While I’m pretty sure we can all agree that this whole novel was heart breaking, one of the saddest things to me was the way the children were so often abandoned. It is mentioned that Shug and Mr. _____ have 3 children together, but he didn’t stay with them, and later, neither did she. Squeak finds it easy to leave her child as she goes to pursue her dream, and Harpo does not fight to be able to keep, or at least see, his children. This was a theme that ran all the way throughout the novel, and it just broke my heart that the parents did not feel a strong enough love for their children to at least put up a fight for them.
I think it was becuase of the fact of how impoverished many people were, when one had a child it was jsut another mouth to feed. But if it was a boy, then he could be raised and might be useful to the family. While girls on the other hand just had to wait around until they got married. Also, since the were black they had to do a lot of looking out for themselves becuase at any second they could be abandon themselves.
ReplyDeleteYea, this is a very sad concept. It's unfair, but I think that is what makes this such a good novel. It's more realistic and cuts to the core of our emotions. The children in this novel(which the adults all were at one point) were neglected, like you said, and it's somewhat a generational curse. It is unfortunate and it's hard, but it is what makes us love the characters and ultimately root for them in the end.
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