Essay on Toni Morrisons Beloved - How We Define Ourselves

How We Define Ourselves in Beloved The idea of how we define ourselves is a topic that has much force in the novel Beloved by Toni Morrison. Two of the characters in the novel have strongly opposite ideas of defining their own â€Å"selves†. Baby Suggs displays a very healthy sense of self, completely based on only who she is as a person, and not relying on any other person to assist her in her definition. She is an independent person and loves her own â€Å"self† greatly. Sethe, on the other hand, has an unhealthy sense of self because who she is is strongly dependent on her interactions and relationships with her children. The above is excerpt is provided to indicate the focus of the essay. The complete essay begins below:†¦show more content†¦In addition, they too have been growing and learning in their own environment with different family members’ influences. Each of our own influences, in turn, influences others. From there, we again take in and learn what we can so we can make our own decisions on how to define our â€Å"selves†. Later, society influences our thoughts on who we are as people and our relation to the world as a whole. There is a constant norm that people try to assimilate to or diverge from. Society presents its own ideas of who we should be as people, and it is then our own job to take that information and do what we will with it to make our own definition for ourselves of who we are. Two things can happen when we are required to base our definition of â€Å"self† on others. One can take others’ ways of living and thinking, process them, a nd formulate his or her own definition, independent of anyone else. Or, one can use the relationships he or she has with other people on which to base their own definition of self, thus making him or her dependent on those other people. As young people, we learn and take in all we can through the world, our experiences, and relationships with other people. From there, we grow and establish our own identities, our own â€Å"selves†, in response to those interactions with others. This definition is continually growing and progressing as we evolve as people, interacting with different people in different environments andShow MoreRelated Toni Morrisons Beloved: Not a Story to be Passed On Essay example5432 Words   |  22 PagesToni Morrisons Beloved: Not a Story to be Passed On Beloved, Toni Morrisons Nobel Prize winning novel, is a masterfully written book in which the characters must deal with a past that perpetually haunts them.   This haunting, in the form of a twenty year old ghost named Beloved, not only stalks them in the spirit, but also in the flesh.   Beloved, both in story and in character hides the truth in simple ways and convinces those involved that the past never leaves, it only becomes part of whoRead More Remembering the Disremembered Essay4818 Words   |  20 Pagesfor, she cannot be lost because no one is looking for her, and even if they were, how can they call her if they dont know her name? Although she has claim, she is not claimed. In the place where long grass opens, the girl who waited to be loved and cry shame erupts into her separate parts, to make it easy for the chewing laughter to swallow her all away. It was not a story to pass on. - Toni Morrison, Beloved To write history means giving dates their physiognomy. - Walter Benjamin