Toni Morrison on Unconventional Motherhood, Maternal Abandonment and Redefined Love

Rishav Devrani; Poojan Bulani

Rishav Devrani Law Graduate, Rajiv Gandhi National University of Law
Poojan Bulani Law Graduate, Rajiv Gandhi National University of Law

Keywords: Motherhood, Mother Hunger, Love, Toni Morrison, Sula, A Mercy, Beloved, Sorrow, Slavery

Abstract

Motherhood is a prominent theme in Toni Morrison's works that she has emphasized in her novels as well as her essays. Through the thematic exploration of her stories, Morrison philosophizes the power and the sacrifices that flow from motherhood and attempts to dismantle the patriarchal poster image of a mother and the experience of motherhood. Building upon the same, she beautifully sews together her political stance on black womanhood, her ideas on slavery, its aftermath in the United States vis-à-vis the infinite struggles of maternal identity.

In the essay, the authors have tried to analyze and anatomize the paradigm of stereotypical notions associated with motherhood. By deconstructing Toni Morrison's 'Sula,' 'A Mercy,' and 'Beloved,' the authors have attempted to explain how Morrison rebukes the status quo and run-of-the-mill motherly standards and writes fearlessly on concepts that have been seldom evaded and diverted by her contemporaries. By making a comparative analysis of her works, the authors have illustrated how Morrison tackles different themes of black womanhood; developing them from day-to-day experiences to an evolution of a new resistance. She enables, through her characters, African American women to come forward, counter, and challenge the discourse on black womanhood.

Different eras beget different expectations where women are romanticized, and their traditional roles are reaffirmed. It, therefore, becomes pivotal for voices like Morrison's to encourage women all around through her innocent portrayal of the complexities of societal affirmation. For example, she disregards the conventional understanding that biological mothers are the sole domain holder of motherhood.

The authors have discussed Morrison’s background to understand why she writes the way she does. Morrison was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1993 and was one of the flagbearers of Black Feminist literature; due to her flair for dismantling complex and controversial subjects without stripping them off of reality. And as she always said, the power of changing the world for the better lies not in the great people we mourn, but with ourselves, the essay is an attempt to honor her unmatched legacy.

Downloads

Download data is not yet available.

Author Biographies

Rishav Devrani, Law Graduate, Rajiv Gandhi National University of Law

Rishav Devrani is an independent legal practitioner currently based out of Dehradun, Uttarakhand.

Poojan Bulani, Law Graduate, Rajiv Gandhi National University of Law

Poojan Bulani is a graduate student at University College London, studying the intersection of law and technology.

References

1. Burrows, Victoria. Whiteness and Trauma- The Mother–Daughter Knot in the Fiction of Jean Rhys, Jamaica Kincaid and Toni Morrison, PALGRAVE MACMILLAN, New York, N.Y., 2004.
2. Cox, Sandra. “‘Mother Hunger’: Trauma, Intra-Feminine Identification, and Women’s Communities in Toni Morrison’s Beloved, Paradise, and A Mercy”, Contested Boundaries: New Critical Essays on the Fiction of Toni Morrison, edited by Maxine L. Montgomery, Cambridge Scholars Publishing, 2013, p. 96-123.
3. Oliveira, Natália Fontes de. ‘Motherhood in Toni Morrison’s Sula and A Mercy: rethinking (m)othering’, Aletria Belo Horizonte, vol. 25, no. 3, 2015, p. 67-84.
4. Otten, Terry. ‘To Be One or to Have One’: ‘Motherlove’ in The Fiction of Toni Morrison, Contested Boundaries: New Critical Essays on the Fiction of Toni Morrison, edited by Maxine L. Montgomery, Cambridge Scholars Publishing, 2013, p. 82-95.
5. Sara, Ruddick. On "Maternal Thinking", ‘Women's Studies Quarterly’, vol. 37, no. 3/4, Mother (Fall-Winter, 2009), The Feminist Press at the City University of New York, p. 305-308.