We have read two books this year that at some point have blurred the lines between what is the strongest love vs straight-up violence. The first example was in Their Eyes Were Watching God when Tea Cake beat Janie after he thought she was unfaithful. Since the reason he hit her was mistake, on the surface level, it is a unjustifiably violent act. But, the whole community perceives it as his love and deeper possession of her, and ultimately gets jealous of their relationship. We get the sense that the couple is so important to each other, that cheating, or being not 100 percent spiritually connected, would cause only a reaction so violent. Something about this moment of beating and then sweet syrupy love is makes it seem like it's the only way to remedy the metaphysical disturbance in Janie and Tea Cake's relationship.
On the other hand, we have a mother-child relationship that is a bit more of a difficult situation, it can really only be understood by Sethe in that moment when the white men came into her home to take her children. Sethe sees her killing Beloved (and planning to kill the rest of her children) as protection, an instinct that is born out of love whereas the rest of the town reacted to her "murder" and socially outcast her. This case is more violent, and there is no positive connotation to possession from the rest of the community, but is similar in the questionable justification Sethe has.
Again, we see what her justification for killing her children was, but only if we look on a metaphysical level. It is a gruesome killing, but her instinct tells her the only true protection for her children is in death, where Schoolteacher cannot get to them. We also see how when Beloved actually comes back to 124, she is determined to love Sethe.
There is also a higher power (kind of christ-like) forgiveness that comes after both incidents, one where Janie is beaten then Tea Cake is very soft and affectionate towards her and the other where Beloved returns to Sethe 18 years after the murder. So with this and other justifications from the first-person narratives of Sethe and Janie, it is easier to understand the line between an act of love and an act of cruelty that both incidents are straddling and bringing together in a way commonly misunderstood. Whether this deeper love is a part of a specific culture( like the Muck or the culture of Ohio/other bordering slave states in the 1800s)? I wouldn't go that far, but comments appreciated!
Interesting comparison to Their Eyes were Watching God! The title/post made me think also of how Janie *has* to kill Tea Cake when he has rabies. She is proven "not-guilty", feels deeply sad about how/that is happened, but does not "wish" she had done something different instead -- how is this different than Sethe's overwhelming love for her children that also results in their death? (question for other comments to discuss) The comparison + similarities are really fascinating. (like how the town is *completely* against both Janie and Sethe as well)
ReplyDeleteThis parallel you've drawn is a very insightful one. I think there are a lot of similarities as you've discussed, but on the matter of the ultimate forgiveness I think there is a key distinction that comes up in the third part of _Beloved_. Things really do take a dark turn as Beloved imposes herself on Sethe and the resentment and malice come to a head that were hinted at in big ways earlier in the novel. This draws contrast to the kiss-and-make-up of TEWWG.
ReplyDeleteWow, I didn't even think of the connection between Janie and Tea Cake, and Beloved and Sethe. The similarities between the actions of the characters, but the different responses from the community really gives insight into the dynamics between the characters and the townspeople. In TEWWG, Janie and Tea Cake were liked by the community, and the beating caused them to become more jealous of the pair. However, when Beloved was killed by Janie, the neighbors were already jealous of them, and the event caused them to ostracize her.
ReplyDelete