Critical Literary Analysis The novel that I read is called “Sula” written by Toni Morrison. This novel is about the lives of two women named Sula Peace, and Nel Wright. They became friends while living in the black community called “The Bottom” outside of Medallion, Ohio. They go through many obstacles together throughout the novel. We get to see them grow from young...Read more 1609
Published in 1973, Sula is Toni Morrison’s second novel.
Like her first novel, The Bluest Eye, this one also deals with the life experiences of two black girls. Yet it does not merely address the childhood experiences but follows the girls as they grow into adulthood. Sula was created out of Morrison’s desire to “writ[e] a second novel…about people in a black community not just foregrounded but totally dominant.”
Sula is set in the postbellum American South during a time when racial segregation continued to divide white and black populations. Even veterans of World War I like Shadrack and Plum are treated differently because of their skin color. Neither receives benefits after returning from war but are, rather, left to wallow and remember their trauma. Shadrack is even expelled prematurely from a veteran’s hospital to make room for other patients.
Morrison expressed concern when writing the book, which focused mainly on a black community for a largely white readership. To address this she created the Preface, which buffered the reader’s introduction to Shadrack’s internal crisis and shifted focus away from the pains inflicted on blacks by the war and discriminatory structural institutions.
Though sales were not high, Sula was well received by literary critics. It was nominated in 1975 for a National Book Award, and it won the Ohioana Book Award. A feature for the novel also appeared in the women’s magazine Redbook.
Harry Potter Hour 6 Female Identity in Literature 18 October 2010 The Role of Motherhood in Sula by Toni Morrison As seen by many different mothers in the novel Sula by author Toni Morrison, mothers play an important part in kid’s life, shaping how they view different beliefs in the world and setting up values in their child. Every individual’s life is shaped by personal relationships they...Read more 1335
Magic realism was first used in 1925 by a German critic Franz Roh. The term defines an artistic genre mixing both magical and realistic elements. Most writers using magic realism set their stories in a “normal” (realistic) world where magical events occur. Sula, Toni Morrison‘s second novel, is not exclusively devoted to the magic realism style. However it is a good...Read more 1292
Feminism and anti-feminism in Sula: Right or wrong? Feminism has been in society for decades. In some societies, we see how women are kept in their boundaries. In some countries women have to cover their entire bodies in clothing to keep from dishonoring their families. In most traditional societies a woman is to remain virginal to be considered worthy of marriage. In America, women were...Read more 1122
Toni Morrison’s Sula revolves around the relationship of her two main characters, Sula and Nel. The childhood friends grow apart with age. Although it is indicated that their friendship is the most important relationship they participate in, they eventually betray each other and lead dishonest lives. Throughout the novel, we see their constantly deteriorating relationship as a result of...Read more 1093
Shantice Berry Dr. Hall English 1102 04-12-11 Sula Good vs Evil Toni Morrison writes the book Sula with the intention of questioning the idea of good versus evil. “The novel invokes oppositions of good/evil, virgin/whore, self/other, but moves beyond them” says Deborah E McDowell( 82). The characters in Sula give the novel its great interest by using different behaviors and qualities for each...Read more 1039
Sula Toni Morrison ” Analyse Morrison’s depiction of love with reference to her development of character, relationships, structure and stylistic devices”
P a g e | 1 David Smith 15 th May 2014 Unit title: Narrative Fiction Unit code(s): FC3/3/LN/047 Word Count: 1548 “You love her like I love Sula. I just don’t like her. That’s the difference” (p57). The ambiguities and contingencies of love are central to ‘Sula’. Analyse Morrison’s depiction of love with reference to her development of character, relationships, structure and stylistic devices...Read more 963
A symbiotic relationship is a cooperative, mutually beneficial relationship between two people or groups. All living beings, weather you are the president of the United States or a homeless person living in a shelter, depend on symbiotic relationships to live a healthy and productive life. However, sometimes these persons can become greedy and decide to take more of the relationship than what...Read more 776
“Sula” by Toni Morrison is a compelling novel about a self-confident woman called Sula. In this book, Sula shares an important relationship with Nel. In this relationship both girls share everything from perception, judgments, secrets and even crimes. In this book, Toni Morrison mentions a few scenes about violence that probably affected Sula’s life and the characters around...Read more 771
Toni Morrison‘s “Sula” is a novel about the history of the black race in America. The novel deals with a variety of themes but perhaps the major theme portrayesd throughout the novel is ? Good Versus Evil”, that is, the choice between right and wrong. This theme is brought into light on numerous instances by the choices and actions of the characters. The minds of the...Read more 761
In the novel Sula, Morrison portrays a correlation between the two main characters Sula and Nel. In the novel, Nel is seen as normal compared to Sula, who is seen as abnormal. When the novel begins, these two characters were young, but when the novel ends, these two characters were old. Despite the fact that Sula sleeps with Nel’s husband Jude, Nel and Sula were the best of friends. In the...Read more 654
Friendship in Sula In Sula, Toni Morrison questions what true friendship is by putting Nel Wright and Sula Peace’s friendship to the test. Morrison tests the phrase “opposites attract” in this novel. Nel and Sula have two different personalities yet they are able to compliment each other. They are opposites in the way that they relate to other people, and to the world around them. Nel is...Read more 638