the bad. Memory helps her remember Halle, her boys, Baby Suggs and the good times she had before the incident at 124 but memory also forces her to remember such things like her rape, what she had to do to get “Beloved” engraved, all the horrible times during slavery and when she had to murder her baby. Sethe often times in the novel, thinks and even puts herself in the past to relive these vivid memories. Memory is crucial to other characters besides Sethe though. To Denver, memory is beneficial to her. She enjoys hearing about the story (memory) of her birth, the memories she has of her father and she also remembers what her mother did to Beloved and she is cautious of it and fears her mother may revert back to this at some point. To Beloved, memory is important to who she is. She remembers the woman with the face she wanted, the man dying on her face and the places where she comes from that was dark and crowded. Also, for Beloved everything happens for her at once, there is no past or present. So her memories are less memories and more in the now than compared to the other characters. Beloves “ability” of beings in the past, present and future all at once is similar to how the book is presented, where memory is one entity. I believe Toni Morrison did this to show how much the past is involved in the present/future and that even something small can come back to haunt you from your past (like how Beloved came back). What Morrison is doing with the juxtaposition of remembering and forgetting is she’s saying that the two aren’t as opposite as it seems and that sometimes it’s better to forget then to remember. 2) Sethe and her children go skating after finding a pair of old skates and ultimately have a good time even though there is a lot of falling and lack of success on the ice. I interpreted the ice-skating adventure as a symbol that Sethe’s children can get her through the hard times. Sethe’s falling and Beloved and Denver’s helping her back up really represents this I believe and it shows her source for continuing through hard times is her children. Her children have gotten her through tough times like Paul D leaving her, her time in jail, her escaping Sweet Home and meeting back up with her kids and her life without Halle and Baby Suggs now at 124. Sethe realizes Beloved is her daughter when she hears Beloved humming the song that Sethe made for her children. Sethe isn’t completely surprised or taken aback by this because deep inside she knew who Beloved really was. What Sethe says in her thoughts to Beloved shows how strong she feels for Beloved now and that she won’t leave her again. Reply
Alix B February 29, 2016 at 9:09 AM 3) The four chapters show the stream of consciousness of Seth, beloved and Denver. In the past chapters Seth battles with her guilt for killing daughter, and not being able to claim anything as hers not even her own children. Now Seth is taking ownership of beloved, claiming her as her own daughter and believing in it, hence the repetition of "mine". Like this time is the time to be the mother for beloved that she wished she could've been. Denver still has this strong connection with beloved, she loves her so much and like Seth, claims her as her own and thinks the reason her sister came back was to reconcile with her. But like previous chapters, she still struggles with coping with sethe and beloveds relationship feeling left out at times. Denver also wants to protect beloved, she doesn't want her mom killing either of them, something she's been afraid of since the shed scene. When it comes to beloved her stream of consciousness is harder to follow because she herself has trouble following her own thoughts/feelings. She's trying to figure out what she wants and what she needs to be doing right now, wishing she was a real human like her mother and sister. She thinks that would make it easier to have that relationship/connection she's looking for. Beloveds complicated/confusing feelings towards her mother steam from her not being able to comprehend why her mother killed her, so she feels betrayed. Along with feeling betrayed though she needs her sethe's attention. She craves that connection with her mom which is what makes it hard. They're both struggling with the concept of claiming their love for someone. Sethe has told Paul D that there's no such thing as "too much love", so when Denver tries not to love beloved "too much" Seth reminds us again that's impossible. 4) The relationship between the three women start deteriorating for a couple similar reasons. Beloveds obsession with Sethe gets deeper, and the neediness for her attention is making her mom weaker. Sethe complies with her daughters irrational behavior because she feels like it's her duty to make up for what she's done and the time lost between them. Denvers perception of beloved and sethe's relationship has now altered a bit. Instead of feeling jealous/left out like I've described in the previous question, she's now concerned for her mothers wellbeing. She sees how beloveds neediness if affecting Sethe, she's lost her job, weight and stopped caring about all things besides beloved. The weight I think symbolizes how much more powerful beloved is getting, while Sethe loses weight beloved gains. After Denver tells janey what's happening, the whole community soon knows all about 124 and step in to help. When a white man comes to the door of 124 to take one of sethe's kids away, her protective mother instincts click on again like before. This time instead of sacrificing her children she turns to the white man this time and tries to attack.(I think this makes beloved realize the shed act was out of love). The community is there this time for her, praying for beloved and helping Sethe not to take things to far this time, by not killing the man. This was not the case a couple of years ago Reply
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