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.
I think that the names Toni Morrison gives to her characters, while being a reflection on some event, is also a foreshadowing, or a type of prophecy that is forced upon the characters. Macon does have a fearful temperament and he is pretty scary once people do get to know him, but on the other hand, he doesn't even have to be known by people for them to be scared of him. He can just walk into a room full of strangers from another town, people who haven't ever heard of his life or his marriage or his children, and state his name, and they would automatically be scared of him. It isn't his fault, but the meaning of his name just makes him disliked.
ReplyDeleteMilkman and Guitar are the same way. Milkman has this whole backstory, and this story kind of foreshadows his (somewhat) incestuous relationship with his cousin Hagar. Guitar, whose name evokes fun and frivolity, lives his life just that way. People are drawn to him, much as Milkman is. When I first read his name, I just assumed that he would be a likable character and didn't think twice about it until I read the story of how he was named Guitar, which just echoed my previous belief.