Moore 1

Hope Moore
Dr. Trout
ENL 3895
23 November 2017

Annotations on Toni Morrisons Song of Solomon

Title: Song of Solomon: When readers first encounter Toni Morrisons Song of Solomon, they
may think that the title of the novel refers to the Old Testament book of the Bible, the Song of
Songs. William E. Phipps describes, The Song of Songs is a song consisting of songs about
intimate love (82). Some scholars argue for an allegorical interpretation of the book, claiming
that it represents either the love between God and Israel or Christs love for his church
(Stern 26). Nevertheless, the Song of Songs possesses a connection to King Solomon because the
book purports to be the work of King Solomon (Stern 26).
The title of Toni Morrisons Song of Solomon does not actually refer to the Old
Testament book. Gay Wilentz claims, Most readers even vaguely familiar with the Bible will
immediately assume the title of the novel relates in some way to the song in the Old Testament,
but as the plot unravels, we realize the song is about the Flying African Solomon (73). Morrison
uses language to create an ambiguous title that readers do not understand until late in the novel.
The title of Song of Solomon serves to subvert images of the dominant white Christian values
(Wilentz 73). When people think of the Song of Songs, they think of love; however, Morrison
wants the title of her novel to stir up the memory of slavery.

3.1-3 The North Carolina Mutual Life Insurance agent promised to fly from Mercy to the
other side of Lake Superior at three oclock: The myth of the flying Africans comes from
African folklore. Gay Wilentz explains, Most important is the tale of the Flying Africans who
escaped slavery by flying back to Africa. Legends abound throughout the New World about
Africans who either flew or jumped off slave ships as well as those who saw the horrors of
slavery when they landed in the Americas and, in their anguish, sought to fly back to Africa
(63). According to Susan L. Blake, this myth of the flying Africans originated from a Gullah
folktale about a group of African-born slaves who rose up one day from the field where they
were working and flew back to Africa (77).
In Toni Morrisons Song of Solomon, the presence of the myth of the flying Africans is
apparent from the novels first sentence. From Robert Smiths attempted flight to Milkmans
flight at the end of the novel, Morrison weaves this myth throughout her work. For example,
Susan Byrd tells Milkman Dead of his great-grandfather Solomon: Some of those Africans they
brought over here as slaves could fly. A lot of them flew back to Africa. The one around here
who did was this same Solomon, or Shalimar I never knew which was right (Morrison 322).
Critics suggest that Morrisons inclusion of this myth serves two purposes. First, Chiara Spallino
states, Through the myth of the flying African Morrison transforms the moment of coming to
grips with slavery into an allegory of liberation (517). When Milkman learns of his familys
history, the image of flight overpowers the oppressive institution of slavery within which
Solomon lived. In addition to Spallinos perspective, Wilentz claims, In the manner of an
African woman storyteller, Morrison tells the tale of the Flying Africans to keep her traditions
and culture alive on paper (63). Morrison effectively uses African folklore to demonstrate
Milkmans discovery of his family and racial history.
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4.33-5.2 They called it Not Doctor Street, and were inclined to call the charity hospital at
its northern end No Mercy Hospital since it was 1931, on the day following Mr. Smiths
leap from its cupola, before the first colored expectant mother was allowed to give birth
inside its wards and not on its steps: Plessy v. Ferguson was a Unites States Supreme Court
case in 1896. Barton J. Bernstein recounts, Homer Plessy, apparently one-eighth Negro and
seven-eighths white, was arrested in Louisiana when he refused to ride in the colored coach of an
intrastate railroad, as required by state law (192-193). When Plessys case reached the Supreme
Court, the court established the infamous separate but equal doctrine. Bernstein asserts that
the Supreme Court concluded that the states could segregate the races (194). Even though the
Fourteenth Amendment was already in place, the ruling from Plessy v. Ferguson allowed for
legal segregation of the races (Bernstein 192).
The effects of Plessy v. Ferguson can be seen in Toni Morrisons Song of Solomon. For
example, the African-American characters call the local hospital No Mercy Hospital because
they are not permitted to enter it (Morrison 4). In addition, Michael Rothberg points out that
Ruths father, the only black doctor, arrives in town during the same year as the Plessy v.
Ferguson decision. The narrator states, Town maps registered the street as Mains Avenue, but
the only colored doctor in the city had lived and died on that street, and when he moved there in
1896 his patients took to calling the street, which none of them lived on or near, Doctor Street
(Morrison 4). Both Plessy and the arrival of Ruths father occur in 1896. Rothberg states,
Indeed, the virtuosity and understated humor of this voice as it moves through time, space, and
social location almost covers over the various forms of violence that the scene also reveals. 1896,
for example, is not only the date of the doctors arrival in town, but also of the Plessy v.
Ferguson decision that enshrined segregation under the doctrine separate but equal (503-504).
Rothberg demonstrates how seamlessly Morrison weaves the date of Plessy v. Ferguson into her
narrative, thus drawing attention to the reality of segregation in the novel.

