Characters And Characteristics In Beloved By Toni Morrison

Characteristics of the literature African American literature since 1975 offers a variety of different subjects, styles, and themes. This literature is characterized by five distinct trends: “the acknowledgement of the multiplicity of African-American identities, a renewed interest in history as writers imagine the psychological and spiritual lives of African Americans during slavery and segregation, the emergence of a community of black women writing, a continuing exploration of music and other forms of vernacular culture as springboards for literary innovation and theoretical analysis, and the influence of African American literary scholarship.” (Gates 2127)

Major figures

Toni Morrison was born on February 18, 1931, in Lorain, Ohio. Morrison

Considered to be her seminal text, Beloved presents the slave narrative in a way that has not been done before. It can also be noted as one of the first provocative pieces in the time period in the way that it addresses the lasting effects of slavery. Morrison tackles the ways in which slavery caused havoc physically, emotionally, and spiritually. Morrison also discusses the ways in which slavery had a negative effect on the former slaves’ sense of self. Furthermore, Morrison’s novel speaks to the power of community for former slaves. In the novel, Morrison makes it evident that Sethe would have not survived without the support of her community. Beloved is an important work of the period because it served as one of the first novels, written by a black woman, to not only provide a candid and collective tale of the black slave experience, but to also tackle issues of mental health in the black

Immediately demanding respect for the content of her work, the first two lines in Mans’ book read, “Blood has decorated these streets so long / They have begun to look like pastures of rose petals.” (Mans 6) Dedicated to writers from the Black Arts movement, Mans’ poems investigate, critique, and comment on who we consider to be our heroes and what they mean to us now. The topics of her poems include topics such as police brutality, inner city violence, and even the concerns of raising a black family in present day America. A popular poem in her book is entitled “Barbie.” Addressed to Nicki Minaj, it is sometimes mistaken as a “diss” poem, however it is written to serve as a wake up call to girls manipulated by mass media. Chalk Outlines of Snow Angels is more than just a raw collection of poems; instead, it is a challenge for us to better our world. When asked about her goal for the book Mans states, “I guess this book is a plea for you to save our babies.” While she is young and her work shows some flaws, Mans is a hopeful and very probable icon in the rising literature movement of