Symbolism of Color

Planting the reader directly in the center of an emotionally gripping story, Beloved reveals a rainbow of feelings both figuratively and literally. Color is a universal and relatable symbol when placed in conjunction with emotion. In the story, Morrison uses the symbolism of color to help readers gain an intimate understanding of how slavery impacted the lives of those in “Beloved”.

Although well publicized, slavery is a very abstract thing to most. Present day society is not only distanced from slavery by time, but also by the lack of similarity between today’s lifestyles and pre-abolition lifestyles. Most stories about slavery merely retell what has been told thousands of times. However, “Beloved” is different in that it actually plays on the heartstrings of those who read it by using the few similarities that still exist between the present and the past. By taking advantage of the feelings evoked by color, most notably red and white, Morrison finds one of these small similarities and exacerbates it throughout her novel.

What does red represent? Love, anger, life, possibly even death? At some point all of the characters in “Beloved” feel or experience at least one of these. The first reference to the color red is the light inside of 124. The light that is only there when Beloved is considered a ghost, not present as a life form as she is after Paul D shows up. This red light is clearly representational of the Earthly absence of Sethe’s daughter Beloved. According to Keskar, red is a South African symbol of mourning (62). This makes sense, because of the way Sethe refers to the light. “It’s not evil, just sad. Come on. Just step through (Morrison 10).”  This light could also be a reflection of Beloved’s anger toward her situation. Either way, this element is not present in the story by coincidence, but rather to allow the reader an enhanced level of relation to the feelings of the characters.     

White stairs. White dress. White blossoms. In the story, all of these seem to have an illusion of purity, life, or freedom. The stairs were painted in honor of Beloved so she could see them and climb them. They are referred to frequently in the story, and when they are it immediately reminds the reader of Beloved and the tragedy that ended her life. When Denver witnesses Sethe in the keeping room she sees . . . a white dress knelt down next to her mother with (and had) its sleeve around her mother’s waist (Morrison 35). So accustomed to seeing the color white in association with Beloved, it is default to think that the dress is the ghost of Beloved. The dress is the size of a woman, but its color symbolizes the purity of a baby. Paul D. follows the white blossoms of trees to a place of safety. When he reaches the river, he knows he has reached freedom. All of these instances are major points that give the story emotional impact on the reader.

Not being present during the times of slavery and being separated by lifestyle and sometimes race, it is hard for most to grasp the strife that was subjected on those who were forced into slavery. By using some of the human similarities that we all share, Toni Morrison goes beyond telling a story. She gives the reader an experience in life of her characters.

  

Works Cited:

Keskar, Gulab. “Color psychology and its effect on Human Behavior.” Paintindia 60.5 (2010):  61-64.    

          Web.

Morrison, Toni. Beloved. New York:  Vintage International: 2004. Print.

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