Toni Morrison’s novel, “Beloved” is constantly trifled with the theme of rape and how that affects the main characters in the novel. Sethe is affected because it clouds her judgement of what is morally right and wrong when it comes to pivotal moments in the novel. Paul D himself is a victim of rape and is psychologically affected because after the traumatic event he thinks of himself as less of a man. Every person is affected by extreme trauma in their own forms and for both Sethe and Paul D it's something that they struggle to deal with.
Assistant professor of English Pamela Barnett, goes into detail about these events and goes into an analytical analysis of the psychological aspect of the characters survival of the events. Barrett mentions how,“Sethe kills her child so that no white man will ever "dirty" her, so that no young man with "mossy teeth" will ever hold the child down and suck her breasts”Morrison(80). This can be explained with Sethe psychological trauma of her past from being constantly raped at sweet home. For a person who experiences extreme forms of trauma like rape in this instance it's difficult to think like others in terms of what you believe is a necessary action for critical event because they see other drastic measures that need to be taken. When Sethe attempts to justify her actions to kill her daughter is because she know how dehumanizing the world really is. She knows what's in store for her if school teacher captures her and her babies specifically Beloved. Sethe like any other rational parent wants to protect her child from the horrors of the world but the way she choses to go about this is questioned. Paul D calls her out on her judgment by saying that Sethe’s love,“is too thick” Morrison(164). Paul D believes that Sethe’s love for her children is too strong for her own children's sake. She went so far as to kill her baby so she would not have to face the horrors that she once had to face at an earlier point in time. This relates to the theme of traumas of rape because Sethe herself mentions several times,“they took my milk” Morrisson(19). She wants Beloved to not have to experience someone stealing her milk as well, continuing the constant nightmare that rape victims face. Sethe cannot think as logically as other characters like Paul D because she is traumatized by her passed and that clouds her judgement, to Sethe being raped is a fate worse than death so she thinks she needs to take it upon herself to protect her baby like any mother would, its nurturing in the most deadly way possible.
Barnett mentions in her analysis that Paul D is himself a victim of rape and how that forces himself to see himself as less of a man and to repress his history to try and move past it. She uses the phrase, “not man enough” to bring this point across. Paul D feels like he isn't the person he should be a strong man instead of weak. Beloved forces herself on Paul D and in a way also forces Paul D’s self respect to leave him. He tries to constantly forget the traumatic events that happen to him but Beloved’s forceful sexual assault on him makes him relive it all over again. She triggers the bad memories that he has tried to suppress, and it's interesting to note that he’s remembering these event not after the event but during. Victims of rape usually try to have the event blocked in their mind because it triggers something strong in their mind. Paul D is having all of his horrors relieved again because of Beloved and how she made him less of a person similar to how school teacher made him feel like,“less than a chicken sitting in a tub” Morrison (102-103). She makes him recall the events from his past that he has tried to repress and forget about to move on with his life but cannot because his event were triggered. Psychologically Paul D is somewhat damaged but not to the extent of Sethe. Paul D has done a better job of repressing his past. Beloved opens up old wounds for him that he wished to keep locked away but forces them to the surface, making Paul D feel how he used to feel when he thought of himself as less of a man.
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