Beloved by Toni Morrison Book Review

Toni Morrison, the first African American woman to win a Pulitzer prize, concludes one of her most impactful works, Beloved, with a startling conclusion. In the final paragraphs, Morrison summarizes the past, present, and future of Beloved, and by proxy, racism in America. This narrative lines up with a statement made by Morrison in Time magazine shortly after writing the novel “This has got to be the least read of all the books I’d written, because it is about something the characters don’t want to remember, I don’t want to remember, black people don’t want to remember, and white people don’t want to remember” (Toni Morrison, 1989). Morrison recognizes this and uses literary features to express this belief to the reader in the final sentences of the novel.  

Morrison uses imagery in the closing paragraphs of her novel to help her readers better understand that the conclusion is not intended to be “happily ever after”. This is established using descriptive language “A dry and spreading thing [loneliness] that makes the sound of one’s own feet going seem to come from a far-off place” (322). The use of this imagery specifically the word dry, provides a visual medium for the ‘loneliness’ of the narrator and indicates its prevalence throughout the novel. Morrison makes use of harsh imagery to describe the negative emotions, presumably felt by Beloved “shame erupts into her separate parts to make it easy for the chewing laughter to swallow her away” (322). Using the language of eating, Morrison provides a way for the reader to put themselves into the shoes of Beloved, understanding her emotions regarding the events of the novel. 

In pursuit of ensuring the reader knows Morrison does not believe this will be her most ‘read’ work, she utilizes repetition. For the duration of the closing second, Morrison repeats “It was not a story to pass on” (322). This phrase highlights that much like the horrors experienced by the African American community – the story of Beloved is not one to be regarded fondly. Additionally, Morrison reflects on this fact using the metaphor of weather “The rest is weather. Not the breath of the disremembered and unaccounted for… Just weather. Certainly, no clamor for a kiss” (323). The metaphor of weather serves to represent how in American culture the horrors of slavery are treated merely as a ‘thunderstorm’ rather than a multitude of ‘hurricanes’ of which the effects are still felt today.  

In conclusion, Toni Morrison’s landmark novel Beloved accomplishes the impossible in its final paragraphs, using imagery to perfectly summarize and represent both the novel and an integral part of American history. Furthermore, Morrison’s consistent use of literary features throughout the novel present a clear and concise which will continue to be enjoyed for generations to come.