In the last chapter of the novel, Nel finds herself surrounded by a new and changing world that she is not familiar with; it is a world that Sula, the consummate rebel, would be more at home in. ... The title of the final chapter, 1965, is significant for a few reasons. It represents a leap of twenty-six years from the preceding chapter, a noteworthy amount considering that previously the largest time gap between chapters was just ten years. ... This ruptured friendship does not become resolved until the final chapter of the novel, over twenty-five years after the death of Sula. ... Sula is no...

• Word Count: 2386
• Approx Pages: 10
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: High School

The world of Sula must have seemed very odd and new to Nel, and likewise for Sula. ... Years later, when her oldest daughter Hannah confronts Eva about Plum's death and asks if Eva ever loved her children or ever played with them, Eva's response is typical of the strong black woman: "I'm talkin' 'bout 18 and 95 when I set in that house five days with you and Pearl and Plum and three beets, you snake-eyed ungrateful hussy. ... And though Eva cries about burning Plum and holds him close before she lights the fire, she nonetheless soaks him in kerosene and resolutely thr...

• Word Count: 2614
• Approx Pages: 10
• Grade Level: High School

From the start of the novel's very first chapter, Morrison aims to show the destructive effect of white male-dominated society in the lives of her characters. ... The tale of the Bottom highlights the history of white duplicity and mistreatment of blacks that caused the town on the side of the hills to come about. ... The most obvious convergence of oppositions involves the two protagonists Sula and Nel. ... Even in color they contrast each other; Nel is cream colored, while Sula is a deep brown. ... Sula's presence provokes widespread loving expression and community togetherness. ...

• Word Count: 1501
• Approx Pages: 6
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: Undergraduate