"He had never known a woman who lit up for nobody in particular, who just did it as a general announcement" (78).
The women Paul D knew were only interesting, lively people when they were trying to impress men. The Thirty-Mile Woman's happiness and well-being depended on Sixo finding her; Sethe lit up when Paul D arrived. Paul D claimed to hate that Beloved was ruining his idea of a family with Sethe and Denver, but really, he was not used to women being single. Sethe was the only woman at Sweet Home, and she married Halle after one year.
I would argue that Beloved lights up for Sethe, but Paul D is too blind to see that. Paul D questions, "If her shining was not for him, who then?" (78). Beloved was only interested in seeing Sethe again, but Paul D assumed that Beloved would seek his approval as the only man in the house.
We've been focusing in class about the obvious binary between slaves and their owners, but I think the binary between men and women is really interesting as well.
I really like this post. It made me mad that Paul D was convinced Beloved could only be lighting up for him since he's the only man living there. He assumes that he knows more about women and their habits than he actually does. I'm definitely going to pay more attention to the binary between men and women as we keep reading.
ReplyDeleteI agree that there is definitely a binary between men and women in Beloved, but I think it's way more positive than it could be. Sure, Toni Morrison highlights the clear disadvantages of women in her writing, but she also makes an effort to provide female characters that challenge the common dominant/submissive behaviors between men and women. I think Paul D and Sethe have a fairly balanced relationship, in that Paul D does not think that he has inherent power over Sethe. He respects her very much, knowing the roots of her strong-willed independence. I think you're right about the binary in that particular line, but overall, I think the novel promotes something different.
ReplyDeleteI think you could also connect this to Denver. When Beloved tells her she has returned for Sethe, Denver "felt a little hurt, slighted that she was not the main reason for Beloved's return" (88). Throughout the book it seems the characters all want to be the most important and it causes a lot of conflict.
ReplyDeleteI also agree that there are certain portions of the novel that show the Subject/other relationship. But I wonder if that is intentional or what may have been the reality during this period of time. To an extent I actually a balanced dynamic between Sethe and the Sweet Home guys.
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