“The one set of plans she had made- getting away from Sweet Home- went awry so completely she never dared life by making more” (Page 100).
Dear Sethe, Sweet Home was not the place anyone wanted to be. You getting shoved down and getting your milk stolen from you is awful and I can’t even imagine having to live the rest of my life after something like that happened to me. Knowing that you pushed through and made it out of Sweet Home, even after that happened to you, shows what a great mother you are. Later you learn that your husband, Halle, was upstairs in the barn and watched that happen to you and he let it happen. This happening to you wasn’t your fault at all and there were eyes around that could’ve stopped it as well. You were able as a mother to push through it and did what had to be done for what was right for you and your family .I know you wanted to bring Halle and Beloved to Ohio with you. I know that killing Beloved wasn’t by any means something you wanted to do, but you had to do it. You gave birth to a beautiful baby who survived and is making a life for herself now that isn’t in Sweet Home. Every day that is something to be proud of. Do not think of your past as your failures. Think of your past as points in your life that were testing you to see how you would come back from them. You came back better than ever and are a better mother than you were before these obstacles. These are successes and not failures and I hope you know that every choice you made turned out to work in the end. -Emilie
“In that bower, closed off from the hurt of the hurt world, Denver’s imagination produced its own hunger and its own food, which she badly needed because the loneliness wore her out” (Page 35).
Dear Denver, When Beloved showed up, your mom practically abandoned you. What last pieces of your mom you had were now gone showering this new daughter with love. At first, you had Beloved as your friend and as your sister. You thought that you finally found someone who would be your friend and grow up alongside you. Beloved however turned the tables. It isn’t your fault that Beloved grew angry at everything and sucked the life out of your mom. It isn’t your fault that you had to become your own friend. When everyone left you, you lay around in loneliness hoping for some love and affection to come your way, and it didn’t. Then, Beloved and Sethe took all the food leaving you with nothing. You and only you became the reason that you are the woman you are today. Your imagination fed you and made you aware that you didn’t have any food left. That was the moment that you finally grew up and took charge. You are a powerful woman, and it may have been terrible at the moment, but your imagination made you the powerful woman you are today. Love, Emilie
“His tobacco tin, blown open, spilled contents that floated freely and made him their play and prey” (Page 309).
Dear Paul D, I know your entire life you have had to keep your thoughts and feelings bottled up inside of you. I can’t imagine going from place to place and seeing everything that you have experienced in your lifetime. I think it was wrong of you to come into Sethe’s life and disappear like that. What Sethe did was wrong, but you listened to someone else tell her story instead of asking Sethe straight up to get her version of the story. Then once you left, the only thing you had left to do was drink in your own thoughts. Your thoughts were ruining your life. Your tobacco tin was like your thoughts, all bundled up together after all these years. When the wind blew just right, the contents floated around, just like your thoughts. Eventually, you realize what you did wrong and man up. You finally went back to Sethe who wasn’t even herself anymore. I hope you realize your mistake and stay with this woman for the rest of your life. Best of wishes, Emilie
“Devil’s confusion. He lets me look good long as I feel bad” (page 108).
Dear Beloved, You came out of nowhere. You seemed like all you needed at first was love and attention from Sethe and Denver since you were killed at such a young age. You needed them and that was understandable. I think that you went about it in the wrong way. At first, you were quiet and wanted to hear stories. Then, you craved more than that. You craved having all the attention and all of the sweets. You started going crazy. When the devil sent you back, I thought he sent you so you could live the life you would’ve lived if you weren’t killed. Instead, you brought Hell to 124 with you. You made everyone show you sympathy when you didn’t need it. You ruined Sethe. You ruined Denver. You even ruined Paul D. You came back into “your” family and ruined what family was already there. The devil was inside you and thank God that you got sent back to Hell, which is where I believe you truly belong. Goodbye, Emilie
“Those white things have taken all I had or dreamed and broke my heartstrings too. There is no bad luck in the world but whitefolks” (page 89).
Dear Baby Suggs, You were the heart and voice of 124. The town loved and worshipped you. You were willing to help anyone and anything just because that is who you were. It broke you when Sethe showed up with Denver without Halle. You had to accept that the white people probably did something to your last living son, and you just dealt with it. You accepted Sethe and Denver and cared for them. You wouldn’t let Sethe nurse her children unless she was cleaned up enough. You were an amazing mother and grandmother. It isn’t your fault what the white folks did to you. Remember that always. Sethe killing her baby is what killed you. After everything you went through to accept them into your home just to learn she killed her own daughter killed you. You may not have died that day, but we all understand that it is what killed your soul. You are a powerful woman and all the townspeople think so too. I’m sorry for what those whitefolks did to you and your family. Take care, Emilie
“It was not a story to pass on…This is not a story to pass on” (page 324).
Dear Narrator, Your writing of this story shows a lot of meaning behind what the woman in Slavery had to go through just to be free. I like how we were able to see the story from your point of view and understand all the characters. You were writing as though you were almost another character but looking at the events from a different perspective. Your eyes were almost blocked since you could see things that the characters didn’t. Learning about the reason you wrote Beloved, made the story a lot more meaningful. Sethe wasn’t the only mother who had to kill one of her own just so they didn’t live the life that they were living. This is such an awful thing to have to write about, but it was the reality. Reading history books and going through high school, those books never mentioned anything of this sort. Being able to read and understand a different side of slavery was eye-opening. Like you said, Beloved is a story that shouldn’t be passed on since it is so brutal and a harsh reality. Thank you, Emilie
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