Sula Good vs Evil
Shantice Berry
Dr. Hall
English 1102
04-12-11
Sula Good vs Evil
Toni Morrison writes the book Sula with the intention of questioning the idea of good versus evil. “The novel invokes oppositions of good/evil, virgin/whore, self/other, but moves beyond them” says Deborah E McDowell( 82). The characters in Sula give the novel its great interest by using different behaviors and qualities for each character to prove the author’s intention. Sula has established its purpose in writing through the characters to inform others on good versus evil. Toni Morrison makes sure to identify several different characters in this novel as conventionally good and others as conventionally evil. The character Nel is a small town conservative and quiet girl. She hides behind innocence, when in actuality her heart is evil. Sula is a city girl that is completely independent and blunt. Though she does seemingly evil things, she is still honest and prideful which makes her heart good.
The book Sula goes from the time periods of 1919-1940. During this time we read about two girls, Sula and Nel, as they grow up. The book takes place in “The Bottom.” White landowners promised freed slaves a piece of heaven by living in the hills of Medallion, Ohio. However the white landowners would take the richer version of the valley leaving the freed slaves with a rough life. In the beginning of the novel at 1919, the two girls Sula and Nel just begin to meet. They become very attached to each other in their adolescence years. In Nel’s family, they believe in social conventions. Her home is stable and more traditional than Sula’s. It is represented as good because the family goes to church; they seem outwardly respectable, and the house is neat and tidy. Sula’s home is different. She lives with her grandmother and her mother Hannah, who later dies; both are seen as odd and nontradional to the town because the house is chaotic; the women freely love men, and there is no dominant male figure in
Dr. Hall
English 1102
04-12-11
Sula Good vs Evil
Toni Morrison writes the book Sula with the intention of questioning the idea of good versus evil. “The novel invokes oppositions of good/evil, virgin/whore, self/other, but moves beyond them” says Deborah E McDowell( 82). The characters in Sula give the novel its great interest by using different behaviors and qualities for each character to prove the author’s intention. Sula has established its purpose in writing through the characters to inform others on good versus evil. Toni Morrison makes sure to identify several different characters in this novel as conventionally good and others as conventionally evil. The character Nel is a small town conservative and quiet girl. She hides behind innocence, when in actuality her heart is evil. Sula is a city girl that is completely independent and blunt. Though she does seemingly evil things, she is still honest and prideful which makes her heart good.
The book Sula goes from the time periods of 1919-1940. During this time we read about two girls, Sula and Nel, as they grow up. The book takes place in “The Bottom.” White landowners promised freed slaves a piece of heaven by living in the hills of Medallion, Ohio. However the white landowners would take the richer version of the valley leaving the freed slaves with a rough life. In the beginning of the novel at 1919, the two girls Sula and Nel just begin to meet. They become very attached to each other in their adolescence years. In Nel’s family, they believe in social conventions. Her home is stable and more traditional than Sula’s. It is represented as good because the family goes to church; they seem outwardly respectable, and the house is neat and tidy. Sula’s home is different. She lives with her grandmother and her mother Hannah, who later dies; both are seen as odd and nontradional to the town because the house is chaotic; the women freely love men, and there is no dominant male figure in