Beloved and Marxism: Roles of an Individual in a Community - Close Reading

Beloved

A novel by Toni Morrison

..."I stopped him," she said, staring at the place where the fence used to be.
I took and put my babies where they'd be safe"
...
"What you did was wrong, Sethe.
I should have gone on back there? Taken my babies back there?
There could have been a way. Some other way.
What way?

You got two feet, Sethe, not four, he said, and right then a forest sprang up between them; trackless and quiet". (193-194).

2004 Edition

The Marxist/Sociopolitical lens is used to analyze class differences by substantiating which class is in power and which class is not, and what defines who has power whether it be through wealth, race, religion, or ideology. By using this lens the reader is able to better understand how power is distributed based on these certain factors. Marxist criticism also states that literary works are often not genuine works of art, but are the the result of economic and ideological conditions of the time period, often reflecting the author's own relation to class.

When Sethe states that "I stopped him" she is literally referring to the school teacher who represents the main proponent of class disparity in the novel. Similarly to Marxist theory, when the Bourgeois or the school teacher in this case exploits the proletariat or slaves the ruled classes revolt.

By comparing Sethe to a four legged beast in, "You got two feet, Sethe, not four," Paul D is stating that she acted savagely in killing her own offspring. However, Sethe tries to justify her behavior by stating, "I took and put my babies my babies where they'd be safe" (193). While Sethe states she acted out of love, she behaved like an animal simply because she was treated like one under the reign of the schoolteacher. The societal norms set by slave owners were so influential, it became normal in that time to associate slaves with animals.

After Paul D's and Sethe's conversation "...a forest sprang up between them; trackless and quiet" (193). The forest is used as an expression to relay the awkward long silence between the two characters, and the distance created by that statement. The conspicuous sprouting of the forest further solidifies the idea that both characters could sense the distance between the two. In addition to the image of conflicting ideas between the characters, the forest could also serve as a metaphor for institutional oppression. The forest can provide but also take away from its inhabitants, just as people and things endearing to both Sethe and Paul D were taken away from them, while giving only little in return.

Morrison presents the idea that the dehumanizing effects of slavery are used to characterize Sethe as mentally unstable and the foundation for that assumption is based. Sethe is unable to distinguish panic and fear with love as evidenced by, "I should have gone on back there? Taken my babies back there?" (193) Through Sethe, Morrison is communicating the idea that the class disparity and inequality are the root cause of Sethe and possibly many slaves' hapless mental states. The ruling class or slave owners are able to treat their slaves or proletariat poorly because they define their slaves as lesser because of different race and socioeconomic position. Ironically, if Sethe's love was so "thick" , why would she subject them to behavior similar to that of what she experienced at "Sweet Home"? The answer is simple, whatever damaging mannerisms and ideologies employed by the ruling class used to oppress the slaves is where Sethe's unorthodox behavior originates.