The Song of Solomon ignites a readers imagination by supplying a commonly known man vs man and man vs himself plot with many interesting twists and turns throughout the novel that make it, uniquely its own. Some of these twists and turns include the curious use of voodoo. Voodoo is a black religious cult practiced in the Caribbean and the southern US, combining elements of Roman Catholic ritual with traditional African magical and religious rites, and characterized by sorcery and spirit possession. This element, or magical taste, flavors the novel by adding a creepy yet mystical feeling. This element provides the reader with a heavy sign that The Song of Solomon is no ordinary book. The use of voodoo in The Song of Solomon plays a huge role in marking an ominous happening or characteristic, and it plays an even bigger role in giving hints on a characters personality.
Voodoo use in The Song Solomon can strongly signify a ominous happening and or characteristic. This statement simply means that the use of voodoo can indicate a bad characteristic or happening in the novel. This point can be proven when a main character known as Pilot introduces voodoo to the book. She does this when Ruth Foster Dead, is found pregnant with the novels hero or main character, Milkman. The father of this child is Macon Dead Jr., he is a ruthless man who despises the fact that Ruth is with child. He attempts to force her to abort the child, but Ruth refuses. He even, at one point, has her stick needles in her womb to kill the fetus, Ruth evades the harming of the child by only sticking the needles half way into her womb. After this happening, Ruth's sister, Pilot, is angered deeply. She goes into Macon's office and sets an voodoo doll with a pin stic...
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...pect of Pilot; her unconditional love. "Her steady beam of love was unsettling, and she had never dropped those expressions of affection that had been so loveable in her childhood." Even though Pilot's childhood in some ways terrorized her, she never lost her need to love and help others. This is linked to her future supernatural characteristics because it is the love she has for others that perpetuates her need to use magic.
In a sum of points, The Song of Solomon is a novel that uses voodoo to foreshadow and develop characters. The use of voodoo foreshadows the personality of the main character of the novel. The use of voodoo is also the result of a major characters past and plays a huge role in developing that character. In a final point, voodoo and other supernatural happenings are, in conclusion, major corner stones to the novel, The Song of Solomon.
As a result of the exposure to various beliefs and practices the religions of African slaves transformed into a hodge-podge of magickal practices
The book called Song of Solomon, by Toni Morrison, deals with many real life issues, most of which are illustrated by the relationships between different family members.
Shirley Jackson's 'The Lottery', is a story that is filled with symbolism. The author uses symbolism to help her represent human nature as tainted, no matter how pure one thinks of himself or herself, or how pure their environment may seem to be. The story is very effective in raising many questions about the pointless nature of humanity regarding tradition and violence. 'The Lottery' clearly expresses Jackson's feelings concerning mankind?s evil nature hiding behind traditions and rituals. She shows how coldness and lack of compassion in people can exhibit in situations regarding tradition and values. Jackson presents the theme of this short story with a major use of symbolism. Symbolism shows throughout the setting of 'The Lottery,' the objects, the peoples actions, and even in the time and the names of the lucky contestants.
At first glance, the readers have preconceived ideas that the story’s theme is one of a positive nature. One anticipates that there will be a character with good fortune; however, once reading it only becomes evident in the middle of the story. Readers begin to understand that he person who has the misfortune, the colored paper, is stoned to death in front of the whole community. This is evident when it states, “It had a black spot on it, the black spot Mr. Summers had made the night before…there was a stir in the crowd” (Jackson 249). This quote emphasis’s the negative connotation related to the black dot, which makes readers aware of the detriments related. Its relevance leads readers to understanding the development of the drama. Within the Hutchinson’s family, the mother, Tessie Hutchinson, is the victim to the lottery that
Of Water and the Spirit is more than simply an account of Malidoma's life and initiation, it is a detailed description of the worldview of a Dagara man, who is forcibly subjected to traditional Western thought for fifteen years and then returns to his home physically, at first, but spiritually only once he goes through initiation, or what the Dagara call the Baar. Malidoma's recount of his story, being very similar to the storytelling of an African Griot, uses amazing imagery that allows the listener to sincerely experience his thoughts and actions and the things he sees, hears, and feels throughout his early life up to now.
After the death of Lois’s granny, his partner tells him that he suffers from a very serious disease: form aids. Thus, Prior is in panic and don’t know what to do. Lois is not ready to support Prior, because of the constant feeling of fear and inability to hope for the better future. At the same time, in the other family, Joe Pitt gets the job in the Justice department, with the help of his friend. The first mysterious thing in the play, in my opinion, is the meeting of the main heroes. It seems impossible for such different people to become somehow connected, however Lois meets Joe at his work, and tries to make friendship with him, suspecting him to be a gay. The second mystical element in the play is the meeting of Harper and Prior: they meet in the dream, where Prior tells the woman that her husband is a closed homosexual. Here the realism and the mystical side of life are shown as a whole.
At first glance, it seems that the abhorrent destiny of the main character is at the mercy of mischievous and cruel gods.
People feared Shirley Jackson herself was a witch and thought she practiced voodoo. Jack Sullivan wrote, "Jackson's real witchcraft is her fiction" (71). Sullivan thought the comparison between Jackson and her heroines were prominent. Jackson’s female characters loathe their boring lives. These characters rise up against men and then are punished or even put to death for their defiance.
