Milkman Dead Character Analysis

Search for Identity:
An Analysis of Milkman Dead’s Transformation
Song of Solomon by Toni Morrison centers around a protagonist, Milkman Dead, who consistently depends on others for survival. Pilate Dead, Milkman’s aunt, brought Milkman’s existence into the world. Pilate pilots Milkman into discovering the family’s past by singing “Sugarman,” a blues song that tells the history of their ancestor. In addition, Milkman works for his father, Macon Dead Jr., as an “office boy” by collecting rent from the many houses his father rents (Morrison 222). As a grown man, he has yet to find individuality as he continues to work for his father and live with him. Moreover, he looks to Hagar, his cousin and lover, for sexual gratification who he eventually

grows tired of as time passes. Milkman ultimately discovers who he is by learning about his past and heritage. He also learns to overcome his dependence on Macon, Pilate, and Hagar. As Milkman’s name suggests, he is not capable of existing alone and depends on the care of others. His name also means that he is the “carrier of milk,” which hints that he is given the responsibility of finding out his family’s narrative (Gillespie). Morrison demonstrates that creating a sense of identity depends on reconnecting to one’s family history; she shows this with Milkman’s transformation from an immature, selfish individual to a man who is self-sufficient and considerate.
At the age of fourteen, Milkman connects the deformity in his legs to President Roosevelt’s polio.

He uses this to further distinguish himself from his father who does not have this imperfection. As Milkman grows older, he continues to rebel against his father’s influence, develops a strong desire to leave his job as an office boy and moves far away from Not Doctor Street. Milkman’s selfish mind is shown when his father tells him that he needs him now but nevertheless he is still going to leave. At age thirty, Milkman wants to live alone and to obtain his own job instead of taking care of the family business. Milkman does not have any interest in the money earned from the family business. However, no matter how hard he tries to deviate from his father, Milkman shares his father’s ambition for wealth. Wilfred D. Samuel says that Macon Dead Jr. sees money as what goes first. Macon Dead Jr. then leads a life of “bitterness, alienation, and quiet desperation” as a result of seeing his father, Macon Dead Sr., die from protecting his property (11). To initiate his independence, Milkman takes a quest down South in search of gold. Unfortunately, there was no sense of wealth or reputation there. Samuels states

that,
Wearing the trappings of his middle-class identity- a three-piece suit, light blue buttondown shirt, Florsheim shoes, and a watch… His middle-class status was of no use to him here. (17)
From this experience, Milkman learns that reputation is not easy to obtain, and he cannot wait to get home to be with his father. Milkman’s mind ends up resonating with his father's thoughts. They were in agreement to take a trip down South. As Milkman matures, he finally develops a positive relationship with his father. He is glad to be at home with his father everyday and to help out with the business.
Milkman was twelve when he first met Hagar. Hagar had stormed into his house with a large five-bushel basket of brambles. While Milkman noticed her presence and her beauty, Hagar did not pay attention to him. Morrison depicts Hagar and Milkman’s relationship as:
From the time he first saw her, when he was twelve and she was seventeen, he was deeply in love with her, alternately awkward and witty in her presence. She babied him, ignored him, teased him- did anything she felt like, and he was grateful just to see her do anything or be any way. (92)
During his teenage years, Milkman was the one chasing Hagar.

Whenever his father gave him the task to collect rental money, he would take advantage of the time to see Hagar. Despite this, the more he saw her, the more Milkman grew bored of her. He described Hagar as the “third beer... the one you drink because it’s there, because it can’t hurt... and because what difference does it make?” (Morrison, 91). After Milkman decided to break off their relationship, Hagar began pursuing Milkman. Hagar carried knives, stalked Milkman, and tried to murder him. Although this was a sign of Hagar’s passion towards “owning” him, Milkman continued to hide from her. Gillespie says that, that part of Milkman’s rejection of Hagar was because she did not fit into the middle class women that he desires. It was only when he journeys to the South where middle class does not exist that he starts to appreciate Hagar’s presence. Demetrakopoulos notes that, “Part of Milkman's ego death is a self-crucifixion when he realizes how selfishly he has treated Pilate and Ruth when only these two women has really cared for him” (56). In general Milkman has a disrespectful attitude towards women before his journey down the South. After the journey, his relationship with women matures. This is a consequence of meeting Sweet, a prostitute whom he wholeheartedly respected. When Sweet bathed him, Milkman did the same thing in return and even massaged her. He dragged Sweet to go swimming to tell her his elated

