Jie, Beeman 1 Maya Beeman Sokolov February 25, 2015 ST peacock soared away”: A Study of Milkman’s Change of Identity in Song of Solomon In Song of Solomon by Toni Morrison, Milkman Dead, the protagonist of the novel, goes through a mental journey to identify himself with his African American race. Bom into a wealthy black family, Milkman fails to connect with whites because of his different skin color, but also with blacks because of his luxurious lifestyle. One motif that Morrison uses throughout her novel is a peacock, a bird that cannot fly. Similarly, Milkman has been attempting to “fly” all of his life owe is iy. but always fails. Flight in the novel represents accepting one’s self for who they are, and-thereIbr_ Z —_— ph an Jeadisfa.to freedom. The peacock represents Milkman and his change in identity from a“white | 23chrN. efrne Hire man” to a black man; at frst, Milkman is an outcast from black society and is restricted from 4 Lafeblisty 1S more “flying” because of his wealth, but as Milkman learns about his family’s history and connects to eee s ‘ a = as & blac his ancestors, he accepts his black identity and flies like the peacock. One cape Skin coln, At the beginning of the novel, Milkman does not ‘identify with his race and does not feel connected to his family; he acts like a ‘white man” and is not. accepted into black society because of his wealth, From the start, Milkman unveils that he does not feel close to his family, nor does he know much about his family’s history. While ‘thinking about President Roosevelt and the Civil Rights Movement, the narrator states, “Milkman secretly preferred FDR and felt very [very close to him, Closer, in fact, to him than to his own father...” (63). For Milkman to feel closer with someone that he has never met before over his own father shows how distant ar ie 5 Milkman is from his family. Although he has never talked to FDR, Milkman probably knows nee te more about his life and opinions than his own tube“ bocnuse he rarely interacts with his father, . is, He does not feel a connection with his family, and other blacks do not feel connected to him Sgt,Beeman 2 either, leading them to believe he has a “white heart.” He stops in a store after his car breaks down and meets a few poorer Aftican Americans. After only a few interactions, they recognize his wealth and already associate him with itn They looked at his skin and saw it was as black as theirs, but they knew he had the heart of the white men who came to pick them up in the This ph is ot Benged an lorrison uses Milkman in this I< p4& <) trucks when they needed anonymous, faceless laborers” (26( MR x passage to show tensions within the black community, and highlights the racial stereotype that Ss all blacks are ponies ‘mentions in the store that he will buy a new car if he cannot fix his % old one. Not only are the people in the store mad and jealous to see a black man casually contemplating buying a new car, but Milkman talks to them about it, leading them to believe he siege ave s, 4 i7'5 has the heart of a white man. Blacks do not believe that a black man would flaunt his money in tmead the Si yaliane. aanalory the gin quore, * Fondo them, and feel betrayed when they see Milkman do so. When the narrator mentions that € Milkman’s skin was as blac the others in the store, they automatically assume that he has the same economic status as them just because of his skin color. Milkman also fails to ask theit vote tre fila quote han | nmes and refers to the people as “them,” further associating him with a condescending, stereotypical white, apm fo tana 2 » MMarison uses a peacock to show how Milkman’s wealth is weighing him down, enfoting aan) him to fly. While Milkman and one of his friends, Guitar, converse, a white peacock appears, ‘This bird immediately excites Milkman because he believes it can fly. Guitar explains that peacocks cannot fly because it has too much tail. He states, “all that jewelry weighs it down, Like vanity. Can't nobody fly with all that s**t, Wanna fly, you got to give up the s**t that literally means that the tail of a peacock prevents it from ‘weighs you down” (179). While Gui being able to fly, Morrison uses the peacock to represent Milkman and says that his wealth holds him back from flight. Guitar says that if the peacock gives up his luxurious tail, he would be ableBeeman 3 v to fly, much like if Milkman gave up his wealth, he would be integrated into the black community. During this time period, blacks tend to be poor, so Milkman’s wealth separates him FORT Other Blacks is also important that this peacoek jg white, representing Milkman’s “wl we need to prowele identity. he dextuell evcloince_ As the story progresses, Milkman finds himself slowly connecting more to blacks as he connec sd] blowho? has a “change in heart,” eventually leading to him being able (Bphinan lives a luxurious Yon mi lifestyle, and his wealth is evident by the clothes that he wears. While on his j isjouney tofind ,{ voles Conlin, gold, Milkman is forced into changing into cheaper, SANyrclothes CE could go eae mes, beeen trecmgn tae Sit a other African Americans. Milkman being stripped of his vanity is the first step in his transition aS Se kek, from white to black. Though physically, he looks more like a stereotypical black man, he has not S»iy* L--changed yet inside. After they go hunting, they kill a bobcat and ope idyup to cleeh out sothey We suip yy lla, Bee Sldhe out the heart. As Milkman agrees to take the heart, the narrator states, “the heart fell away from peop can eaf it) Though Milkman stands on the side and watches for most of they tell him to take the chest as easily as yolk slips out of its shell” (282). This moment is a key turnin; re in, ee state cotton in fhe 7P that dine bobemt iS ew renal 5 novel; in this soit represents a black man, so as ate pulls the heart out of the» lae4— hav? 50% cet, he takes the heart of a black man and metaphorically replaces his “white” heart with it. Conic vi ution WAitnan oS fced to sip fom his luxurious clothes, though hesiten)he does willingly take the heart out and does so quickly, showing that he accepts this new identity. oer Morison’s use of an egg simile is to show a black heart, the yolk, coming out of a white shell. ‘After Milkman takes this heart, “a peacock soared away” (283). This timd ipdoes not specify tha((ijis a white peacock, seit gan be assumed s colored. The colored peacock, or D de sez why it wrag i. Ib bSQuode, the wWhebensra’ <4 tne pameoein, Milkman, finally has let go of all the wealth that weighs him down, allowing him to “fly,” dr to rae embrac( its yew identity,Beeman 4 After getting a black heart, Milkman feels connected to his family and identifies as a ie man. Towards the end of the novel, while thinking about his family and other African Americans, Milkman thinks, “he didn’t feel close to them, but he did feel connected...” (293). Though he may not have completely accepted this new identity, feeling’ connected to his family wt frenet shows apes change in Milkman. Being connected to them is also more significant than feeling close to them; close implies that he may know a lot about them and feel comfortable talking to them about anything, but connected means that he feels an intangible bond that cannot be te ee, ches! broken, After heating a story about his family, the narrator states that Milkman “liked the story ‘eon man ins to refer to his family and blacks as “his people.” This shows that he now identifies as an po ee ed [wrinodi ae American and fully enfbraces if, and the fact that the places were named for his people” (334) In Song of Solomon, Morrison shows Milkman’s journey from a white’man to a black ‘man through the use ofa symbol, the peacock, and its ability to fly. Morrison also uses Millman ] $° ES, Sa to show racial stereotypes during this time period ~ that all blacks are poor and that all whites are ee ~ ah heartless. Milkman does not fit into either stereotype perfectly, and that is why he does not fel Pago accepted into any society. In order to be welcomed, he had to conform to a stereotype, showing ee how corrupt the society was. Because he cannot change the color of his skin, he was forced to identify with blacks; in an ideal world, Milkman should have been able to identify with both “iS white and blacks, but the overwhelming pressure from society forces him to choose one. Work Cited: Morrison, Toni. Song of Solomon. New York: Knopf, 1977. 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