6.1-4 Her head cocked to one side, her eyes fixed on Mr. Robert Smith, she sang in a
powerful contralto: O Sugarman done fly away: Oral storytelling is a vital part of African-
American culture. Harold Scheub states, The African oral tradition distills the essences of
human experiences, shaping them into rememberable, readily retrievable images of broad
applicability with an extraordinary potential for eliciting emotional responses (1). Oral
storytelling is a powerful tradition that African-Americans use to preserve cultural records and
values (Scheub 2). Gay Wilentz argues that African-American women play a key role in
passing on stories to future generations (64). As prominent storytellers, African-American
women keep the African oral tradition alive.
Pilate Dead practices traditional oral storytelling in Toni Morrisons Song of Solomon.
When Milkman is born, Pilate sings the folksong of Sugarman/Solomons flying away
(Wilentz 63). Pilate sings, O Sugarman done fly away / Sugarman done gone / Sugarman cut
across the sky / Sugarman gone home (Morrison 6). Throughout the novel, Morrison reveals
that Pilates song is a rendition of their past which helps Milkman grow (Wilentz 64). Pilates
song uncovers the story of Milkmans great-grandfather, who flew back to Africa (Morrison
304). Wilentz asserts, More than the traditional West African peanut soup fed to him, Pilate
gives Milkman back his heritage through her African-based orature, although it takes him years
to understand the true value of the tales and songs (72). Over the course of the novel, Pilate acts
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as the traditional oral storyteller by singing of the familys history; therefore, she brings
Milkman closer to discovering his roots.

13.23-27 In the late afternoon, before her husband closed his office and came home, she
called her son to her. When he came into the little room she unbuttoned her blouse and
smiled. He was too young to be dazzled by her nipples, but he was old enough to be bored
by the flat taste of mothers milk: Prolonged breastfeeding is a characteristic of African
cultures. David P. Smith asserts, Currently, high proportions of women breastfeed, and do so
for long durations in sub-Saharan Africa, with median durations in the 15-30-month range
(155). Africans seem to practice extended breastfeeding more frequently than Americans.
Researchers claim, In many developing countries, breastfeeding is an important determinant of
both population growth and child survival (VanLandingham 131). Many health benefits come
with breastfeeding, and prolonged breastfeeding also acts as a form of birth control
(VanLandingham 131).
In Toni Morrisons Song of Solomon, Ruth Dead breastfeeds her son, Milkman, until he
is four years old (Morrison 13). While this action may suggest Oedipal issues, Gay Wilentz
argues that Ruths extended breastfeeding of Milkman is an African practice that functions
antithetically in the novel and reflects a conflict between cultures (67). Wilentz describes the
purpose of prolonged breastfeeding in the novel: But Milkmans prolonged breast-feeding also
highlights the conflict of values in the novel. When the yardman Freddie witnesses one of
Milkmans afternoon sucklings, his comments reflect both the knowledge of this traditional
practice and the dominant cultures view that the experience is somehow obscene (68).
Morrison uses Ruths extended breastfeeding of Milkman and Freddies reaction to reveal the
way in which the dominant white culture condemns African practices.

