Song Of Solomon By Toni Morrison English Literature Essay

Personal freedom is described as the aptitude to ignore familial and societal influences in order to find the actual sense of self. People are enlightened and liberated truly when they are mentally, spiritually, physically free. The sense of self is also described as the enlightenment every individual possesses when they psychologically accept and realize their true limitations and qualities. The attainment of personal freedom however is not a very simple affair. It could even be a lifelong journey that is demanding and tedious with setbacks and obstacles which must be conquered.

There is a strong theme of fight for freedom in the novel titled Song of Solomon by Toni Morrison in 1987. Macon is among the main characters in this novel and he was only a child at the beginning of the novel. However he is able to kill a man whom he considered threatening to Pilate, his own sister, and also himself. This is found in the phrase which states “the scream which boomed down the fissure subway and woke the bats came just when Macon contemplated that he had taken his last living breath. The hemorrhage man turned to the course and direction of the screech and looked at the colored girl well and long enough for Macon to draw out his own knife and bring it downhill the old man’s back. He crashed onward, and then turned bowed his head to look at them. His mouth enthused and he mumbles impressive that sounds like ‘What for?’ Macon stabbed him again and again until movement of his mouth stopped, stop trying to talk and stopped jumping and shuddering on the ground” (Morrison 171).

After the death of the old man, Macon and Pilate travelled to the camp of the man and in the camp grounds they discovered three bags or sacks of gold. This young man, Macon, is also able to see “the dusty boots of his farther” (Morrison 170). Pilate is alarmed and she shouts her father’s name and to this cry a voice was able to whisper ‘sing sing’. The young man, Macon greedily packed the three gold bags whereas Pilate searches everywhere for their father. After a short while there was a terrible fight between Macon and Pilate after which they separate. This is a fight for freedom but ironically the two find themselves living together again after some years in the same small Michigan town. They both hate their secrets of the family and they grow in very different directions. Later Macon is able to move on with life and gets married to Ruth and they both bear three children namely First Corinthians, Lean and Macon who is nicknamed Milkman (Dorothy 89).

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Later after some years, Milkman is interested in the granddaughter of Pilate and therefore spends so much of his childhood time in Pilate’s house despite the disapproval by his father. Milkman lives at home for more than thirty years and hence he is swamped with his family secret. The father to Milkman claims Pilate stole the gold which was in the camp sight. Pilate on the other hand claims that the same bag was her portion of ‘inheritance’ which only became bones. Out of this confusion, the Milkman sets out to research for the actual truth of the family secret. This is a mystery novel by Toni Morrison which keeps the reader curious, and this is because she writes her storyline regarding the lifestyle of the black society especially in the 1980’s. This black society is pursuing real freedom. The main theme of this novel is freedom and every character in the novel is able to obtain their freedom through only two paths. Them that seek freedom through accumulating wealth are always darkened with a very cruel heat whereas those that seek freedom through family and community are rewarded with joy and success (Spark notes Editors).

Guitar searched for belonging because his father, “got sliced up in a saw mill,” (Morrison 61) and therefore Guitar was brought up by his grandmother. However, Guitar is not accepted and he joins different clubs such as the Seventh Day and the murder’s club in an attempt to fit in. He is either white or black and he believes that money is able to grant him freedom, he is even ready to kill his best friend for freedom. The greediness in him is exposed when he tries to accuse Milkman for, “taking the gold” (Morrison 295). Later we find that Guitar hunts for Milkman in strive to murder him. This is because of thirst for freedom and wealth. Unfortunately, he is misled into suffering and killing rather than the freedom that he sought.

Macon who is the father to Milkman is driven by the thought that “money is freedom, it’s the only freedom there is” (Morrison 163). Macon owns almost the whole town and he uses this wealth to free himself from racial world. However later he believed that Pilate’s bag contained gold and greed set in. “He turned to his son licking his lips and in full face. You can have half of what Milkman got; go anywhere you want. Get it. For both of us. Please get it, son. Get the gold” (Nancy & Toni 172). This real freedom Macon is seeking has only changed him into an evil and a selfish character.

Milkman also seeks his own community and family. After he is informed about the various family secrets in their family, he starts out in search of the truth. This curiosity is sparked first when his own mother tells him “I know he never told you but he killed my father, and that he tried to kill you” (Morrison 124). He could not believe that his father was a murderer and he listened keenly to Pilate as she told him regarding the story of her ‘inheritance’. Pilate informed him that the bag that she had did not contain gold but that it contained the bones of the old man that Macon had murdered.

Thereafter, Milkman leaves this town of Michigan and is ready to travel in an attempt to understand the family history. In his search he met Susan Byrd and from this he learns about the long story of Solomon leap and this helped him a lot in solving the puzzle that he was searching for about his family. The freedom of Milkman is only obtained at this point where he learns and understands that his own father was a murderer. Macon, his father had stabbed his own father who would be the grandfather to Milkman. Pilate carried the bones of her father awaiting a proper and decent burial. This solution to the family puzzle is able to set the soul of Milkman free. Just like his grandfather, “he surrendered to the air,” in believe that “he can ride it” (Dorothy 140)

From the discussion above we find that everyone is in search of personal freedom. Some use dubious means and some have to take their whole life to know the truth and hence be psychologically free. The attainment of personal freedom we find that it is not a simple affair and one has to work hard for it. All these characters have worked really hard either using negative or positive ways and means. However we find that everyone struggles till they attain the personal freedom.

Work cited

Dorothy Hill. Song of Solomon (Toni Morrison): curriculum unit. New York: Center for Learning, 2005.

“Fight for Freedom in Toni Morrison’s The Song of Solomon,” 123HelpMe.com. 22 Jul 2010. Retrieved on July 22nd July from: http://www.123HelpMe.com/view.asp?id=21584

Morrison Toni, Song of Solomon, New York: Alfred Knopf, 1977

Nancy Ciabattari & Toni Morrison, Song of Solomon (MAXNotes Literature Guides). London: Research & Education Assoc., 1996.

Spark Notes Editors. “Spark Note on Song of Solomon” SparkNotes.com. Spark Notes LLC. 2002. Web. 21 Jul. 2010.