There are many disturbing acts and stories of slavery described in Beloved, so it is easy to overlook Denver’s loneliness. The life of isolation that Denver lives is becoming increasingly apparent as I read, and increasingly depressing.
Denver has lived her whole life on the premises of 124. Isolated from society, she has only her mother, Sethe, to spend her time with. Sethe spends most of her time at work or caught up in memories from her past, before Denver. I can hardly imagine the intense loneliness that Denver must feel. She has no one to pass her time with, and never has. In most of her memories she is alone as well, or around people who have abandoned her. Denver has no stories or important memories of her own, so she has soaked up every last detail of stories she’s heard from others to pass her time. Her desperation to find and connect to someone is not only symptom of loneliness, but also in an attempt to find her own identity.
I think this is prevalent in Denver’s telling of the story of her birth. Denver enjoys telling the story of her birth because it is a big part of her identity, but the story she tells is much more about Sethe's escape from slavery. Empathy and recognition of her mother's past has played a large role in Denver's identity.Denver probably likes Amy's part because she is named after her, and can identify with her. With no one around except her mother (too wrapped up in a past that Denver can't relate to) , Denver has had no one to recognize as, and no one to recognize her as, different. She has no idea where she stands or who she is in relation to the rest of the world.
I totally agree. I must admit that I haven't though much about Denver throughout my reading of Beloved, but that's why your blog post is so relevant. I think Morrison uses Denver's hostility towards stories not about her to comment on the power of narratives.
ReplyDeleteI think part of the reason Denver may have latched onto the story of her birth is because it's the only personal excitement she has. Everything after her birth Sethe never talks about, and by the time Denver was old enough to remember she'd been living her dull life in 124. The story of her birth is the only thing personal to her and remotely exciting she knows.
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