18.20-21 He had cooperated as a young father with the blind selection of names from the
Bible for every child other than the first male: African-American naming practices
developed during slavery. According to Cheryll Ann Cody, As parents selected names for their
children, they may have reflected religious convictions, cultural antecedents, or contemporary
heroes and events (564). Cody suggests that religion, among other things, could have influenced
the way slaves named their offspring; however, Gay Wilentz offers another theory behind
African-American naming practices. Wilentz claims, In the New World, a name could also be
employed in opposition to the oppressor, as slaves were wont to do (68). African-Americans
place great importance on the act of naming, and both religion and the institution of slavery have
contributed to the development of African-American naming practices.
Naming plays an important role in Toni Morrisons Song of Solomon. With characters
like Pilate, First Corinthians, and Magdalene called Lena, Morrison shows how these names
derive from the Bible; however, at the same time, these names seem to lack sincere religious
motivation because of their blind selection (Morrison 18). In an interview, Morrison herself
states, I used the biblical names to show the impact of the Bible on the lives of black people,
their awe of it and respect for it coupled with their ability to distort it for the sense of a mixture
of cosmologies (LeClair). This distortion of biblical names is most evident in Pilates name.
After his finger falls on Pilates name in the Bible, Pilates father claims that he will name his
daughter after the Christ-killing Pilate because he asked Jesus to save [his] wife, who died
during childbirth (Morrison 19). Overall, Wilentz argues that Morrisons decision to have her
characters engage in a traditional, religious African-American naming practice demonstrates
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naming as a method of resisting the hegemony of white society through African cultural
practices (68). Morrisons African-American characters resist the dominant white culture by
continuing to use traditional naming practices.

18.23-28 How his father, confused and melancholy over his wifes death in childbirth, had
thumbed through the Bible, and since he could not read a word, chose a group of letters
that seemed to him strong and handsome; saw in them a large figure that looked like a tree
hanging in some princely but protective way over a row of smaller trees: In her essay,
Characteristics of Negro Expression, Zora Neale Huston introduces the idea that African-
Americans think in hieroglyphics (Middleton 66). Hurstons essay explores the different
avenues of African-American culture and expression. Specifically, Hurston examines drama,
language, dancing, and other forms of African-American expression. She claims that an African-
Americans interpretation of the English language is in terms of pictures (293). Hurston posits
that African-Americans experience life in a highly dramatized way; therefore, they experience
language in pictures (294). Hurston explains, So we can say the white man thinks in a written
language and the Negro thinks in hieroglyphics (294).
In Toni Morrisons Song of Solomon, Pilates father selects her name because of the way
it looks on the page (Morrison 18). Joyce Irene Middleton suggests that Pilates fathers method
for selecting her name demonstrates hieroglyphic thinking. Middleton states, He sees the word
as a picture, reminding us of Zora Neale Hurstons conclusion in Characteristics of Negro
Expression (66). Morrisons incorporation of hieroglyphic thinking adds another layer of
nuance to the naming of Pilate. Not only does Pilates father participate in a traditional naming
practice, but he also demonstrates Hurstons idea of hieroglyphic thinking. Middleton concludes,
Thinking hieroglyphically, the father reveals a unique creativity that merges oral and written
traditions in this cultural naming ritual (67). The hieroglyphic thinking behind Pilates name,
along with the practice of selecting a random name from the Bible, reveal the cultural elements
that go into African-American naming practices.

51.16-17 He called our farm Lincolns Heaven: For many African-Americans, Abraham
Lincoln was the Great Emancipator and antislavery advocate (Mackey 24). Throughout
Lincolns political career, his stance on slavery shifted. Lincoln did not always promote the
abolition of slavery. Chandra Manning describes:

Lincolns official position on slavery changed, toofrom early promises that I have no
purpose, directly or indirectly, to interfere with the institution of slavery in the States
where it exists, to the issuance of the Emancipation Proclamation, and eventually to
support for a constitutional amendment abolishing slaveryand those changes allowed
many soldiers to feel a kinship with the president because to them it appeared that his
views had changed much as theirs had. (25)

Despite Lincolns initial hesitance to interfere, he eventually proved that he did not support the
institution of slavery. Overall, many African-Americans think positively of Abraham Lincoln
because of his final opposition to slavery.
In Toni Morrisons Song of Solomon, Milkman Deads grandfather owned a farm and
named it Lincolns Heaven. Without Abraham Lincoln, Milkmans grandfather would not have
been able to own property or a farm. Critics believe that Lincolns Heaven serves multiple roles
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in the novel. For example, Rolland Murray suggests that the farm represents the immense
potential of individual black autonomy (125). Milkmans grandfathers independence and land
exhibit success to other African-Americans in the community. In Pennsylvania, the men
remember Lincolns Heaven as Edenic, and it remains in their minds as an ideal world, a
flourishing, rich farm hacked out of the woods by an ex-slave (Harris 74). Despite the fact that
white people killed Milkmans grandfather in order to take his land, the African-American men
in the town remember Lincolns Heaven as an idyllic symbol of independence. In addition to
Murrays claim, Leslie A. Harris argues that Lincolns Heaven serves to remind Milkman of the
past. Harris states, Lincolns Heaven, Circe, and the decayed plantation all represent the past
which still exerts its influence on Milkman (74). Throughout the novel, Morrison demonstrates
how the past continues the affect Milkman, and Lincolns Heaven is an important element of this
unrelenting past.

