-Toni Morrison, Beloved (270) In Toni Morrison's novel, Beloved, we learn how hurtful memories and the past can be. ... Toni Morrison develops each character by putting together pieces of their past to form who they are. ... Morrison writes, "But her brain was not interested in the future. ... On the other hand, Denver is developed by Morrison as being a character who wants a past and a history. ... Facing the past is a theme of Beloved in which Toni Morrison develops her characters. ...

• Word Count: 562
• Approx Pages: 2
• Grade Level: High School

Speaking Things Unspeakable Throughout Toni Morrison's story Beloved, there are many occurrences of unspeakable acts. The way Morrison portrays these acts, usually through dialogue, is subtle and not gruesome. ... All the unspeakable acts Toni Morrison proclaims assists in showing the horrors that African Americans had to go through during slavery. To begin, throughout Morrison's story she shows how African Americans were treated worse than animals were. ...

• Word Count: 999
• Approx Pages: 4
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: High School

Salvation in Unexpected Ways Three novels that stand out because of their main character's contributions to others are "The Color Purple" by Alice Walker, "One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest" by Ken Kesey, and "Sula" by Toni Morrison. ... In the novel "Sula" by Toni Morrison, the main character Sula's illicit behavior and attitudes toward men cause the women of the community to love their husbands more. ... Because of Sula's promiscuity the women begin to think differently, "So the women, to justify their own judgment, cherished their men more, soothed the pride and vanity S...

• Word Count: 738
• Approx Pages: 3
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: High School

The manner in which the past is brought out in Beloved Toni Morison's Beloved is a narrative-cum-description of a family's hardships and individual personal struggles during the mid-1800, a time when slavery was rampant in the United States of America. ... Toni Morrison uses inanimate objects effectively as a kind of time-travel device, meaning that the characters begin to reminisce when they see or talk about an object. ... Thus, Toni Morrison effectively brings out the past through objects, song and dance, character naming, monologues, events, food and events and captures the tr...

• Word Count: 1034
• Approx Pages: 4
• Grade Level: High School

Beloved, by Toni Morrison, is filled with reoccurring symbolism that adds deeper meaning to the story. ... Morrison gives insight to the emerald closet with, "Veiled and protected by the green walls, [Denver] felt ripe and clear, and salvation was as easy as a wish"(31). Morrison's words "protected by the green walls" prove that when Denver is inside the walls of the trees, she is not burdened with the problems that she has in the real world. ... Reoccurring symbolism like the presence of trees in Toni Morrison's Beloved add deeper meaning to the story....

• Word Count: 828
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: High School