One thing I found exceptionally interesting in Song of Solomon is how logic seems entirely screwed. Throughout the novel, there were so many "Wait, what?" moments that I couldn't have counted them if I tried. Here are a few that I found particularly memorable:
1) Guitar's Explanation of the Seven Days (starting pg. 154)
When Guitar is explaining the Seven Days, at first it seems rational (though still a little crazy). He is mathematical; systematic in his approach, explaining how it is an eye for an eye: killing a white person for every black person. Then the "Wait, what?" moment happens when Guitar starts explaining his form of reverse racism. He seems so rational, and yet what he is saying is absolutely insane. It is beyond an eye for an eye and moving on to something more extreme where Guitar is stereotyping all white people in the exact way that some white people stereotype black people. Milkman seems to agree with the reader on the insanity of what Guitar is saying and vehemently questions him about the ethics of the operation (clearly lacking), but in the end, he hides Guitar's secret from others, even when Guitar is trying to kill him (something which is equally insane).
2) Speaking of Guitar trying to kill Milkman, was that not absolutely crazy?! I swear, I actually screamed when I finished the book. Where is the logic in that? What happened to Guitar "[hating] doing it"? I don't even know what to say about that. It completely caught me off guard, plus the thing with Hagar, PLUS the thing with Pilate. Wow, this book was crazy.
3) Milkman's Attitude toward Finding his Family
Sometimes it is hard for me to interpret how Milkman is truly feeling. Yes, we get his internal monologue (to a certain extent), but a lot of the time we just have to go by what he said to other people. This is particularly troublesome when Milkman is talking to Susan in her house on page 292. "It's important to you, is it, to find your people?" she asks, and Milkman responds, "No. Not really. I was just passing through, and it was just-just an idea. It's not important." These ambiguous statements make it very difficult for the reader to interpret what Milkman actually thinks. Is he in Shalimar to find his family or the gold? After he hears and understands the children's song as being a family history he is so happy and then he seems drunk to Sweet because of how happy he is when they are swimming. Milkman's words with Susan are so out of ordinary, and definitely another "wait, what?" moment.
I have tried to think up a reason why Milkman may have suddenly pretended like he didn't really care about his family (and yes, I think he was pretending) and I think the one that makes the most sense goes along with his immaturity, despite being in his 30s. He is the grumpy kid who doesn't want his sports team to lose, so he starts supporting the other team instead. When what Susan is saying starts disproving everything he has suspected he feels like everything is being messed up, and switches teams to not caring to make himself feel better.
I'm not sure how solid the above concept is, but I think it goes along well with the sense of boyhood we have observed as surrounding Milkman even at his older age. Let me know what you think!
Also, seriously, what did you guys think of that wacky ending?!
I doubt that anyone who has ever read this book right down to its editors has failed to be dumbfounded by it at some point. I was certainly taken aback a number of times by some of the weird things it sprang on me, especially when we found out that Guitar was trying to kill Milkman. I wasn't as surprised by Milk's wishy-washy attitude about his family, but I agree that it was likely caused by his immaturity, and perhaps he was remembering that the gold could be found somewhere in his family's past.
ReplyDeleteI don't think Guitar trying to kill Milkman comes from nowhere. It's a sign of the larger (racial) tensions between them: Guitar starts to view Milkman as becoming too 'white'. So considering his resentment towards white people, it makes sense that he'd start to hate Milkman - perhaps especially because he views it as a betrayal from 'one of his own'.
ReplyDeleteFurthermore, I think Hagar's death is a big part of why Guitar tries to kill Milkman. He kills white people when black people are murdered. And with Hagar, there were clearly similar racial tensions between her and Milkman: he prefers the 'copper-haired', 'whiter' girls over her. So after Hagar's death, it especially makes sense that Guitar would go in the direction of taking revenge.
I agree that the book is a pretty wild ride but there is logic to it!
I enjoyed reading the book! It was kinda wacko, but well-written and provided unexpected twists and turns in the story. But each turn has a meaning in the book, which I appreciated. It saddened me that Milkman's only friend, Guitar, set out to kill him, but it moved with the story plot. I agree with Annette--the racial tension was building up as they got older.
ReplyDeleteMilkman is definitely a bit immature on his quest. But I think at the end, he finds his true "self" in the journey, and it all goes back to learning how to fly.
I agree with Annette. The turn off events throughout the book seems quite strange but if you follow along, the events have a logic to them, even if that logic is confusing :) Nice post.
ReplyDeleteNice post! I think that we can also see some ways that logic is screwed up when there are some magical elements worked into the story. For example Pilate has no navel which doesn't really make sense and she has a magical birth that seems like something that could not really happen. Also Circe was still alive when Milkman came to visit which makes no sense because she would have to be really old to still be living. However, these things that make no logical sense seem to fit well into the plot of the book and at first glance I didn't think twice about them.
ReplyDeleteNice post! I think that the wait, what? moments fit well with Milkman's character. He often isn't interested in other people so a lot of things go over his head, for example how his sisters feel. So it makes sense for him not to understand the nuances of why Guitar wants to kill him and if Milkman doesn't understand it, it also makes sense for Morrison not to explain. Milkman also tends not to have concrete goals so I think it makes sense for him not to be sure himself exactly what he's searching for.
ReplyDelete