His younger brother Sonny is a troubled musician struggling with his addiction to drugs. The first type of darkness is the one that was closing in on their lives, and the one on the movies that is making them not see the other type of darkness (Clark 201). Highest recommended. Sonny is the narrators estranged brother in which the readers learn through exchanging prison. 1245 Words5 Pages. The narrator in this story is an interesting figure. Here's where you will find analysis of the key literary devices in Sonny's Blues.. For Sonny, the answer to suffering may lie within the darkness, not in escaping it. The brothers grew up in Harlem, where the narrator still lives. Sustana, Catherine. Wonderful writing depicting its time and how we probably havent moved that much forward. This helps to understand that music was bred in Sonny from a tender age. In that moment the narrator finally understands Sonnys love for music. All they really knew were two darknesses, the darkness of their lives, which was now closing in on them, and the darkness of the movies, which had blinded them to that other darkness. "I think people ought to do what they want to do, what else are they alive for? Yet, there was no battle in his face now, I heard what he had gone through, and would continue to go through until he came to rest in earth. Sonnys Blues starts off with an unnamed narrator reading a newspaper. 3 . "I told him it felt great." And even then, on the rare occasions when something opens within, and the music enters, what we mainly hear, or hear corroborated, are personal, private, vanishing evocations. In Sonnys Blues, James Baldwin wrote a different type coming of age story. While Sonny and his eldest brother both are the center of the stories content, Baldwin uses Sonny to represent a challenge to the narrator of the story. On the west side-I haven't seen the city in so long. "I never give Sonny nothing," the boy said finally, "but a long time ago I come to school high and Sonny asked me how it felt." "That's right," he said quickly, "ain't nothing you can do. The narrator laments that the dangers of darkness is the fact that the students cannot see looming danger ahead, as explained in the text, drugs will do of them that algebra could (Baldwin 18). The story takes the reader through pain, suffering, alienation, and anger of the main character. Any opinions, findings, conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of UKEssays.com. He disapproves of, and worries about, his brother's drug use and he is alienated by his brother's attraction to bebop music. I stared at it in the swinging lights of the subway car, and in the faces and bodies of the people, and in my own face, trapped in the darkness which roared outside. The story follows the narrator learning about his brother Sonny 's incarceration due to the use and selling of drugs until his brother gets parole. Get a 100% original essay FROM A CERTIFIED WRITER! An incredibly touching piece of writing, beautifully executed. ", I first read a small passage in ECC.and created a essay about it. The author of Sonny's Blues uses irony in the story. Understanding the narrators story, the reader starts to recognize the setting in which it takes place as well as his relationship with his family. Disclaimer: This is an example of a student written essay.Click here for sample essays written by our professional writers. The story takes the reader through pain, suffering, alienation, and anger of the main character. All I know about music is that not many people ever really hear it. A great block of ice got settled in my belly and kept melting there slowly all day long, while I taught my classes algebra. or, rather, wasn't that exactly the trouble? I would have given this story 5 stars, but the story had three too many "it's" (18 on the first page alone, and that drives me crazy!). It might be said, perhaps, that I had escaped, after all, I was a school teacher; or that Sonny had, he hadn't lived in Harlem for years. The free trial period is the first 7 days of your subscription. Farah Jasmine Griffin, chair of Columbia University's Department of African American and African Diaspora Studies . Sometime I think I'm going to flip and never get outside and sometime I think I'll come straight back. The story seems at first to be about the ways that the narrator tries to help and instruct Sonny. This helps to learn the depth of the conflict between the two brothers and its consequences as a result of not understanding and helping each other, which is a reflection of the narrator and Sonnys situation (Sherard 699). Therefore, Sonnys Blues was imperative in influencing and presenting the setting of the story. Discount, Discount Code The story is relevant to the world today as many of the youths go through the same situation as that of Sonny. "It can come again," he repeated. The narrator is a high school math teacher. "Sonny's Blues" is a short story by James Baldwin that was first published in 1957 . for only $13.00 $11.05/page. Read 345 reviews from the world's largest community for readers. Study for free with our range of university lectures! Sonny, is the name the readers are captivated with. 202 Dr. Hadley Mozer 2/10/17 The short story that I chose to write a literary analysis on is James Baldwin's Sonny's Blues. It considers the possibility of understanding Baldwin's fictional text as a statement on reading social as well as subjective 'problems' as universal across contexts. 