LITR 5731:
Seminar in American Minority Literature
University of
Houston-Clear Lake, 1999
Sample Student Midterm
Lathon Lewis
LITR 5731
Dr. Craig White
Spring 1999
Themes
of Magic and Christianity within the Black Experience
The themes of our text serve as reflections
of different aspects of the experience of Black persons in America. Although no
one text can provide a complete view, it is possible for a writer to work
through a particular theme with effectiveness. Frederick Douglass’ narrative
provides an autobiographical account of a move from slavery to freedom. Both Song
of Solomon and The Chaneysville Incident deal with reconciliation of
contemporary Black folks with aspects of their past. The subjects of
Christianity and the supernatural appear in all three works.
The presence of Christianity within our texts
reveals itself through the use of biblical names, through certain beliefs and
actions of the characters, as well as, its being criticized by certain
characters. The use of biblical names, which is most prevalent in Song of
Solomon but also occurs in The Chaneysville Incident, is the most
obvious literary link to Christianity. However, the use of biblical names does
not in itself suggest the practice of Christianity. It does, though, imply the
importance of the bible as necessary literature within the Black experience in
America. In Song of Solomon, the patriarch Macon Dead names his children,
excepting the first born male, by randomly choosing a name from the bible. This
is a pattern that is repeated by the second Macon Dead in the naming of his
daughters. A similar thing is done in The Chaneysville Incident in the
way Lamen chooses the name, Moses, for his son. The bible, with its place as
important literature, is present within both families. Even those characters
that are illiterate realize its importance. This being a fact, suggests to us
that it is more than the book but rather its meaning, or what it represents,
that resonates with the characters and these characters are meant to be
representative of the Black experience. Frederick Douglass, in his narrative,
reinforces this theme. Douglass can read and in fact becomes a teacher of some
illiterate slaves. The classes take place on the "Sabbath" and, though
some spelling books are mentioned, the primary learning tool is the bible. In
fact, one gets the sense that the classes are also a worship service.
The idea of moving from sin to salvation that
is represented by Christianity is analogous to the move from slavery to freedom.
The bible, with its link to Christianity, is a symbol of freedom. With this in
mind, it only makes sense that the enslaved and recently freed Blacks would be
eager to have that symbol in their possession. Douglass, with his narrative
being an autobiography, provides the true to life example of the slave mindset
of the times. On the frustration of his predicament, he writes, "My
thoughts would compel utterance; and there, with no audience but the Almighty, I
would pour out my soul’s complaint…"(Douglass, 293). Later, when
describing the Sabbath day sessions with the illiterate slaves, Douglas writes,
"…we were trying to learn how to read the will of God,"(Douglass,
303).
In The Chaneysville Incident, the most
demonstrative depiction of the link between Christianity and the Black
experience is when the protagonist, John Washington, is describing the events of
Old Jack’s funeral. At the gravesite, members of the congregation take turns
singing spirituals concerned with such subjects as angels, lambs, and stealing
away to Jesus. When one member sings the verse the rest of the congregation
responds with the chorus. John’s description draws the obvious parallel of the
call and response traditionally associated with the preacher and congregation of
the Black church. Unlike the Douglass narrative, the presence of Christianity
within The Chaneysville Incident does not imply acceptance. There is, in
fact, an anti-church mood that permeates throughout the novel.
