I Ain't Sayin' He's a Gold Digger...

I honestly could not believe it when Milkman decided that he would steal from Pilate.  She practically raised him as a baby, and was his escape from the brutal world as a teenager.  Along with that, she is just a caring old woman that he cares about and looks up to, so it upset me when he set his mind to attempting to steal from her, and taking his father's side.  The whole moonlit scene with Guitar and Milkman attempting to rob "gold" was quite amusing, especially at the very end where we inadvertently see Pilate muttering to herself, but only fully realize it's Pilate because we are told she is chewing on a wooden splinter.

After Pilate so graciously bails Milkman and Guitar out of trouble, Milkman can't get the idea of godld and opportunity out of his head.  This whole fiasco with the gold seemed to point Milkman in the "right" direction in terms of finding out who he is and going forward in life on his own.  As Lena accuses him of never having lifted more than his own shoes, shortly after we see him climbing up steep rocks and tearing his precious clothes, feeling hunger, and helping a man lift a very heavy object, thereby exerting himself.  For the first time in his sheltered life, he is forced to make decisions on his own and take care of himself alone, with no one else to clean up after himself.

Though I'm truly not sure how the book will end, I have this feeling that Milkman will find his aunt's relatives in Virginia and find his true calling and feel like he belongs there.  However, I want him to have to "suffer" a bit more on his own so he really understands what living is like for the majority of people in his life. 

Dead or Alive?

Song of Solomon is a book that is as interesting as it is provocative.  Toni Morrison writes on many touchy subjects, and is very realistic in her presentation of the black community of the early-mid 20th century.  Not only do the names chosen for her characters suit them well, but there are many themes apparent in their meanings throughout.  

The most prevalent name that appears frequently is Dead, the last name Macon Dead I received because of an error a "drunk Yankee" (53) made.  Macon Dead II was named after his father, and in an effort to become more than his father, became an uptight, disliked (for the most part) man.  The word 'dead' can be used to describe the dynamic between the members of the nuclear Dead family.  There does not seem to be any warmth or liveliness between them, and they therefore seem to be dead in their interactions with one another.  Similarly, the tie between Macon Dead II and his sister Pilate Dead is severed and dead.

The surrounding community picks up on the name dead as symbolism and uses it to make an analogy for the car the Dead family travels in -- naming it Macon Dead's hearse.  The car gets its nickname because the family acts so strict and formal when riding in it, and because it has supposedly not lived --"no rope ever held the door to its frame...there was never a sudden braking...no beer bottles or ice cream cones poked from the open windows..." (32) and because Macon had never "taken a woman into the back seat" (32).  This formality that is prevalent between members of the Dead family during their car ride is also symbolic of the deadness of the family's relations and Macon Dead II's exerted control over his family.  

The word 'dead' also gives off a sentiment of fear as death is, well, death.  The name carries power because Macon II has achieved a great deal in his life and his quite wealthy, but he is feared (and not entirely respected), just as his name suggests.

There are many, many more names and nicknames that have meaning throughout the novel (Pilate's name was chosen because the P looks protective -- like she is -- and it is a male name but still sounds soft -- like her simultaneously patriarchal yet maternal role in the three-generation family -- and also the connotation of the name "Pilate" as being the fierce "Christ-killing Pilate" (19) -- as she stands up for her daughter with a knife) so my next blog post might be on the symbolism/meaning of names as well.