Beloved shows the reader that people will forever be haunted by harsh times in their lives, specifically slavery. Although Beloved was not the reason slavery was so horrific for Sethe, her murder happened because of the trauma slavery caused. Beloved haunts Sethe and doesn’t allow her to move on from her past. Paul D’s tin can represents his heart, forcing him to remember all the memories he tried so hard to keep away. Beloved haunts Sethe and the family as an actual person, but her presence is meant to bring back traumatic memories, combining the past and present. Beloved as a ghost is a constant reminder to Sethe of the mistake she made, and of the traumatic memories, she will never forget due to slavery. Using Beloved as a ghost gave a supernatural figure to 124, giving it a creepy setting. It was able to make the family afraid in their own home. Establishing this supernatural setting was important because it showed how the family would always be uncomfortable.
The supernatural is a way for any lingering spirit or emotions. As Beloved's purpose is to remind people of slavery and that the past can always come back to haunt you, the supernatural is a great way for that to be seen in the novel. Most of the time, people are afraid of ghosts even though they can’t physically hurt you and a ghost may not be at peace with what happened in their physical life on Earth. These ideas are similar to Beloved because she took offense to Sethe killing her and could not let it go. More importantly, her connection with slavery haunts Sethe and that memory can occur at any time no matter how far she thinks she is from her past. By Morrison making Beloved a ghost, she can convey the idea that the past will always stay with someone. Sethe killed Beloved, but that doesn’t mean that it will be left in the past just because it happened in the past. Beloved signifies that the past will come back to haunt you and you cannot avoid it. Also, Beloved represents how the times of slavery in her past will haunt her life forever, the fear that drives many of her actions. The idea of 124 being haunted by a ghost brings a strange feeling to the novel, as it is clear that Sethe is being haunted by her dead daughter. However, the fact that she comes back from being a ghost to a girl, is the most important moment in the novel. It brings together the theme that everything in the past can come back to haunt you. By making Beloved a ghost in the novel, Morrison highlights things coming back from the past to haunt you. In this case, it is slavery that is coming back to haunt Sethe and the other characters in the book. As much as they try, they cannot get rid of the horrible memory of slavery.
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By making Beloved a ghost, the past can never really be forgotten and pushed down. Since Beloved was murdered as a baby, I believe that she uses her evil spirit to voice her feelings about how she feels about her mother murdering her. Her aggressive spirit also shows readers that she cannot let go of her past and wants to haunt her mother for the choices she has made. She also wants to seek revenge against her mother. Overall, the spirit of Beloved shows that people will forever be haunted by dark times in their personal lives as well as in history, dark memories cannot just disappear.
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Essay on ‘Beloved’ Setting.
(2024, February 29). Edubirdie. Retrieved December 22, 2024, from https://edubirdie.com/examples/essay-on-beloved-setting/
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Essay on ‘Beloved’ Setting [Internet]. Edubirdie.
2024 Feb 29 [cited 2024 Dec 22].
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