Moses Washington, whose strong character
dominates the book, views the church as unnecessary and perhaps even silly. God
for him, as well as for Old Jack and John, is found in the woods and the
mountains and freedom is attained only through the will of the individual. Even
the final act of Moses’ suicide is a demonstration of the power of his freedom
and seems crazy: "Only if you’re a Christian. Only if you believe in
Heaven and Hell, and all those things," (Bradley, 388). John goes on to
describe, "Moses Washington didn’t (believe)…he spent all that time in
the church and talking to preachers and reading the Bible because he wanted to
be sure the Christians were wrong," (Bradley, 389). Douglass, on the other
hand, does not find fault with the Christian ideals but rather with the
hypocrisy of the religious. Being a literate slave, he has the opportunity to
understand the contradiction between what the devout slaveholders taught and
what they practiced. Ironically, the more devout one of the slaveholders claimed
to be the meaner and crueler they were. The comparison does not fail, for as he
calls the names of different reverends in the community, we are told of the
cruelty of each. He, in fact, comes to the conclusion, "…that the
religion of the south is a mere covering of the most horrid crimes, --a
justifier of the most appalling barbarity, --a sanctifier of the most hateful
frauds, --and a dark shelter under which the darkest, foulest, grossest, and
most infernal deeds of slaveholders find the strongest protection,"
(Douglass, 301).
The presence of Christianity is the subtlest
in Song of Solomon. Toni Morrison, with the biblical title of her book,
gives the impression of a religious novel. While some may argue the
religiousness of the book, Christianity only penetrates as deep as the names of
some of its characters. It is neither the beacon for hope as in Douglass’
narrative nor the source of delusion as presented by David Bradley. The mention
of this absence is not meant to assert that Song of Solomon does not
pulse with a spiritual flow. In fact, it is arguably the most spiritual of the
three works.
The presence of a magical mood or
otherworldliness is widespread in the Morrison novel, although The
Chaneysville Incident and the Douglass narrative touch on that feeling as
well. From the suicidal leap of Robert Smith on the opening pages to Milkman’s
own at the end of the book (Both of which are perhaps the same "crazy"
freedom that Moses Washington displays), Morrison frankly portrays the surreal.
When we are introduced to Pilate, the mystical aunt of Milkman, we are presented
with the physical oddity of a belly with no navel. When their father is killed,
a woman named Circe cares for Pilate and Macon. Her name recalls the enchantress
from Ancient Greek mythology. When she appears later in the novel, so much time
has passed we can not be sure if she is real or a ghost. Her appearance at the
top of the stairs is compared to the appearance of a witch in the dreams of a
child. Even more surreal are the appearances of the eldest Macon Dead after he
has been murdered. A harmless figure, he beckons and whispers phrases to his
children.
The matter of fact way that Morrison presents
this ghost makes the walking dead almost seem common. The spiritual world is
intermingled with the natural world. In The Chaneysville Incident we also
get the description of spirits. The sound of the wind moving along the far side
of the hill was not wind at all, rather it was believed by Old Jack to be the
souls of Indians. It was their singing that caused the sounds. Spirit and nature
are again in existence together. Sandy Jenkins, the old slave who is a friend to
Frederick Douglass would have a similar viewpoint. For protection from the cruel
master he turns to a certain root. Here we see the natural and the spiritual
have become one. The root may come from the ground but it possesses magical
qualities that seem to hold powers over certain things in this world. The
literate Douglass is skeptical of old Sandy’s belief but when the root seems
to achieve its purpose he is left to ponder the validity of Sandy Jenkin’s
magic. In Song of Solomon, Pilate uses witchcraft to control the actions
of her brother Macon. When Ruth desires for Macon to come to her, Pilate gives
her, "some greenish-gray grassy-looking stuff to put in his food,"
(Morrison, 125). Soon after Macon does come to his wife and she is soon pregnant
with a son as Pilate has prophesized. Again the sorcery of Pilate is called upon
as Macon is trying to get his wife to abort the unborn child. He comes to his
office one day and finds in his chair, "a male doll with a small painted
chicken bone stuck between its legs and round red circle painted on his
belly," (Morrison, 132). Although Morrison does not explain the intended
effects of doll, we understand from the actions of Macon that there is potential
magic involved as well as potential powers that are not of this world.
Perhaps the single most surreal act of
Morrison’s book is the flight of Solomon. It is told to Milkman as a myth but
its reality is what justifies the words of the Macon’s ghost. The reader is
left with the certainty that Solomon could fly. In contrast to both Bradley and
Douglass, Morrison legitimizes the magical as part of the Black experience.