54.17-18 That womans no good. Shes a snake, and can charm you like a snake, but still a
snake: Snakes play several roles in African beliefs and customs. To begin, a group of people in
Uganda practice python worship. While these people believe that the python can give success in
fishing, they also petition for children when they worship the python. (Hambly 658). In
addition to python worship, some Africans believe in the rainbow snake, which is a predatory
snake monster that guards wells (Hambly 659). Finally, the African concept of the birth snake
seems to derive from python worship. According to Wilfrid D. Hambly, The worship of
pythons in Africa is fundamentally a fertility cult, and there is a possibility that ideas of the birth
snake, which announces conception by visiting a hut, are a bye-product from dissolution of a
pristine python worship (660). Both the python and the birth snake are related to fertility, but
the rainbow snake is a predatory monster. Overall, African folklore holds several interesting
beliefs about snakes.
In Toni Morrisons Song of Solomon, Macon Dead calls his sister a snake. He warns his
son of Pilate: That womans no good. Shes a snake, and can charm you like a snake, but still a
snake (Morrison 54). Macon calls Pilate a snake because he means to insult her. By referring to
her ability to charm, Macon suggests that Pilate is deceptive. Dorothy H. Lee claims that
Morrison incorporates this snake reference in order to call attention to African folklore. Lee
asserts, Macon has insisted she is a snake (p. 54), meaning it negatively, ignorant as he is of the
serpents mythic role as facilitator of rebirth (65). Morrison reveals to readers what Macon does
not know: In a way, Pilate plays the role of the birth-snake because she mixes the greenish-
gray potion that results in the conception of Milkman (Morrison 125).

80.4-9 A young Negro boy had been found stomped to death in Sunflower County,
Mississippi. There were no questions about who stomped him his murderers had boasted
freely and there were no questions about the motive. The boy had whistled at some white
woman, refused to deny he had slept with others, and was a Northerner visiting the South.
His name was Till: Emmett Till was an African-American victim of lynching in 1955. Till was
from Chicago, and the lynching occurred in Mississippi. According to The Journal of Blacks in
Higher Education, [Till] is said to have whistled at a white woman shopkeeper. A few days
later, the mutilated body of the young teen with a bullet hole in the back of his head was pulled
from the Tallahatchie River. A 70-pound cotton gin fan had been tied around Tills head with
barbed wire (85). The cruel lynching of Till is just one of many examples of racism in America.
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Toni Morrison incorporates the murder of Emmett Till in her novel, Song of Solomon.
The narrator of the novel claims that Till was stomped to death (Morrison 80). Although the
narrators details of the lynching do not exactly match the historical facts, literary critics choose
to focus on Morrisons purpose for including Till in the novel at all. Dorothy H. Lee suggests
that the communitys reaction to Tills lynching provides the social background for Milkmans
meeting with Guitar (66). The community and Guitar are outraged at the murder, but Milkman
does not seem to share in their reaction. Susan L. Blake claims, Later, Guitars racial awareness
represents a sense of community that contrasts favorably with Milkmans utter selfishness, one
measure of which is his reaction to the murder of Emmett Till (Blake 80-81). In response to the
murder of Till, Guitar demonstrates a strong racial awareness; however, Milkman only thinks of
himself and claims that hes the one in trouble (Morrison 88). Morrison uses her characters
reactions to Emmett Tills murder in order to reveal their racial awareness or lack thereof.

