Theme Of Escape In Toni Morrison's Sula

Escape is the act of getting away from a person or place. Often times when someone tries to escape she is never truly free from what she is running from. This is seen in the novel Sula by Toni Morrison. Throughout the novel several characters try to free themselves from the idea of sin without realizing they are still bound to it. Helene’s relief after leaving her past behind illustrates how she never truly escapes the wickedness by using words that indicate what she ran from, her attitude towards leaving, and her distance from her past.
Helene departs from her past, which she associates with the sins of her mother. Whenever her past is referred to, usually the “Sundown House” is mentioned. The word Sundown indicates the sun setting or even the lack of sunlight. The lack of light represents a darkness or evilness. The words the and house reflect that a sole place exists where the

The bond between herself and sin is not truly broken. It is simply minimized. The idea of not being truly free of evil is reinforced later when Eva questions Nel’s innocence saying, “What’s the difference? You was there. You watched didn’t you?” (168). Nel, too, may have thought she is away from the evil, but she is not truly free of it. This highlights Helene’s escape by showing far enough does not necessarily mean apart from and she can still be bound by that which she is leaving.
In Sula by Toni Morrison the idea of inability to escape from evil is depicted by Helene’s past, how she leaves it, and how it is still part of her. Although she left behind the evil, this passage suggests that she never truly frees herself from it. The novel later reinforces the idea that detaching one’s name from evil does not truly release her from its grip. Although Helene may be just far enough away to not be governed by the Sundown House, she never truly severs the bond between herself and