Song of Solomon
Michael Brophy
Dr. Laurel
ENG 305
19 November 2012
How Love Leads to Death in Song of Solomon
The novel Song of Solomon by Toni Morrison takes place in an unnamed city in Michigan between the years 1931 and 1963. The novel’s protagonist, Milkman Dead, lives with his father, Macon Dead II, his mother, Ruth, and his two sisters, Magdalene and First Corinthians. His father being somewhat obsessed with owning things and earning wealth, Milkman was raised more privileged than the typical African American teenager during this time. Despite the freedom and appeal that money tends to provide, Milkman increasingly feels more and more restricted by his family structure and society’s monotonous path.
As an outlet for his feelings of frustration and boredom, during his adolescence, Milkman develops an intention attraction, accompanied with feelings of sexual excitement, directed toward his cousin, Hagar. Milkman and Hagar’s relationship is at the forefront of the plot and transforms as different dynamics develop between the two characters throughout the novel. The love affair between Milkman and Hagar does not end well for either characters. Hagar, feeling utterly rejected and betrayed by the man she loves, is driven mad and resorts to trying to take Milkman’s life repeatedly throughout the novel. While Hagar fails at killing Milkman, the love she has held onto ultimately results in her own death. Toni Morrison offers a poignant and true-to-life motif throughout Song of Solomon, that love can drive humans mad and can ultimately result in death and destruction.
Milkman and Hagar first met one another at Pilate’s house. Milkman was stringently told by his father not to visit his aunt but his curiosity led him to her home. When Milkman laid his eyes on Hagar, he nearly knocked his chair backwards and hung on every word she said. “She was, it seemed to him, as pretty a girl as he’d ever seen” (Morrison 45). Although she was a great deal older than him, he
Dr. Laurel
ENG 305
19 November 2012
How Love Leads to Death in Song of Solomon
The novel Song of Solomon by Toni Morrison takes place in an unnamed city in Michigan between the years 1931 and 1963. The novel’s protagonist, Milkman Dead, lives with his father, Macon Dead II, his mother, Ruth, and his two sisters, Magdalene and First Corinthians. His father being somewhat obsessed with owning things and earning wealth, Milkman was raised more privileged than the typical African American teenager during this time. Despite the freedom and appeal that money tends to provide, Milkman increasingly feels more and more restricted by his family structure and society’s monotonous path.
As an outlet for his feelings of frustration and boredom, during his adolescence, Milkman develops an intention attraction, accompanied with feelings of sexual excitement, directed toward his cousin, Hagar. Milkman and Hagar’s relationship is at the forefront of the plot and transforms as different dynamics develop between the two characters throughout the novel. The love affair between Milkman and Hagar does not end well for either characters. Hagar, feeling utterly rejected and betrayed by the man she loves, is driven mad and resorts to trying to take Milkman’s life repeatedly throughout the novel. While Hagar fails at killing Milkman, the love she has held onto ultimately results in her own death. Toni Morrison offers a poignant and true-to-life motif throughout Song of Solomon, that love can drive humans mad and can ultimately result in death and destruction.
Milkman and Hagar first met one another at Pilate’s house. Milkman was stringently told by his father not to visit his aunt but his curiosity led him to her home. When Milkman laid his eyes on Hagar, he nearly knocked his chair backwards and hung on every word she said. “She was, it seemed to him, as pretty a girl as he’d ever seen” (Morrison 45). Although she was a great deal older than him, he
Cited: Harris, A. Leslie. “Myth as Structure in Toni Morrison’s Song of Solomon.” MELUS 7.3 (1980): 69-76. Rpt. in Novels for Students. Ed. Marie Rose Napierkowski and Deborah A. Stanley. Vol. 8. Detroit: Gale, 2000. Literature Resource Center. Web. 10 July 2012. Morrison, Toni. Song of Solomon. New York: Random House Inc., 1977. Print.