94.11-16 and more important, he would have known not to fool with anything that
belonged to Pilate, who never bothered anybody, was helpful to everybody, but who was
also believed to have the power to step out of her skin, set a bush afire from fifty yards, and
turn a man into a ripe rutabaga all on account of the fact that she had no navel: The
tradition of conjuring is a part of African-American culture and folklore. Theophus H. Smith
describes, Conjure is fundamentally magic. It is first in consideration the magical folk tradition
of black North Americans. Its practitioners have traditionally performed their craft in order to
heal or harm others by the operation and invocation of extraordinary powers and processes (4).
Traditionally, many African-American folktales consist of a conjurer who performs supernatural
acts. The conjurer is often a woman, which is implied in the title of Charles W. Chesnutts The
Conjure Woman (Matheson 1). Chesnutts work reveals the ways in which African-Americans
use conjure as a means for both cultural and literal survival (Matheson 11).
In Toni Morrisons Song of Solomon, Pilate Dead acts as a conjure woman. For example,
the community believes that Pilate has special powers. Gay Wilentz states, Pilate also has
mystical powers. She is born without a navel, which allows her special privileges as a conjure
woman, even though it separates her like any religious figure from her community (66).
These powers range from turning a person into a rutabaga to setting a bush on fire (Morrison 94).
Not only does the community believe that Pilate has special powers, but Ruth also goes to Pilate
when her relationship with Macon needs help. Wilentz describes, Pilate prepares a potion for
Macon so that he will sleep with his wife (70). Ruth and Macon conceive Milkman because of
Pilates potion. Susan L. Blake suggests that Pilates use of conjure in Milkmans conception
has helped carry on the family (78). In the same way African-Americans use conjure as a means
for survival, Pilate uses conjure for the survival and continuation of her family.

154.30-36 There is a society. Its made up of a few men who are willing to take some risks.
They dont initiate anything; they dont even choose. They are as indifferent as rain. But
when a Negro child, Negro woman, or Negro man is killed by whites and nothing is done
about it by their law and their courts, this society selects a similar victim at random, and
they execute him, or her in a similar manner if they can: African-American secret societies
began forming as early as the 1800s. Joe W. Trotter describes the functions of these secret
societies: They helped to shape African American identity through rituals of brotherhood;
protected members against poverty and other misfortunes; and supported movements for social
change, including the antislavery movement of the nineteenth century and the modern civil rights
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and black power movements of the twentieth century (356). Secret societies foster a strong
sense of community among African-Americans by allowing them to come together for a
common cause. Edward Nelson Palmer lists the Ancient and Honorable Society of Free and
Accepted Masons as an example of a secret society. Palmer asserts, Freemasonry is the oldest
and most respected secret society among Negros in the United States (208). Because of their
role in building African-American identity and community, secret societies are an integral part of
African-American culture.
In Toni Morrisons Song of Solomon, the Seven Days is an African-American secret
society. Ralph Story claims, The Seven Days can also be linked to black secret societies of the
nineteenth century, an intriguing consideration, since their existence, unlike that of many such
groups in the late 1960s, wasnt necessarily documented or even acknowledged (152). The
secretive nature of the Seven Days is consistent with that of historical black secret societies. In
the novel, the members of the Seven Days carry out revenge murders on random white victims
whenever African-Americans are unjustly killed (Morrison 154). Story argues that Morrisons
novel reveals the complexities of Afro-American life, history, and culture through her creation
of a revolutionary group called the Seven Days (149-150). Morrison demonstrates how severe
racial oppression has led to the development of this African-American secret society that kills
out of love for its own people (Morrison 159).

160.14 You sound like that red-headed Negro named X: Malcolm X is a major figure in
African-American history. As a young person, Malcolm X was a criminal, but he later became
involved with the Black Muslim Movement. After separating from the Black Muslim Movement,
Malcolm X became famous for his role as a black-nationalist leader (Epps 65). Robert Kelly and
Erin Cook view Malcolm X as a black nationalist, encouraging African Americans to fight
racial oppression by any means necessary (37). According to various critics, Malcolm Xs
ideologies seem to contradict Martin Luther King, Jr.s desires for peace and nonviolence (Kelly
37). Archie C. Epps asserts, Malcolm seemed haunted by his anger driven, even captured by
it (66). Malcolm Xs anger resulted from racial oppression and his firm belief that the white
and black races were at war (Epps 67-68).
Two characters in Toni Morrisons Song of Solomon mention Malcolm X during a
heated discussion about racial oppression. After Guitar Bains explains the need for the existence
of the Seven Days, Milkman Dead accuses, You sound like that red-headed Negro named X
(Morrison 160). Ralph Story suggests that Morrison incorporates a reference to Malcolm X in
order to show how radically different Guitar Bains is from Milkman. Regarding Guitar and
Milkman, Story states, Their socioeconomic differences, consequential socializations, and their
divergent experiences are a microcosm for the two most distinguishable Afro-American
ideological streams and their respective historical advocates, e.g., Malcolm X and Martin Luther
King (150). Story suggests that Guitar and Milkman are as different as Malcolm X and Martin
Luther King, Jr. because of their different circumstances. According to Story, Milkman and
Guitars differences are political and classical and automatically make them frightened
antagonists (155). Because of his lower socio-economic status and the death of his father,
Guitar experiences racial oppression and is angered by it more so than Milkman. As a result,
Guitars attitude towards racial oppression resembles that of Malcom X.

