Beloved by Toni Morrison is full of allusions to the Bible. Religion is a motif in the novel and many of the characters deal with religion whether it be Christianity or general spirituality. For example, Baby Suggs was a religious figure within their community, Stamp Paid has many dealings with the church, and Paul D even lived there.
I was absolutely blown away by the foreshadowing and imagery through her allusion to the four horsemen of the apocalypse. Baby Suggs has a weird feeling after her party and suddenly she sees the four horsemen, which is a group made up of schoolteacher, a slave catcher, the sheriff, and a nephew. This is very reminiscent of the four horsemen of the apocalypse mentioned in the book of Revelations in the Bible. While there is so much to say about the horsemen and what they all mean, they are in short the bringers of the end of the world. Thinking about the coming of schoolteacher to 124 makes me think of all the endings that came out of this event. Beloved's life ended, Baby Suggs' life began it's end, Sethe's life was forever altered, and all chances of Denver living a normal life were crushed too. It was not as major of an apocalypse but it was a great shift in life at 124.
Really cool connection! This representation never occurred to me, but it makes total sense.
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