Sonny's Blues Analysis Essay

In “Sonny’s Blues,” Sonny is faced with many adversities and obstacles, but discovers some strength to move past the difficult times he has faced. The narrator of the story who is sonny’s brother shines light on their strained relationship, which is something that bothers both of them. Sonny though finds strength in his passion for music and his overwhelming love for performing, and his eagerness to show how an African American individual can be successful even with tough times.

Jazz music is probably one of the oldest genres in music and for many individuals it’s the best genre of music. This story based around a Jazz musician who is a drug addict, a person who is estranged from his family, but ultimately in the end discovers that his music is what can keep him sane and will

eventually come off of drugs. The Jazz musician Sonny also faces racial discrimination, but is determined to show that an African American can be more than what society has placed upon them.

He will make his way through the Jazz world with his head held high knowing he has done bigger things than what was expected from an African American in the beginning days of Jazz music. The story shows a look into the life of an African American during segregation, and also shows the struggles of a musician and the pressures placed upon them.

Many times siblings lose touch with one another and in this short story it was no different. Sometimes siblings can take different directions in life and simply lose interest in forwarding their relationship. The author states, “Perhaps I was thinking about my brother and in them I heard my brother. And myself” (Baldwin 18). One of the most amazing things are memories and what can trigger someone to remember certain things. Sonny and his brother haven’t been as close to one another over the years as they once were. Sometimes it takes the weirdest things to push you to reach out to someone who means so much to you. That is what happened when Sonny’s brother went through the old neighborhood and