177.30-32 With Guitar as his co-conspirator, Milkman could look forward to both fun and
fear: The trickster is an archetypal figure that seems to originate from West African,
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European, and/or American Indian influence (Schramm 20). In the case of African-American
culture, scholars believe that the trickster figure comes from the West African tradition. Susan L.
Schramm suggests that the West African trickster provides a foundation for understanding the
African American trickster figure (20). This trickster has existed within African-American
culture since the time of slavery as a defiant representative for the oppressed group (Schramm
19, 20). As a representative for the oppressed, the trickster plays an important social role.
Schramm claims, This figure is often shown pursing wisdom, cunning, or power and attempting
to redefine the social order (20). In African-American folktales, the trickster is a clever and
cunning figure who can upset the social order on behalf of the oppressed.
Toni Morrison incorporates the concept of the trickster figure into Song of Solomon. For
example, Dorothy H. Lee views Guitar Bains as a variation of the African-American trickster
figure. In the novel, Guitar challenges Milkman and even threatens his life. Lee states, Guitar
operates in the tradition of the trickster and other ambivalent archetypal figures who, by
challenging the hero, push him to his destination (66). Guitar sneaks around and behaves
secretly because of his involvement in the Seven Days (Morrison 116). In addition, Guitar tries
to kill Milkman during the bobcat hunt and again on Solomons Leap (Morrison 279, 337).
Although Guitars characteristics and murderous actions do not perfectly mirror the
characteristics of the traditional African trickster, he is still trickster-like. Rather than challenging
the social order, Guitar challenges Milkman. As a result, Guitars actions cause Milkman to
move closer to revelation and flight.

209.22-25 But nothing was like the shame he felt as he watched and listened to Pilate. Not
just her Aunt Jemima act, but the fact that she was both adept at it and willing to do it
for him: Aunt Jemima is a fictional being who represents the Old South and African-American
stereotypes (Roberts 1). According to Kenneth W. Goings, Purd Wright created a fake biography
that depicted Aunt Jemima as a slave who distracted Union soldiers with her delicious pancakes
in order for her master to escape during the Civil War (656). In addition, Diane Roberts describes
how Aunt Jemima has become a part of Americas racial history:

Aunt Jemima is so familiar she is practically invisible, part of Americas racial

background noise. Aunt Jemima flourished in minstrel shows before she became a
corporate brand name: the archetypal mammy, her shiny, scrubbed black face beaming,
her crimson head-rag tied smartly in a square knot. The mammy typifies the Old South of
benign slavery, grace and abundance, she rules the kitchen or she instructs the young
ladies in decorum or she buries the family silver in the orchard so the Yankees wont
steal it. (1)

The depiction of Aunt Jemima as a benign slave is both racist and insulting to African-
Americans because it promotes the Old South and slavery. Today, Aunt Jemima remains the face
of a popular brand of pancake mix (Roberts 1).
Pilate Dead puts on an Aunt Jemima guise in Toni Morrisons Song of Solomon. When
Milkman and Guitar get arrested, Pilate pleads with the policeman to return her bag of bones.
Milkman tells his father, She even changed her voice (Morrison 205). Gay Wilentz describes,
Almost the height of Macon, she shrinks herself in front of the police, turning her strong
powerful African presence into a stereotypic imitation of Aunt Jemima (67). Milkman reveals
that he feels shame watching Pilate belittle herself on his behalf (Morrison 209). David Cowart
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claims that Morrison uses Pilates Aunt Jemima act to elicit two different reactions from Guitar
and Milkman. Cowart asserts, Pilate plays Aunt Jemima and thereby disgusts the militant Guitar
at the same time that she moves and shames the selfish Milkman, who is brought to understand
something of love and familial solidarity (Cowart 97-98). Pilates Aunt Jemima act angers
Guitar because of the submission to white authority, but she teaches Milkman about the
sacrifices one makes for family. Even though the two characters react differently, Pilates Aunt
Jemima act serves to bring about more racial awareness for both Guitar and Milkman (Cowart
97).