Freedom is heavily sought after and symbolized by flight with prominent themes of materialism, classism, and racism throughout Toni Morrison’s novel Song of Solomon. The characters Milkman and Macon Dead represent these themes as Macon raises Milkman based on his own belief that ownership of people and wealth will give an individual freedom. Milkman grows up taking this idea as a way to personally obtain freedom while also coming to difficult terms with the racism and privilege that comes with these ideas and how they affect family and African Americans, and a way to use it as a search for an individual 's true self. Through the novel, Morrison shows that both set themselves in a state of mental imprisonment to these materials
Song of Solomon tells the story of Dead's unwitting search for identity. Milkman appears to be destined for a life of self-alienation and isolation because of his commitment to the materialism and the linear conception of time that are part of the legacy he receives from his father, Macon Dead. However, during a trip to his ancestral home, “Milkman comes to understand his place in a cultural and familial community and to appreciate the value of conceiving of time as a cyclical process”(Smith 58).
The novel, Beloved, centers around the life of Sethe, a former slave, who murders her infant daughter to save her from a life of slavery. Eighteen years later, Sethe’s daughter, Beloved, returns from the grave as a young woman. In Arlene Keizer’s article, Beloved: Ideologies in Conflict, Improvised Subjects, Keizer claims that Beloved’s return in the flesh is in itself extended evocation of certain African belief systems (120). By representing Beloved as a human being and not as a spirit, Morrison has demonstrated the beliefs of two African religious traditions, one taken from the Yoruba and Igbo and the other taken from the Akamba people of Kenya (120). Keizer quotes Dr. Carole B. Davies by stating, the children of Yoruba cosmology or the Igbo culture, who die and are reborn repeatedly to plague their mothers, are marked so that they can be identified when they return (qt in Keizer 121). In the novel, the reincarnated Beloved returns with a scar across her neck where Sethe slash her throat. Keizer then quotes John Mibiti who explains that among the Akamba people of Kenya, a child who dies before she is named is st...
Shirley Jackson is said to be one of the most “brilliant and influential authors of the twentieth century.” “Her fiction writing is some of the most important to come out of the American literary canon.” (http://shirleyjackson.org/Reviews.html) Jackson wrote many short stories and even some books. They are more on the dark, witchlike side, however. Kelleher explains that Jackson stated in some interviews that she practiced magic. No one really knows if she was serious while practicing witchcraft or not, but it ended up helping her write her stories http://www.literarytraveler.com/literary_articles/shirley_jackson_bennington.aspx). A major story that throws people for a loop is “The Lottery”. This was Jackson’s first short story and many people did not know how to take the story. Your everyday person may be offended by it,but an everyday writer may think it is a work of art. Even though Jackson seemed like a normal person, she enjoyed writing about the dark side of things; hence, “The Lottery” was written.
"No Witchcraft for Sale” is about a black servant cook and his employees and a white, south African missionary couple and their son, Teddy, who becomes friends with the cook, Gideon. Their friendship was very strong and respectful up until one day, when the boy, Teddy, began to show racial prejudice. Gideon decided to keep his distance from Teddy, but still continued to show him respect. One day, Teddy was spat in the eye by a venomous snake. Teddy feared that he would go blind, but Gideon was able to find a root to use to treat Teddy’s eye and eyesight. Teddy’s parents were extremely grateful and gave Gideon a raise and his family presents. Not long after, a scientist appears at Teddy’s parents’, (the Farquars), home and asks them to persuade
The influential aspects of any religion have the power to dictate how the lives of those people who choose to follow it will be lived. However, people become consumed by their faith, which has the ability to result in constructive actions or created havoc. In The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown, Silas becomes a consumption of his faith and creates havoc through an assortment of ways. Through his corrupted actions in order to succeed in protecting the faith he believes in, Silas often harms people in selfish reasoning. Due to the miraculous actions of Bishop Aringarosa that saved Silas’ life, Silas feels the need to perform whatever the Bishop asks of him. Although some things contradict his beliefs, Silas disregards them and goes as far as to sin. People of the Book by Geraldine Brooks is a novel about a Jewish Codex and its journey during different times in history as well as the people who protect the scripture against governmental forces such as the Nazi regime, in hopes of unlocking the mystery behind the book. Over time, the people who had the chance to handle the Haggadah understood the significance and power that the book possessed. Although they were not Jewish, they respected the religion so much so that they risked their lives to go against other’s beliefs and protect the precious book. Religion has the power to not only shape the mind of characters, but to dramatically influence their actions. Secrets play a significant role and are necessary in order to control chaos and provide faith in a community. In both novels religion has a direct impact on the way people live as well as their ethical beliefs and actions.
In conclusion, Shirley Jackson used many literary devices throughout the entire story. In “The Lottery” Shirley Jackson, uses symbolism, irony, and imagery to appeal to readers that read this story. Other literary devices such as characterization were identified in this story but the three that were elaborated on were the ones that stood out. The emphasis on religious traditions and symbols make “The Lottery” one the darkest and most mysterious