Rape and Trauma in Beloved - Elias Acosta

The scholarly article, “Figurations of Rape and the Supernatural in Beloved” takes an in depth analysis of the novel Beloved by Toni Morrison. The articles claims that rape was a large part of the trauma of the novel since many of the characters have been raped in the past. The articles also claims that Beloved is a supernatural creature hungry for Sethe’s attention. It also calls for attention on rape and claims that it is not only an issue between a male perpetrator and a female victim. In my opinion I believe that the article does a great job of looking into the issue and I mostly agree with the points it makes of the book.

When looking at the novel, Beloved, it is clear that rape encompasses the lives of most of the characters in the book. Particularly the slaves and people of color are the victims of this terrible deed. The perpetrators of rape are the white people of the novel, especially Schoolteacher, a sadistic man in charge of the Sweet Home Plantation. The ex-slaves have endured through a lifetime of abuse under cruel slave owners. Rape is an issue that comes out throughout the novel. There are many types of rape in the novel. The article shows examples of rape through the perspectives of Sethe and Paul D. Sethe has endured rape since she was living in Sweet Home. She was sexually assaulted by the boys who “took her milk,” meaning that they not only physically abused her, but left a mental scar that refuses to heal. Sethe fears over the white men because she feels as if they are coming to take her children or rape her. This defense mode is an effect of years of suffering in the novel. The novel also shows how rape and abuse has traumatized Paul D. While he was imprisoned, the guards would force them to commit sexual acts beyond their will. Thue leaving Paul D in a sense of trauma due to the things he endured while in the chain gang. This is further proven by Morrison’s use of term “Red Heart. Red heart. Red heart” (138). This could mean the Beloved somehow has the power to seduce Paul D and open that metaphoric tin box he carries with the memories of, “Alfred, Georgia, Sixo, schoolteacher, Halle, his brothers, Sethe, Mister, the taste of iron, the sight of butter, the smell of hickory, notebook paper, one by one,” that he keeps, “lodged in his chest”, and “by the time he got to 124 nothing in this world could pry it open”(133). The tin box serves to be like a recollection of memories of the past that seem to follow Paul D. The article points out that Beloved serves as a “catalyst for Paul D's recollection of his past” (Barnett). In chemistry a catalyst is a substance that reduces the energy needed for a reaction to happen. Therefore this can mean that Beloved stirs up the past to inflict pain on her victims. It is interesting to see how at first Paul D claims that nothing can pry open his tin box, however through Beloved’s seduction she is able to achieve it. When he says Red heart it reminds me of rawness and it could mean that Paul D has fully opened up and is feeling the emotions of the past in the flesh. Red has the connotation of power, love, and desire, since blood is red this term reminded me of a bleeding heart. This shows that Paul D is vulnerable to the pain of the past.


Through an in depth analysis of Beloved and Sethe’s relationship, it is clear that Beloved is trying to consume Sethe as an act of revenge for killing her as a child. The article portrays Beloved as a succubus, a mythical creature filled with sexual desire, that is out to seduce men and fill in the void left in from the pasts of the characters of 124 (Barnett). Beloved shows up as 124 as a weak woman, after Sethe and Denver nurse her back to health, she becomes close to them almost like a sister. Beloved seems to really like Sethe, she knows things about her and asks her questions like about her earrings and other things of Sethe’s past. It isn’t until Sethe finds Beloved singing a familiar song that Sethe made up and sang it to her children, that she realizes that Beloved is in fact her deceased daughter. After a series of events Beloved soon begins to suck in the life of Sethe, making her weaker, “The bigger Beloved got, the smaller Sethe became. She sat in the chair licking her lips like a chastised child while Beloved ate up her life, took it, swelled up with it, grew taller on it. And the older woman yielded it up without a murmur” (294-295). In this quote we see that Beloved is taking up the energy of Sethe. This symbolic leaching of life can be compared to that of a pest the feeds on the host. I agree with the article’s interpretation of Beloved as a character that is spiteful and wants to seek revenge on Sethe since she killed her as a child. I also see that Beloved is like a reminder of everyone's own faults and the fact that one day they have to own up to it. This is further reassured when Sethe goes after whom she believes is Schoolteacher. Once she did the right thing then Beloved disappeared thus meaning that Sethe has come to terms with her past. It is also interesting to see that all the characters seem to forget beloved as if she was a “bad dream” (323). That meant that this was some form of psychological trauma left from years of oppression as slaves. Through the psychoanalytical lens we can infer that maybe Beloved was an ominous spirit created by the characters in 124 since they all come to terms with their life and grow throughout the book.


While rape can be commonly asserted to a male perpetrator and a female victim, in the book Beloved, that is not the case. Morrison decides to include multiple forms of rape including homosexual rape. The article affirms that the characters were raped on multiple occasions however we get a glimpse of homosexual rape when Paul D is in the chain gang. Morrison chooses to show this aspect to make us realize that women were not the only victims of rape. The whole experience with the chain gang in the south made Paul D traumatized since it was something that he did not want to do, he was forced or death was the punishment. It is interesting to see that Paul D did not chose death over this treatment as Sethe deemed right when she killed her children. It shows us that both characters have different perspectives on life based on what happened in their lives. This can also explain why Paul D is terrified of Sethe's actions on killing her children. He seems to have the drive to persevere in his life. Throughout the book we see that he has this perseverance but after he moves out of Sethe’s house it all goes downhill. Once he is able to come back, is when things are reasonably better for him.