『솔로몬의 노래』(Songs of Solomon): 남부와 흑인성으로의 귀속

Abstract

This paper aims at analyzing Milkman's reintegration into the southern blackness of African American communal rites. As he seeks the past in a journey to the south, his geographical journey expands. His knowledge of the southern past gradually gives Milkman a sense of place in the African American culture, as well as a sense of belonging in the connectedness of the natural world. Another meaningful vehicle for his initiation occurs in the bobcat hunting scene in Shalimar where he experiences a spiritual transformation that puts him into contact with the natural world. The bobcat hunt, which provides Milkman with illumination and psychic clarity, echoes the cultural rituals of southern blackness. Milkman's re-immersion into the southern tradition of his ancestors enables him to gain an understanding of the nature of the language in which the African American vernacular is rooted in. In this milieu Milkman can enter into dialogue with the trees, the spirits, and the earth itself. Milkman is then prepared for the learning of southern blackness through encounters with Shalimar's landscapes, its communal subversive languages, and Shalimar children's ring games. Morrison's use of the traditional southern landscapes ultimately connects African Americans to their congenital places.