Wang AP Lit

           Song of Solomon is peppered with many different allusions. Ranging from classical myths to traditional folk tales, these stories enhance the text and establish parallels between Morrison’s characters and well-known figures. One such allusion is the Brothers’ Grimm tale of “Hansel and Gretel.” At the start of Part II in the novel, Morrison describes the tale of “Hansel and Gretel” and compares the two children’s journey to Milkman searching for Circe’s home. In “Hansel and Gretel,” two children abandoned in the woods by their parents who cannot afford to care for them anymore come across a witch’s house from which they must escape after she attempts to eat them. The story reflects an era’s financial hardships, but also a loss of innocence for Hansel and Gretel. “Hansel and Gretel” functions in Song of Solomon in two different ways. First of all, Macon and Pilate are Hansel and Gretel. After all, their beloved father is killed by racists, and the...

      Song of Solomon is a bildungsroman. After all, the novel chronicles the life of Milkman Dead as he grows up and attempts to find meaning in life. Milkman has two defining characteristics: self-absorption and a lack of identity. Throughout the novel, Milkman seemingly acts in his own interests and ignores the well-being of those around him. He becomes intimate with Hagar, but when he becomes bored, he disregards her and refers to her as a third beer that one drinks simply because it is there. Similarly, he hardly speaks with his sisters Magdalene called Lena and First Corinthians, and he does not view his mother Ruth as a real person with emotions, but rather as an extension of himself. Additionally, he feels manipulated by his family members and friends. He thinks, “Somehow everybody was using him for something or as something. Working out some scheme of their own on him, making him the subject of their dreams of wealth, or love, or martyrdom. ...

We have heard about the ghosts haunting Freddie's mother and Pilate's father's ghost giving her advice. What is the significance of ghosts in the novel? Who is Circe and what is her relationship to Pilate and Macon? How does the lack of familial roots and identity shape and influence the characters in the novel?

Toni Morrison’s novel Song of Solomon is peppered with many different unusual metaphors. Often appearing at unexpected moments, this figurative language enhances the text and offers more meaning into the characters’ minds. The following are a few of my favorite metaphors: “There was the pain and shame of seeing his father crumple before any man–even himself. Sorrow in discovering that the pyramid was not five-thousand-year wonder of the civilized world, mysteriously and permanently constructed by generation after generation of hardy men who had died in order to perfect it, but that it had been made in the back room at Sears, by a clever window dresser, of papier-maché, guaranteed to last a lifetime” (68) In this passage, Milkman reflects on hitting his father after Macon abuses Ruth. The act of retaliation represents Milkman’s loss of innocence and transition into full adulthood; he realizes that he no longer fears his father. Prior to this moment, his father, like the pyramid, is...