Chapter 10 Journal Entry for Beloved

Chapter 10
18. In what ways does this chapter increase our understanding of and empathy for Paul D? 
19. Why does Morrison compare Paul D’s heart to a “tobacco tin lodged in his chest”? What
does this metaphor tell us about his emotions?

 18) This chapter helps us understand how terrible Paul D's mental state must once have been. It forces the reader to feel empathy for all the things he has been through. Because we know the horrendous animal-like, lower-than-dirt treatment Paul D has been through it helps us understand why he is so afraid of things like love and settling down.

19) When tobacco tins rust, they rust around their seal- making them near to impossible to open. I believe that Toni Morrison compared Paul D's heart to a tobacco tin because he has hidden and locked away all his feelings and refuses to accept them in such a way to affect him. As  metaphor it tells us Paul D is extremely emotionally unavailable. That he is afraid of hope and love and doesn't trust himself with it, or with giving any part of himself to another.

Chapter 9 Journal Entry for Beloved

Chapter 9
16. Why does Sethe go to the Clearing?
17. What do you make of the choking scene and its significance.

16) Sethe goes to the Clearing to recenter herself and reconnect with Baby Suggs. She is very stressed and hasn't been able to relieve that tension for years without Baby, and she thinks the clearing will help her with that. She brings the girls along so they can also feel the "remembering" there.

17) I think that Beloved wants Sethe to feel the same terror she did. I think its important that she fixes it as well, because she wants Sethe to know how much Beloved loves her and wants Sethe to love her back. It is significant because it makes Denver actually angry at Beloved, instead of just a disappointed lonely, hurt feeling towards her. I think it is also significant because it tells Denver and the reader just how dangerous Beloved really is. 

Chapter 8 Journal Entry for Beloved

Chapter 8
14. Who does Denver think Beloved is? How does she feel about it?
15. Why do you think both girls are so interested in the story of Denver’s birth?

14) Denver thinks Beloved is Beloved. She thinks that she is the grown up ghost of the baby she's spent her entire life with, usually as her only companionship. She is happy this ghost has finally "come to life" so to speak, but is also apprehensive of how the others will react, so she tells Beloved to keep it a secret. She wants Beloved to stay but is also jealous of how obsessed she is with Sethe.

15)Denver is interested in the story of her birth because it is one of the good stories that involves her. Denver hasn't had much of a happy Sethe, because within a month after she was born things at 124 went south. Beloved is interested in the story because it represents a connection between Denver and Sethe that doesn't involve her- something she doesn't feel great about. She also is intrigued because it involves Sethe coming home to her, something that is important to Beloved.

Chapter 7 Journal Entry for Beloved

Chapter 7

12. Explain what information the following quote provides about both characters: “Beloved was shining and Paul D didn’t like it.” Make a prediction about what will happen in the future based on the events between them in this chapter.
    
13. What new information do we learn about Sweet Home in this chapter? What information can you guess at which is not clearly revealed?
    
    
    
    
    12) Paul D is referring to Beloved coming into her sexuality and her mature body. I predict that Paul D will begin to fantasize about her and possibly even have sex with her later in the book. It seems like the conniving sort of thing Beloved would use to get Paul D out of the house.
    
    13) We learn that Halle saw what happened to Sethe when the Schoolteacher's boys raped her and "milked" her. We also learn that as a punishment for something, Schoolteacher forced Paul D to wear an iron bit in his mouth- a sort of gag for humans. It is generally used for horses to give them tactile direction- but on humans it gags them and makes them feel like animals.
    

Chapter 6 Journal Entry for Beloved

Chapter 6
11. What does Sethe remember about her mother? Why does it upset her to remember? Why do you think Beloved keeps asking her questions?

Sethe remembers how her mother showed her the scar left over from when she was branded, and tells Sethe it is how she can identify her once she's dead. Sethe then begins to remember how her mother was hanged, and how when Sethe tried to run to her to check for "the mark" another woman held her back, so she never knew for sure it was her mother. She is understandably upset to remember her mother's murder, and how she couldn't find the mark in time. I believe Beloved keeps asking questions because  she wants to know everything she possibly can about Sethe, her mother. She wants to know the things and the stories she missed by not growing up with her. 

Chapter 5 Beloved Journal

Chapter 5
9. Describe the woman who walks out of the water. Who do you think she is? Explain. 
10. Explain who is being discussed in the following quote, and why you think it is
significant: “If there had been an open latch between them it would have closed.”

 9) The woman who walks out of the water is probably in her early twenties. She is fully clothed with young skin. She has a lace collar on her dress and a rich woman's hat. She also has  fine scratches across her forehead. Her hair is black, and her neck thin. I believe she is the ghost of Beloved, come back to the family. He appearance fits that of the family, and the age fits that of the age the baby would be. Also, she climbed fully clothed out of the river, having come from nowhere anyone knew of. 

Beyond this- She knows things about the family and calls herself beloved. She must be the ghost.

10) Denver and Paul D are both being discussed in this quote. It refers to when Denver [probably] lied to her mother when Paul D was telling her how Beloved lifted a rocking chair with one hand, while [possibly pretending to be] sick. I think the reason Denver said no is because she doesn't want Beloved to go. She also thinks Paul D is spiting her (Denver) by spiting Beloved. This quote signifies any hope there might have been for a relationship (at least a positive one) between Paul D and Denver.

Chapter 4 Beloved Journals

a. What does it tell us literally about the characters and what they are experiencing?
b. What is significant about the quote? Does it have a deeper meaning than the one it holds in this context? Does it contain any literary devices that make it beautiful or interesting?

7. “Risky, thought Paul D, very risky. For a used-to-be-slave woman to love anything that much was dangerous, especially if it was her children she had settled on to love. The best thing, he knew, was to love just a little bit, so when they broke its back, or shoved it in a croaker sack, well, maybe you’d have enough love left over for the next one.”
   
8. “They were not holding hands, but their shadows were.” 
   
   
   
   
   7a) Paul D is remembering what it was like to love anything as a slave. 
   7b) This quote lends an ear to slave life and how terrible it was both physically and emotionally. Often, a woman would have her children taken and sold without any idea of a goodbye. To love something was to kill it. Love couldn't survive in a slaves world and they often lived without it. And died without it to. Paul D is remembering how it was easier to only love anything just a little bit. So when it died or was taken away you wouldn't be left completely broken. There is minimal rhyming along the "broke its back, or shoved it in a croaker sack" line, which serves to draw the reader further into the line.
   
   8a) This quote tells ids, quite directly, the three shadows of Paul D, Denver, and Sethe had their hands overlapping, making it look like they were holding hands, while each of the three people were separated.
   8b) After watching their shadows, Sethe begins to believe that perhaps they can all have a happy life together.  It symbolizes a hope Sethe begins to have, and maybe Paul D too. It also supports the concept expressed in the earlier quote- Is it safe to love these people? The shadows would say yes, but is it really safe?