20% Only contained the short story Sonny's Blues Sonny's Blues book. #20. Baldwin, James. The most important ideas in the story are family, home, suffering, and drugs. #17. The sun had vanished, soon darkness would fall. If you haven't cried while reading it, there must be something wrong with you. For the next 7 days, you'll have access to awesome PLUS stuff like AP English test prep, No Fear Shakespeare translations and audio, a note-taking tool, personalized dashboard, & much more! He had been picked up, the evening before, in a raid on an apartment down-town, for peddling and using heroin. The narrator chooses to voice of reason throughout the story. Baldwin uses the blues to shape his short story, paralleling Sonny's musical use of the blues. Contact us In this Library of America Zoom event, Farah Jasmine Griffin, chair of Columbia University's Department of African American and African Diaspora Studies, off. This clearly shows that Sonny is not interested in staying in Harlem due to the fact that his music career is under threat from his brother and other people who do not believe in him and music. The story is different from other books as some of the books often straightforward and does not implement the idea of going back and forth to bring the main idea of the story. I sat alone in the classroom a long time. The Playwright focused a lot of his works on issues relating to racism and people's social problems. While Sonny, fell into the depth of his feeling and influences. for a customized plan. The narrator goes ahead to describe a story of pain, prejudice, and suffering. As a symbol in the story, darkness makes it possible for the readers to understand better the setting of the story and the situation in the African American neighborhood in America. By going back in time with. Members will be prompted to log in or create an account to redeem their group membership. ", "And I'm sick of the stink of these garbage cans! they were growing up with a rush and their heads bumped abruptly against the low ceiling of their actual possibilities. "Analysis of "Sonny's Blues" by James Baldwin." If your specific country is not listed, please select the UK version of the site, as this is best suited to international visitors. Retrieved from https://speedypaper.com/essays/close-reading-essay-sample-sonnys-blues-by-james-baldwin, Free essays can be submitted by anyone, so we do not vouch for their quality. In the black society setting, particularly the 1950s on New York streets, music served as the foundation of African American populations culture. about it in the paper, in the subway, on my way to work. Here's what he said: Dear brother, You don't know how much I needed to hear from you. This sort of thing being the kind of story every writer should be aspiring to write before his or her days on this earth are through. $24.99 The light from the bandstand spilled just a little short of them and watching them laughing and gesturing and moving about, I had the feeling that they, nevertheless, were being most careful not to step into that circle of light too suddenly; that if they moved into the light too suddenly, without thinking, they would perish in flame. The text is similar to various good reads as they always give hope to the hopeless. When he was about as old as the boys in my classes his face had been bright and open, there was a lot of copper in it; and he'd had wonderfully direct brown eyes, and great gentleness and privacy. The narrator was an algebra teacher. Sonny's Blues (James Baldwin) Analysis Skyler Jackson Eng. Baldwin is considered an American activist, author, and play writer. Copyright 2023 IPL.org All rights reserved. With our understanding of the setting we are able to understand how life was like in the 1940s and why the theme of racism plays a factor in these characters lives. In conclusion, the author serves best in presenting several issues in society by his writing of the story Sonny Blues. The story helps to understand the type of life and suffering in African American neighborhoods in the 1950s motivated by factors such as race and racial discrimination, segregation, poverty, and violence. "I couldn't tell you when Mama died-but the reason I wanted to leave Harlem so bad was to get away from drugs. When he was about as old as the boys in my classes his face had been bright and open, there was a lot of copper in it; and hed had wonderfully direct brown eyes, and great gentleness and privacy (Baldwin, 1957, pg. To export a reference to this article please select a referencing stye below: If you are the original writer of this essay and no longer wish to have your work published on UKEssays.com then please: Our academic writing and marking services can help you! This well-written short story is my favorite. In James Baldwin's short story "Sonny's Blues" there is a large array of symbolism. "You got to hold on to your brother," she said, "and don't let him fall, no matter what it looks like is happening to him and no matter how evil you gets with him. "When she was singing before," said Sonny, abruptly, "her voice reminded me for a minute of what heroin feels like sometimes-when it's in your veins. Sonnys blues is, Moving on to Sonny's Blues that is told in the first person from the point of view of an unnamed narrator who, we find out, is Sonnys brother.

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