242.31-32 Is this your house now? Did they will you this? Is that why you have to stay
here?: When Milkman first encounters Circe on the Butlers abandoned estate, he perceives
Circe as the faithful black maid (Spallino 520). Many critics claim that Dilsey Gibson, a
character from William Faulkners The Sound and the Fury, represents this idea of the dutiful
African-American servant. Jeffrey J. Folks states, So idealized is the figuration of Dilsey in this
reading that she accepts her servitude and becomes a victim who conspires in her own
victimization and who even recommends the virtue of subservience to her children and
grandson (38). Although some critics view Dilseys submission as a necessary means for
survival, many still view Dilsey is a moral exemplar (Folks 39, 38).
In Toni Morrisons Song of Solomon, Milkman mistakenly views Circe as the faithful
black maid because she remains on the estate and cares for Miss Butlers dogs (Spallino 520).
Milkman states, You still loyal (Morrison 247). Circe explains why she remains on the estate:
[The Butlers] loved it. Stole for it, lied for it, killed for it. But Im the one left. Me and the
dogsAnd I want to see it all go, make sure it does go, and that nobody fixes it up (Morrison
247). Circe does not stay out of faithfulness. Chiara Spallino states, It should not be missed that,
with Circes character, Morrison ironically twists the Faulknerian theme of the faithful black
maid (Dilsey in The Sound and the Fury), who continues lovingly to serve her white masters
even after their decline and death. Revenge and not endurance animate Circes ghost (520).
Unlike Faulkners Dilsey, Morrisons Circe is driven by vindictiveness.

269.17 Some of us is going huntin later on. Care to join us?: Initiation rites are an
important aspect of African culture. P. Masila Mutisya states, Rites of passage offered a
continuity that linked youth with adults and linked both with the larger community (95). Not
only do initiation rites symbolize the beginning of adulthood, but they also preserve community
traditions and values. The initiation can occur between ages six and sixteen (Mutisya 101).
Traditionally, the initiation process consists of the trimming of genitals or clitoridectomy for
females, and these processes encompass the stages of divestment, dying, and rebirth (Mutisya
101, Spallino 521). Once a member of society undergoes the initiation process, he or she can
enter the community as an adult. Mutisya suggests that African rites of passage are meant to
teach community values such as truth, justice, righteousness, harmony, and balance (100).
In Toni Morrisons Song of Solomon, Milkman Dead undergoes an initiation among
members of the community in Shalimar, Virginia. Gay Wilentz asserts, Before they accept him,
he has to go through an initiation consisting of hunting and fighting (71). The fight in the
general store and the bobcat hunt are the two events that lead to Milkmans initiation into the
community. Milkman demonstrates courage during the fight, which leads to him being invited
on the hunt (Lee 69). Dorothy H. Lee claims, For the hunt, older men take over the initiation
rite from the youths. The names of the men Omar, King Walker, Luther Solomon, Calvin
 Moore 10

Breakstone, and a giant called Small Boy seem to indicate that Milkman has entered the circle
of village elders, of poets, kings, and men of God (69). In the company of the community
elders, Milkman undergoes a symbolic death and rebirth. Critics suggest that Guitars attack
on Milkman in the woods serves as a metaphorical death, and the loss of Milkmans limp
symbolizes his rebirth (Lee 69, Spallino 521). Overall, Morrison effectively weaves an
initiation rite into Milkmans journey south. Milkman not only gains acceptance into a
community, but he also comes a step closer to understanding his familys past.

315.7 Why dont he like my hair?: In Zora Neale Hurstons Their Eyes Were Watching God,
the character of Janie is an African-American who struggles to fit into the community because of
white, female beauty standards. According to Bertram D. Ashe, African-Americans, with their
traditionally African features, have always had an uneasy coexistence with the European (white)
ideal of beauty (579). In Hurstons novel, Janie possesses features that seem to conform to
white standards of beauty. Because of Janies light skin and long hair, the community does not
know where to place her (Ashe 580). Ashe suggests that Hurston uses Janie to demonstrate the
differential treatment that women receive based on their physical features (580). In Hurstons
novel, the reactions to Janies physical features only increase her racial awareness (Ashe 590).
Toni Morrison also addresses female beauty standards for African-American women in
Song of Solomon. Ashe points out that Hurston gives her main character features that meet the
white standards of beauty, but Morrison does not. Morrison uses Pilate and Hagar to reveal
opposing sides of the white-beauty construct (Ashe 580). Pilate does not abide by the
standards, but Hagar seeks to meet them. While Pilate deliberately has short and natural hair,
Hagar dreams of having different features that will attract Milkman. For example, the narrator
reveals that Hagar envies the girl with copper-colored hair in Milkmans arms (Morrison 127).
Through Pilate and Hagar, Morrison seems to argue that white beauty standards should not be
the only beauty standards. Ashe asserts, Eventually, by revolving these opposites around
Milkman, the novels central character, Morrison devises her own African-American standard of
beauty, an alternative to the white-beauty ideal (580). Ashe claims that Morrison reveals an
African-American beauty standard that is predicated on racial identity (590).

