Saturday, March 11, 2017
Tired of Running
Early on, when Denver suggests moving away from 124 to escape their isolation caused by the Baby Ghost and Sethe's reputation, Sethe says she is tired of running. Through flashbacks, we see all the running that Sethe and later Paul D went through to gain their freedom. Sethe almost died in her escape from Sweet Home as she was exhausted from walking while very pregnant. Sethe probably would not have made it if it weren't for Amy Denver. Paul D narrowly escaped jail with the other prisoners due to a miracle of constant rain. Without the help of the Cherokees he runs in to, Paul D probably would have never survived to make it to 124 either. These two have been through so much, being a slave on Sweet Home and their lives after, that 124 is a point where they can actually feel safe for once. Denver does not understand the pain that her mother has been through, and to Sethe, the Baby Ghost is nothing compared to her journey to get to this point.
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Sethe only ran because she had to. She was tired of being a slave to others where she didn't have her own identity. As Dylan said Sethe nearly died trying to achieve freedom from Sweet Home. She is now more in charge than she's ever been an has no real reason to leave. The baby ghost becomes part of Sethe's world and she accepts it for what it is. Sethe is a strong character who wishes to face her challenges an that means dealing with the baby ghost whether she wants to or not.
In Sethe's attempted escape, she tries to rely solely on herself. She rarely lets anyone in and has a hard time depending on others. We read how she learns to become vulnerable when it comes to Paul D. This shows her embracing the idea of love and connecting with another person.
I think that some part of Sethe likes the baby ghost because it is the only connection she has to her dead child. I don't really agree with Brooke saying Sethe relies totally on herself. When she ran away from Sweet Home, she relied on Amy when she had to. She stays around 124 for the ghost, and now she has Paul D. While Sethe is mostly independent and tries to come off strong, I don't think she really is.
Sethe is the strongest female protagonist I have ever read about. I cannot even imagine what it must've been like. She was very pregnant and still escaped slavery by herself. She ran until she physically couldn't anymore, then kept going. She took beatings and was raped and still only cared about her children. I can't believe that people actually had to do that.
Since sethe has gone through so much (slavery, running away, rape, etc. ) it makes sense that she no longer wants to run. She had to make a very difficult choice, stay in slavery and potentially have her family separated, or escape slavery but risk giving birth while on her journey. She obviously chooses the latter and ends up with her family separated once again. If I were sethe, I wouldn't want to have to run again either.
I think that the feet motif really signifies this. When Sethe comes across Amy, her feet are almost completely destroyed from running. I think here the feet represent Sethe's will. It is almost completely destroyed, but Amy nurses it back to health.
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