Douglass denies the power of the root. It does not matter that things worked out
the way Sandy promised, the magical is denied a place in reality. In a footnote
to his narrative, Douglass explains that Sandy and he often talked about the
events involving the root and its success. Douglass regards Sandy’s belief as
a common superstition among the more ignorant slaves. Ignorant is also how John
describes Old Jack’s theory of the souls of Indians singing on the far side of
the hill. His education has taught him the sounds are created by the shape of
the land and the velocity, temperature, and direction of the wind. The intellect
of both Douglass and John has caused them to move beyond simple thinking. Power
for them comes with that intellectual knowledge. It is this knowledge that
allows Frederick Douglass to understand and articulate the injustice of his
condition. His lucid reasoning dissolves the illogic of his oppressors. For John
Washington, education is the tool that dismantles the mythology of youth. That,
which was once grand has become simple. Knowledge is also the thing that allows
them to propel forward in American society, somewhat closer to that American
dream, stretching the Black experience into new directions. In Song of
Solomon, Morrison is wary of moving in those same directions. The American
dream does seem to corrupt and separate one from one’s true self. There is
something special that has been left in the past, a connection to a magical
world that perhaps lies within. It is a magical power that can propel its user
beyond this world. It is the same magical power that allowed those Africans to
fly.
Both Christianity and the belief in the
supernatural can be associated with the Black experience in America. The
supernatural beliefs are something that traveled from Africa and Christianity is
something that was embraced by the suffering slaves. Both of these themes are
dealt with in our texts with varying degrees of emphasis. Their presence in all
three books, I think, speaks to their relevance. The books themselves are good
starting points for mental examination of the experiences of Black persons. As
one ponders on the dissolution of the distinct experiences of Black America into
the dominant culture, one realizes that the more it dissolves, the more it will
be absorbed by society as a whole.
Lathon Lewis, LITR 5731
midterm paper response from Craig White
Grade:
Dear Lathon,
You’ve written an impressive midterm, so
thanks for a good reading experience and I’ll always be glad to work with you.
In terms of what goes right here, I’m
tempted simply to fall back and say that you’re a gifted writer, because your
prose shows many of the intangibles that are almost impossible to teach:
there’s good forward motion, a relish for the texts and the pleasure they
offer in reading and discussion, a subtle perception of degrees of similarity
and difference, and, most generally, a good "sound" to the
language—you enjoy the sound of English, that is, and you stretch and squeeze
it so that your own prose sings back to you and to your prospective reader.
In terms of advice, on the "micro"
level I offered a few small corrections in your text itself, and a couple of
times I was tempted to condense your prose, but then I recalled your interest in
creative writing and decided to leave the choice to you—in any case, however,
your style is occasionally a little more "spacious" compared to
by-the-book critical writing, which is always condensing itself. As I said,
however, you can make this choice yourself, and it’s worth remembering that
many of the best critics are also creative writers who push the boundaries of
standard academic prose. Just be aware of the pressures in both directions.
Probably the most useful advice I can offer
would be organizational, but it has consequences for the development of your
ideas. You offer a two-step topic: Christianity and the supernatural. However,
you don’t directly relate these two subjects to each other. In some respects
that might have been smart, since the comparison is loaded with sensitive
dangers. However, on page 4, the shift from the subject of Christianity to that
of "a magical mood or otherworldliness" is rather abrupt, and after
that point, in your discussion of the supernatural, I believe you never look
back to the first part of your paper. The positive qualities of your writing
prevent your reader from griping too much, but if I were an editor interested in
publishing your analysis, I would insist that you connect the two stages through
comparison, contrast, or progression.
Writing can always be better, and you might
keep in mind this advice about relating the two stages of any argument, but
it’s a pleasure reading writing that is this good already and I look forward
to your other work this semester.