337. 4-11 Guitar! he shouted.

Tar tar tar, said the hills.
Over here, brother man! Can you see me? Milkman cupped his mouth
with one hand and waved the other over his head. Here I am!
Am am am am, said the rocks.
You want me? Huh? You want my life?
Life life life life:
Call-and-response is a traditional African-American storytelling technique. This technique is
employed when a speaker calls out, and an audience replies. Maggie Sale describes, Call-and-
response patterns provide a basic model that depends and thrives upon audience performance and
improvisation, which work together to ensure that the art will be meaningful or functional to the
community (41). Call-and-response demonstrates how important the community is to African-
Americans. In addition, Sale claims, Call-and-response patterns, developed in spirituals and play
and work songs, are related to the group or communal nature of art; these patterns both value
improvisation and demand that new meanings be created for each particular moment (42). Call-
 Moore 11

and-response has existed within African-American oral traditions since the time of slavery, and
this technique continually highlights the role of the community within Africa-American culture.
Toni Morrison employs call-and-response in Song of Solomon when Milkman calls out to
Guitar on Solomons Leap. According to Joyce Irene Middleton, From the grand height and
spectacle of Solomons Leap, overlooking a dark, lush, natural setting, we find a symbolic instance
of the African-American cultural call and response (Smitherman 104-18), with nature herself
participating and listening to this tale (73). When Milkman calls out, the hills and rocks seem to
reply (Morrison 337). Middleton suggests that this example of call-and-response reveals
Milkmans connection with his roots. She asserts:

The acoustic effects of this passage make the call and response pattern emphatic. This oral
language style underscores the harmony that Milkman has achieved: he is no longer
separate from, no longer isolated from, the life-sustaining knowledge of his past. His
allegorical flight is inward, for we have seen him find self-knowledge especially the oral
nature of his ancient roots and we have seen him find a deep reverence for life and for
human relationships. (Middleton 74)

No longer ignorant of his past, Milkman seems to embrace his origins. Morrison demonstrates
how Milkman understands and appreciates his familys history through the use of call-and-
response.

337.19-24 Without wiping away tears, taking a deep breath, or even bending his knees
he leaped. As fleet and bright as a lodestar he wheeled toward Guitar and it did not matter
which one of them would give up his ghost in the killing arms of his brother. For now he
knew what Shalimar knew: If you surrendered to the air, you could ride it: Dilemma tales
are a type of folktale within African culture. According to William R. Bascom, [Dilemma tales]
are prose narratives that leave the listeners with a choice among alternatives, such as which of
several characters has done the best, deserves a reward, or should win an argument or a case in
court (1). Since the dilemma occurs at the conclusion of the story, the audience must grapple
with the possible endings and decide for themselves how the story ends. Bascom describes, The
choices are difficult ones and usually involve discrimination on ethical, moral, or legal grounds
(1). Dilemma tales are a valuable element of African culture because they encourage critical
thinking, discussion, and the participation of the community (Wilentz 65).
Toni Morrisons Song of Solomon is an example of a dilemma tale. The novel ends with
the fight between Guitar Bains and Milkman Dead, and Morrison purposefully does not reveal
the winner of the fight (Morrison 337). Gay Wilentz offers an explanation for Morrisons use of
the dilemma tale:

If Morrison is ending this novel in the style of an African dilemma tale, there is both a
question and a caveat for the reader. In a multicultural society, there may be other
perceptions of reality, other values, and other ways of interpretation than the ones
ordained by the dominant culture. In this case, Morrison exposes the conflict of Western
and African cultural perceptions, revealing the importance of African heritage and values
for Black Americans. (74)
 Moore 12

Just as audiences of dilemma tales must decide the endings of the stories, readers must grapple
with the end of Song of Solomon. Morrison forces her readers to create their own endings for her
novel, thus cultivating an interaction between her readers and traditional African storytelling
techniques.
 Moore 13

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