Beloved is very complicated and confusing and I'm enjoying it very much. I like how as Sethe's story unfolds, we also begin to learn Paul D's, and Denver's, and Beloved's stories. There's so much I could talk about in this post since so many things have happened so far, but one thing I kept thinking about was how Sethe feels "flattered by Beloved's open, quiet devotion" but if Denver showed the same adoration, she would feel annoyed because she doesn't want to have a dependent child.
This strikes me as odd because we've accepted that Beloved is the ghost of the baby. But at the same time, Sethe doesn't even realize that Beloved is the baby, so why does her relationship with Beloved seem closer than her relationship with Denver? Maybe something that involves the death of the baby has to do with Sethe's disgust at having a dependent child. It seems to me that the pain of losing her children was a lot of Sethe to handle, and maybe Denver being more independent will lessen the blow should Sethe ever lose her. Of course, that's just one idea I have, and I hope that we find out more about Sethe's experiences with the baby soon, maybe it will explain this dynamic. Also, it would be great to hear anyone else's ideas in the comments!
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Her closeness to Beloved at this point seams to stem from beloved reception and curiosity of her memories. Her real child, Denver, only asks about her birth story over and over. Beloved appears genuinely interested in the past of Sethe, something Sethe is trying to release
ReplyDeleteI agree with both you and Neil. I think part of Sethe's appreciation for Beloved's affection and devotion is because of the interest that Beloved shows for Sethe's past, which not too many other characters have shown, but obviously Sethe does enjoy talking about (since most chapters backtrack to a story of hers). The other reason is because Beloved's not her own child (or at least she doesn't think she is), so Sethe's not worried about becoming too attached. One quote from the book that struck me that we also mentioned in class was "it's dangerous for black people to love too much", especially black women loving their children. I think that's part of the reason that Sethe doesn't show her love for Denver as much as she actually has for her (it's not as obvious on the surface), because she doesn't want to lose her last child and feel heartbroken. I do think that Sethe has been showing enough "love" for Beloved at this point that she would still feel very hurt to lose her-- So I do think this is something to think about, why she is so open about her love/like for Beloved when in general she's not towards others, and maybe we'll find out by the end!
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ReplyDeleteSethe's speculation that Beloved could be some form of her late daughter seems to always be waved off herself. She seems to be in denial but she clearly has strong feelings for Beloved. Yet at times Sethe blatantly distances herself like when Beloved starts caressing her neck bruises. It's going to be interesting to see how their dynamic continues to evolve throughout the rest of the story.
ReplyDeleteI think that Sethe might feel a certain connection to Beloved and wants to get to know her. I think that Beloved is really interested in hearing about Sethe's life and stories, which Sethe is willing to tell, while Denver has already heard these stories.
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