Milkman's Transformation in Toni Morrison's Song of Solomon Essay

Hagar after knowing that she isn't love back led her to murder Milkman. When Milkman got tired of Hagar, who was not caring about him that much till then, started to have interest in him. As soon as she realize that she couldn’t get the love back from him, she tried to kill him. She tried to attempt the murder for “six times in as many months”(130), each time with different weapons but failed, but she would not give up because she didn't want him to leave her. Murder was the way that Hagar showed her affection toward Milkman because “He’s the one who’s tryin to take himself out of her life. And she’ll kill him before she lets him do that”(139) states the nature of loving that one will kill others to get love. In this case, Hagar tried to kill him because he is the one who is trying to leave her and only way she knew how to stop it was to kill him since she can't control his feeling toward her. Her

The origins of Milkman Dead’s name are based on an anecdote from his childhood, and this name accurately reflects on his rather childish and immature persona. Milkman was given his name because he was breastfed by his mother, Ruth, far past the appropriate age of breastfeeding. At the very beginning of the book, narration paints the story: “...he was old enough to be bored by the flat taste of mother’s milk, so he came reluctantly, as to a chore...and tried to pull the thin, faintly sweet milk from her flesh…” (13, Morrison). This scene reflects on Milkman’s character as he is very childish, immature, and relies on others. Many other characters in the book realize these traits that Milkman has, and some are not afraid to talk about it. At the end of Part I, Lena says, “You’ve been

Throughout Song of Solomon, the protagonist Milkman is raised in a sheltered privileged family. This causes him to become selfish and vain, he develops a shortage of compassion. This consciously separates himself from his family and the surrounding African American community. Although, Milkman has many flaws, even his name suggests that he feeds off of what other’s produce. Throughout Milkman’s journey into an adult, he discovers his family history, turning him into a more caring compassionate man.

To begin, Morrison introduces Milkman as a character that is afraid, insecure or believes of himself as inadequate through the first chapters of the novel. Macon is once again restating how he feels about Pilate, he thinks she has no benefits for Milkman. For instance, Macon state's, “...Own things. And let the things you own own other things. Then you’ll own yourself and other people too” (Morrison, 55). This shows that Macon’s love for material possessions was established through watching his father die trying to defend his property. As a result, Macon has rejected natural loves from humanity, instead he prefers wealth and power to a happy existence. Milkman has also inherited his father's lack of spirituality, and appears to be heading down the same path of destruction because he shows some signals of self doubt and being afraid to speak up for himself; do the right thing. Moreover, the narrator was describing some of Milkman’s important moments in his life in which his father was the bad guy. For example, it says, “And [Milkman] did try, as his father’s employee, to do the work the way Macon wanted it done. Macon was delighted. His son belonged to him now and not Ruth” (Morrison, 63). Milkman's low confidence and self esteem led to him doing things he wasn’t so happy but he had to do our right because of his dad. Macon had a lot of expectations and Milkman didn’t wanted to disappoint him so, he did everything correctly. Also, this shows that Milkman was trying to be less like his father because he was doing the opposite of what he’s father might have done; doing the right thing. To sum up, Milkman

Milkman is about to leave his family behind when Macon Jr. informs him of a green bag in Pilate’s home that is full of gold. Milkman and his best friend Guitar Bains go to Pilate’s house to steal the gold so he and his father can become wealthy. Guitar can be described as an extremist and is part of the Seven Days organization. When an African American in the community is murdered, members of the Seven Days retaliate by putting a white person to death the same way the African American was murdered. As Guitar’s grandmother said to him, “A nigger in business is a terrible thing to see. A terrible, terrible thing to see.” (Morrison 22). This was intended towards Milkman’s father and what type of a business man he was; always being selfish and greedy for wealth. This is how Milkman realizes how his race plays a role in society. Pilate is Milkman’s aunt who treats him as her own son and is protective over him. Unfortunately for Milkman and Guitar, they did not find gold but they found Milkman’s grandfather’s bones. This triggers Milkman and he finally leaves his home in search for gold in an old Pennsylvania farm.

