A Sense of Community

In Beloved, a recurring motif of community has appeared throughout many of the characters' development. This idea of community usually becomes visible when a group has the desire to accomplish a certain task. I first began to notice this within my group for our presentations. We were given the passage where Baby Suggs is identified as an "unchurched preacher," and her tone and diction create the sense of community she is trying to create.

Accepting no title of honor before her name, but allowing a small caress after it,she became an unchurched preacher, one who visited pulpits and opened her great heart to those who could use it...a wide-open place cut deep in the woods nobody knew for what at the end of a path known only to deer and whoever cleared the land in the first place. In the heat of every Saturday afternoon, she sat in the clearing while the people waited among the trees (102). 

In this instance, people of the surrounding area gather to listen to Baby Suggs preach. Baby Suggs isn't speaking in religious terms, but an almost spiritual manner. Her uplifting manner supports the community and motivates them to reach out to each other. But, the authoritative and directive tone commands these individuals to realize their own feelings and presence in the world. To sum up, her speech is meant to spark opposition against the "other" who hold them back. I am interested to see whether or not the community motif is used to separate or disassociate from others, the complete opposite from how it is used within Baby Suggs' speech.