came across a few young kids, and he began having some reminiscent moments about the childhood he and Sonny shared. An article also touches upon the childhood of the two siblings in which the author says, “The narrator and his brother each attempts to survive post-Korean War Harlem in his own way” (Sherard 692). This evidence from the article also depicts how the two brothers can kind of go separate paths in trying to move forward after the tumultuous Korean War. Both were most likely dealing it with is in their own way which could’ve prompted a strain on the sibling’s relationship. The author also states, “The Narrator had “never liked him” because of his participation in the ghetto dynamic he himself had worked so hard to rise above” (Sherard 694). The author uses strong words in this particular quote which shows how extravagant his will was to leave the “ghetto”. The words rise above show how eager he was for a life completely away from his past, which wasn’t the same plan as Sonny. The narrator describes a strain in the relationship between him and his brother Sonny, which has been going on for a while. He realizes the differences between him and his brother and realizes that is what drew them apart. It’s something that occurs often between siblings, but eventually they find themselves together again.
Having passion for something is what can make an individual feel like life is worth living. In the short story Sonny finds his passion to be music, which is therapeutic for him in a way. For many having passion for something is what drives them to move forward, which is evident in the story through Sonny. Sonny was an individual who didn’t grow up in the best of circumstances, but he found a way to make his life worth living. He found strength in his Jazz music, and he was able to make a career out of his passion. The author states, “You got a real musician in your family” (Baldwin 44). When an individual has a love for something the world can sense it. Sonny obviously had a love for music, which was evident to everyone around him. Sonny’s brother didn’t really understand how much Sonny was loved until he actually saw his brother doing what he loved, which is where he actually began respecting the world of Jazz music. The article authorized by Robert Mcfarland touches a lot on the significance of music in “Sonny’s Blues”, and music was one of the driving forces of this amazing short story. Robert Mcfarland states, “In “Sonny’s Blues,” music is everywhere; it is the atmosphere and the soundscape of Baldwin’s story” (132). Baldwin made sure that the reader understood the significance of Jazz music in the time frame the story was based upon. He allows the reader to understand how passion drives you to make your dreams a reality and he also shows that with hard work anything can be accomplished. Mcfarland also states, “When Sonny finds his groove, he is no longer separate” (132). When Sonny found what his passion was, he found his place in the society he was a part of. He was now able to function in the world as any normal individual who is happy with what they love doing.
Performing is just as much a passion for Sonny, he enjoys giving people a good time when performing his art. For a while Sonny’s brother, who is again the narrator didn’t realize how much he loved Jazz music and how much he loved performing his music. His brother for some time didn’t understand what the feeling of performing brought to Sonny. It was a natural high that he felt when he was on the stage receiving all the love from his community, which is why he began to lead a better life. Baldwin states, “there was a lot of applause and some of it was real” (48). Sonny and his friend gave a performance to the local people of the community, which enabled him to show his love for performing. While he was just doing what made him happy, Sonny got somewhat of an approval from his brother. His brother for the longest hadn’t really supported his love for performing, which is common in siblings which trigger relationships to become strained. When your love for something is so strong it doesn’t matter who is against you, you go for what you want with the minimal support. One article touches upon that notion in which it states,” Sonny’s brother is brought into a realization that music making is about collective dynamics” (Mcparland 232). Sonny performs from the heart, which allows any audience to enjoy what he is presenting. Many times individuals jump into a career for the wrong reasons and later regret what they’ve decided for themselves. Sonny didn’t want to live like this and made his love his career.
African Americans in this time frame didn’t have as many opportunities as today, which led them to struggle their whole lives and to be unhappy. A lot of times African Americans were forced to do jobs that paid nothing, but it was just enough to provide for their families. Sonny wanted different for his life, and even though he knew he wouldn’t make as much as white musicians he wanted to try his hand at something more than just working odd end jobs. The author states,” I don’t want to see you—die--- trying not to suffer” (Baldwin 42). Suffering was the fate of many African Americans in this time frame, which left many individuals longing for a life that was more rewarding. Sonny didn’t want to live to suffer, he wanted to live a life that was fulfilling. Sonny’s family knew he was different , which is why they weren’t shocked with him not completing school. Allowing his self to take life on as he saw fit, he was determined to make it as an African American Jazz musician and was going willing to sacrifice. An article states, “Sonny was at the piano playing for his life” (Mcparland 135). Sonny wanted his life to be better than what was already laid out for him, which was a life of nothing and odd end jobs. He wanted to choose his life and he wanted at least a chance to show that an African American man can be something other than a carpenter, or a shoe shiner. His sheer determination is what allowed Sonny to find strengths to live out his dreams and do it with pride.
Although I believe strongly in the argument, one could’ve made the argument of a broken drug addict struggling to make a way for himself. Sonny did have a little of a drug problem, which is where Sonny had some years of struggle. His tumultuous childhood is what could’ve made him broken man, and that was evident to his brother and others around him. He couldn’t seem to shake what he was feeling, which enabled him to believe that drugs were the only aid to his pain. Baldwin states, “Sometimes I think I’m going to flip and never get outside and sometime I think I’ll come straight back” (23). Sonny is obviously feeling a tremendous amount of pain, which is now enabling him to feel less than a man. He was in so much pain that he did drugs to mask it and couldn’t find a way to move forward. This argument could’ve been acceptable but I strongly believe in what I have presented.
The amount of evidence presented shows how Sonny eventually finds strength through many different triumphs. What I’ve presented is more accurate because the story shows more of a man who has moved on from his struggles and depicts a man who moves forward to fulfilling his dreams and beginning a life he can be proud of. There isn’t enough evidence from the text to support the counterargument, which is why I believe so strongly in what I have presented. If more evidence would’ve been provided the counterargument could have been a lot stronger and acceptable. Sonny finds strength to move forward with his life and conquer life as he saw fit, which is why he was happy in the life he worked for.
Individuals find strength in the strangest places, which is where things begin to fall into place for a person. New beginnings of relationships and finding what you are passionate about are some of the things that can bring you to a place of happiness. It’s understandable that relationships can be altered and you can have obstacles getting to your destination, but in the end everything comes full circle and you begin to realize life is worth living and happiness can be achieved even in the toughest of situations.