Maturity comes with experiences in life. Some are exposed to those events early while others encounter them in their adulthood. These transitions cause character development within the protagonist, Milkman Dead. In the bildungsroman, or coming of age, novel Song of Solomon by Toni Morrison, Milkman evolves from an ignorant and selfish being to a responsible and caring man. While trying to become an independent man, he both socially and personally developed.

Before Milkman leaves his home in Michigan, he perceives the world in materialistic, unyielding terms that recall his father's behavior. Indeed, the search for gold that sends him to Virginia reveals his perception that escaping from his past and his responsibilities and finding material treasure will guarantee him a sense of his own identity.

Similarly, Milkman dehumanizes and objectifies the women around him. At the head of the fight, the novel introduces Milkman’s age as “twenty-two and… had been fucking for six years,” highlighting the prominent role that sex with women plays in his maturity and erasing the individuality of the women behind the “fuck” (64). On the surface, his defense of his mother and defiance against his father conjures kindness and compassion; however, Milkman reveals his motives to be of a less pure origin. He struck his father back, not out of love for his mother, calling her “too

Milkman's journey starts in a town called Danville.  Danville is the town where his father grew up and his grandfather was shot by white land owners.  In Danville Milkman learns a lesson about hospitality by the revered who takes him in for no reason other than to help him.  In Danville he also meets Circe who was his father's caretaker after the death of his grandfather.  Circe fills in some of the gap in Milkman's heritage by telling him the

Part one introduces readers to not only Milkman, but also to his family and friends.

She expresses herself in ways that are more destructive. Violence is the outlet Hagar sees in expressing herself. Her “graveyard love” for Milkman initially mutes her voice (148). His goodbye letter “sent Hagar spinning into a bright blue place where the air was thin and it was silent all the time, and where people spoke in whispers or did not make sounds at all, and where everything was frozen except for an occasional burst of fire inside her chest” (116). Hagar is hardly aware of her own emotions and finds it impossible for her to tell Milkman how she feels because she has no identity. Instead, Hagar turns to physical violence. She was a “doormat wom[a]n” that “wanted to kill for love, die for love” (336). When she tries to kill Milkman, she finds herself “paralyzed” by her obsessive love for him (150). Like Ryna, her love left her. When Milkman left and “dreamt of flying, Hagar was dying” (363). Hagar’s extreme obsession ultimately turns self-destructive and assists to the cause of her death. She spends her last hours in a frantic search for clothes and cosmetics that will make Milkman love her again. She dies convinced that “he loves silky hair . . . penny-colored hair . . . and lemon-colored skin . . . and gray-blue eyes” unlike her own (346). To Hagar, her African-American race and body are worthless if they do not attract Milkman; she was trying to create “this ideal of beauty” that she could never have (Pereira). Hagar’s dependence on Milkman and

As Hagar’s love for Milkman grows more and more obsessive, Morrison reveals the bitter consequences of life as a woman seeking intimacy in a strictly patriarchal world. In the beginning of the novel, Hagar is associated primarily with her female relatives, Reba and Pilate. Even then, well-fed Hagar declares, “Some of my days were hungry

The mother begins to rebel against tradition by taking an active role in educating and freeing herself. Through her radio, telephone and trips out with her sons she develops her own opinions about the world, the war, and the domination and seclusion of woman. She loses her innocence as a result to her new knowledge and experience.

Family has an affect on everyone, no matter how they feel towards them, or even if they don’t want them to. In Milkman’s case family helps him to finally realize who he is and help’s him find out how to be free as a bird, and learn to fly. While in Sharlimar Milkman discovers that one of his forefathers, Solomon, flew back to Africa and tried to take Jake, Milkman’s grandfather, with him, but dropped him. Solomon was a Slave and like milkman felt he couldn’t survive without his rightful freedom. In order to get this freedom he flies back to Africa, his homeland. Milkman is a lot like his forefather, Solomon, in the since that he was looking for freedom, and just wanted to go where he felt he belonged. Both men are willing to leave everyone behind, including the women who love them, to find this freedom. By them not being free, they are unable to find themselves, or their true place in the world. Although Milkman doesn’t realize it until the end, his family

However, he eventually realizes that money will not satisfy what is missing from his life. He therefore, begins his search for his sense of self. Milkman metamorphosizes after his journey into his ancestral history which gave him the means to become personally free.