Beloved tree essay

Furthermore, Morrison conveys the trees as the pathway to freedom for Sethe and Paul D. From Denver’s account to Beloved, we learn how Sethe escapes from Sweet Home: “there is this nineteen-year-old slavegirl – a year older than herself – walking through the dark woods to get to her children who are far away” (91).

In the early beginning of the novel, Sethe recalls the sights of lynching at the trees: “Boys hanging from the most beautiful sycamores in the world” (7). By juxtaposing the beauty and her bitter memory, Morrison shows how Sethe, as a former slave, feels denied of the opportunity to fully enjoy the natural scene.

Denver holds on to three things in most parts of the novel: the baby ghost, Beloved and the emerald closet. When Paul D comes to 124 and chases the baby ghost out of the house, Denver has only one thing left to hold on to: “But it was gone now.

Toni Morrison uses tree imagery throughout her novel “Beloved”. For most of the characters in the novel, trees bring both good and bad recollections of their lives. Trees symbolize the energy from which the characters gain comfort and freedom, yet they also convey the past traumatic memories of the characters.