A central theme in The Song of Solomon is flight. More specifically, the flight of men. But what happens to the women in this story?
Once the men "fly away," we don't know what happens to them. But we do know that they are gone, and the people left behind are the only ones who can continue their legacy. For example, Solomon's wife, Ryna, was abandoned by his "flight" and left to raise their twenty-one kids alone. Even the song that the children in Danville sing depicts this scene, "O Solomon don't leave me here / Cotton balls to choke me / Buckra's arms to yoke me." While Solomon and Ryna both suffered the terrors of slavery, Solomon was the only one to unearth freedom. This pattern is repeated once again with our main character, Milkman.
The most important women in Milkman's journey are Pilate, Hagar, his mother, and his sisters. Whilst Pilate raises Hagar independent from men, Milkman's mother and sisters are overshadowed by him and his father. Morrison reveals this quite later in the book, in a section through Lena's perspective. Although brief, we learn a lot about what might be the reality of their family dynamic, where the sisters have given up their childhood to raise Milkman. I think it is interesting how Morrison chose to include this after we have become sympathetic towards Milkman. Throughout the second half of the novel, his sisters establish their independence through hard work, while Milkman takes a road trip to learn how to fly.
Pilate on the other hand, seems to represent an "untethered" character, and is literally missing a navel. She is loving and fiercely loyal, contrary to the men in her family. At the end of the novel, Milkman says, "without ever leaving the ground, she could fly." Without leaving behind her loved ones, Pilate created a life and identity for herself. Her daughter Hagar, however, becomes heavily infatuated with Milkman. This only leads to disaster, with Milkman not willing to commit emotionally. When he leaves, Hagar is devastated and falls into a state of depression, eventually passing away. This happens at the same time that Milkman makes his enormous discoveries, and is about to make his "triumphant return" home. I believe that Morrison intentionally overlapped these scenes, in order to contrast the state of the two characters. In the end Milkman takes his flight, leaving behind the ground where the body of Pilate lays.
This is a good observation, that flight is also abandonment (of women characters, in particular), but also that we don't get to hear the "end" of the story. What happens to Solomon? Does he make it back to Africa? It seems that the amazing act of flight itself is what is inspirational--there's even more mystery and intrigue when the flying Solomon just disappears, and the people left on the ground are inspired and invigorated by the mere fact of human flight. But it remains ambiguous, because even when he tries to take Jake with him, he fails to do so--and Jake returns to the ground, abandoned alongside his wailing mother.
ReplyDeleteWhat an interesting idea for a blog post! It really brings a new meaning to the song we hear so often throughout the book to understand it not just through the life of Solomon, but also of Milkman. The parallels between the two stories, from the little information we know, are fascinating. Good post.
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ReplyDeleteI think your analysis of the juxtaposition between the misfortunes in the lives of those close to Milkman and the advances in his own life is spot on, and another example of how there is so much to unpack in this novel. While Milkman eventually finds his own path in life, he's still not the perfect character that everyone roots for. Even though Milkman becomes more self-aware, his actions continue to have (often negative) consequences for those around him. Nice job!
ReplyDeleteI found this post to be interesting. I never thought about this other side to flight, but after reading this, the parallels between Solomon and Milkman seem clearer. It shows how the flight has a negative to it too, leaving everyone behind. Just like how when Milkman takes flight he leaves everyone behind dying fighting Guitar.
ReplyDeleteGreat post! I didn't think about Pilate's body and Milkman's flight as a parallel used to contrast their different states. I also think that it is interesting that Morrison likes to introduce the perspective of the female characters after we had gotten the story from Milkman's point of view. It makes the reader question the opinions they just formed.
ReplyDeleteThis is interesting to think about! While reading this I also thought about how Milkman left Hagar. From what I noticed, The men flew away, leaving the pieces for the women to pick up. I think that Morrison is trying to explain that the decisions that people make will still have consequences even after they're gone.
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