thoughts of how his grandfather, Solomon, could fly. Hagar, on the other hand, was simply used as a refreshment to quell his sexual needs. There were no personal thoughts shared between them, causing their relationship to become “on-again-off-again” (Morrison 99). His treatment of Sweet when contrasted with his treatment of Hagar are signs of Milkman’s maturation. In the end, Milkman even acknowledges his contribution to Hagar’s death and keeps a box of Hagar’s hair as a sign of his guilt. The journey made him value women more and seeked to tighten his relationships with them.
As a young boy, Milkman did not recognize the important role Pilate would play in his life. Pilate brings him into the world, cares for him, shares and sings stories of his family's history, and then catalyzes Milkman’s quest. Milkman’s first visit to Pilate’s house is the first time he hears “Sugarman.” He does not pay attention to the meaning but instead notices how captivating Hagar’s voice is when she sings. Milkman also notices the brass box dangling from Pilate’s ear but does not know that it contains a scrap paper with her name written on it. It was at the age of twelve that his quest for identity begins. Milkman views Pilate inconspicuously because he had been teased at school, due to the bad reputation of his aunt, as someone who is “ugly, dirty, poor and drunk” (Morrison 37). Her bad reputation is stained in his mind causing Milkman to not give Pilate her individual attention. Milkman’s ambition for wealth causes him to betray Pilate when he breaks into her house to steal the gold for himself. He even prepares to “knock Pilate down” while he steals the gold from her (Morrison 209). Pilate, however, convinces the police to free Milkman, and it is discovered that the sack is actually filled with human bones. Later, Milkman is ashamed of trying to steal the sack of gold from his Aunt. This sense of shame is rooted in how he has planned to harm her, but Pilate still tries to get him out of trouble. Despite his shame, Milkman goes to Shalimar, Virginia in an effort to retrace Pilate’s journey and find the hidden gold. More importantly, he learns about his family’s past. As he watches the children play a game with the “Song of Solomon,” he realizes that they are singing Pilate’s song, a song about his people. The guilt of having stolen from Pilate returns when he understands that Pilate has been guiding him towards knowledge of his past. Milkman comes to understand why Pilate’s name is appended to her ear. Now he knows not to hate his last name or his nickname because there are unique origins behind them. More come to realize that:
Names that had meaning. No wonder Pilate puts hers in her ear. When you know your name, you should hang on to it, for unless it is noted down and remembered, it will die when you do… Pilate had taken rock from every state she had lived in- because she had lived there. And having lived there, it was hers-and his his, and his father’s, his grandfather’s... (Morrison 329)
Later on he finds out that the sack contained his grandfather’s bones. After learning this, he goes with Pilate to bury the bones in Solomon’s Leap located in Shalimar, Virginia. Milkman is no longer selfish for the sack of gold; he would rather give one of his ancestors a proper burial place. When Pilate dies burying her father, Milkman sings the song of his folks to soothe out her pain. This shows that he has accepted the lesson that Pilate has been teaching him all along—to be in touch with one’s origins and to never let them disappear.

These are the characters that Milkman has come to create positive relationships with as the story unfolded. He comes to sympathize with each characters’ actions and does things in a way that would have pleased them. This all started when he becomes isolated with these characters during his journey down the South. He comes back without the attitudes that are harmful to Macon, Pilate, and Hagar, a sign of maturation from his quest.