Names are alive in Song of Solomon , and their meanings change depending on the storyteller. Clothing heightens our awareness of class and affluence in Song , and clothing also helps us to understand what each character cares about. In a world where materialism threatens to isolate characters further, we take note of who wears what. Pilate, wears a knit cap, a quilt, and no underwear whatsoever. She once wore ornate lingerie that Macon Dead liked to unsnap and unhook.
When they were little girls, Lena and Corinthians would roll down their stockings and take off their shoes during the family drives on Sunday afternoons.
Milkman wears a three piece-suit, a gold watch, and fancy shoes, all of which get completely destroyed by the wilderness that he goes traipsing through. Corinthians Dead wears high heels to work, even though she promptly changes out of them, in order to differentiate herself from the other women who work as maids.
It is only after taking off her clothing that we see her truly happy and unafraid of returning to the Dead house. Hagar buys a new wardrobe replete with a white-with-a-band-of-color skirt, a bolero, a Maiden-form brassiere, Fruit of the Loom panties, no color hose, a Playtex garter belt, and Joyce con brio shoes … only to have her new identity ruined by a rainstorm she does not know she is in. Clothes are a reflection of the emotional journey that each character undertakes.
Milkman Dead works for his father and is, at one point, positioned to inherit the family business. Fearing for his life, Macon killed the man, and they discovered bags of gold in the cave. At first, Pilate says that they must not take the gold, but later she escapes her brother and takes the treasure for herself.
Here, he pleads with Milkman to reclaim the gold. SparkTeach Teacher's Handbook. Themes Motifs Symbols. Mini Essays Suggested Essay Topics. Quotes Macon Dead Quotes. Macon is the only father in the novel who is physically present with his children, but his presence is so overpowering that it appears to do more harm than good. Cold, controlling, and domineering, Macon rules his household like a tyrant. With a wife who is "stunned into silence" by his rejection, two "half-grown" daughters, and a son who refuses to accept responsibility for his life, Macon exemplifies the Western patriarch whose penchant for order and discipline provides him with the illusion of being in control.
Macon's lack of compassion is illustrated in his treatment of Porter and Mrs. Bains, both tenants of his, but it is especially evident in his treatment of his sister, Pilate, whom he despises for refusing to conform to his rigidly defined standards of correct behavior.
His disdain and lack of respect for other blacks are also evident in his speech, which echoes the beliefs and stereotypes of racist whites — he is the first one in the novel to use the word "nigger" to refer to Porter, Pilate, and Guitar. Related Themes: Masculinity and Femininity.
Page Number and Citation : 55 Cite this Quote. Explanation and Analysis:. Part 1, Chapter 3 Quotes. Page Number and Citation : 73 Cite this Quote. Part 1, Chapter 8 Quotes. Related Symbols: Gold.
Related Themes: Memory and Storytelling. Page Number and Citation : Cite this Quote. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance. Part 1, Chapter 1. Ruth is married to an angry, imposing man, Macon Dead. Dead bullies his daughters and wife, and while his presence makes them quiet and Whenever she points out the beauty of the centerpiece to Macon , he only criticizes her cooking.
Eventually she removes the bowl, exposing the water mark on Ruth nursed him around the Southside of the town. Macon Dead never learns where Milkman gets his nickname, since Freddie never tells him, but he Macon Dead spent fifteen years wanting a son; then when he had one — Milkman — As a young father, Macon followed the same naming process that his parents used: randomly pointing to a name from She acted like an Macon arrives at his office, and meets several of his tenants: he is a landlord.
He was less successful As Macon sits in his office and thinks, Freddie, the town gossip, tells him that Porter, a Porter points his He remembers that Part 1, Chapter 2. On a Sunday afternoon drive, they sit in the back seat
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