Whites believed they were superior to blacks and so we had slavery. With slavery came breaking of flesh, mind, and their will. For example, Sethe needed to get milk to her newborn, but the sons of the master siphoned it out of her breasts. Male African Americans can't be forgotten as they were hung and whipped as well, but the story of Beloved gives us insight to the will of a woman. Sethe managed to escape and she was on the run pregnant. She knew living meant hell on earth, so dying was the only way for her children to know freedom. .
It is this time with Sethe's mother-in-law, does she realize the real meaning of freedom. She is taught from her that the slave owners may use and abuse their bodies, but that still doesn"t make them their property. What keeps them free is knowing that their mind, body, and will is their own and they need to appreciate it. She does this by having them all kiss their hands. It's their way of making peace with the cards their lives have been dealt with. Sethe draws on her mother-in-laws sermons to understand and appreciate Denver and Beloved. She begins to realize that even working some job isn't life, but the three of them together is all she needs in this world. Sethe tries to make up for lost time with Beloved, and eventually runs out of money and food as she quits her job. .
Her decision to focus only on her two daughters makes her more of an outcast with the community of African Americans. Eventually the lack of food makes Sethe ill and Beloved only adds to the problem. Beloved is a child who suffers a little mental-retardation from lack of oxygen to the brain. This was caused by Sethe when she attempted to kill her as a child. It's not until things become extremely drastic that Denver steps up to the plate. After a visit from her deceased grandmother, Denver comes to grip with what she must do to help her family. I never thought that Denver understood the nature of racism and how she was portrayed.
