The Struggle In Sonny's Blues By James Baldwin

Words: 322

Pages: 2

Open Document

Greetings Classmates,

While reading the story, jazz was playing in my head or what little I know of jazz. The music in the story starts off as a small pulse. The little details are what build up the scene. In the park a child is whistling and then a lady is dancing in a diner. Eventually we are delivered to whom the narrator was perturbed about in the paper. It was Sonny his younger brother that is divulged later in the reading. The music intertwines with what the narrators issue is with Sonny. Heroine finds despair for the narrator and at the end led Sonny to his love of music. The music's purpose is to show that it was struggle that made the music great. They discuss a woman's voice that they were amazed at and Sonny comments, "It's repulsive to think you have to …show more content…
The main motif is about the African American struggle in Harlem. One brother is following the straight and narrow path of life. The other went astray. The music that he skipped school for was the pain that he was feeling during his addiction. The premise is that the college algebra teacher doesn't know Sonny's addiction. Only at the end does the narrator get brought to another world where Sonny is on top and the narrator is in the background. The story gives insight into the characters. The narrator is struggling with getting his brother on his path of life, it's what he wants for Sonny. Not what Sonny wants. The story in the middle about his father's brother death by white men seems like a representation of what the white man's standards are. Sonny's struggle is that he loved the way heroin felt. He hated the addiction. In the end his happiness came through music but at a price of suffering. To me the story is about going

How The Struggle In Sonny's Blues By James Baldwin

Seeing as how the narrator and Sonny were both afforded the same opportunities, the narrator does not understand how or why Sonny chooses to pursue what he does. The disapproval of Sonny's decision to become a musician stems primarily from his view of musicians in general. His experiences with musicians have led him to believe that they are unmotivated, drug users, seeking only good times and a high from life. The eldest sibling does…

Words 620 - Pages 3

Similarities Between Sonny's Blues And A Raisin In The Sun

There are similarities and differences between all people, but it is the differences that make every individual unique. However, people can be more similar than different which is the case between the characters Sonny from "Sonny's Blues" by James Baldwin and Beneatha from A Raisin in the Sun by Lorraine Hansberry. These characters, despite their differences, have many things in common. Sonny and Beneatha are both chasing dreams that their older brothers do not understand, and are both African Americans…

Words 860 - Pages 4

the great discovery Essay examples

Michael Proctor Condelli Honors English Pd 8 16 March 2014 In “Sonny’s Blues” by James Baldwin the theme individualism is built using plot, characterization, and a jazz motif. Richard N. Albert shares his opinion of Sonny throughout “The Jazz-Blues Motif in James Baldwin’s ‘Sonny’s Blues’” where he starts as a lost drug addict who finds himself through music and family. The road Sonny goes down with heroin is symbolism depicting his unguided life but as the narrator, his brother becomes more…

Words 991 - Pages 4

Everyday Use, By James Baldwin

individuality and culture intertwine in the stories of “Everyday Use” by Alice Walker and “Sonny’s Blues” by James Baldwin. From the rural South to the bustling streets of Harlem, each of the stories portrays how the search for personal identity and cultural identity affects different characters. Both explore the tenuous relationship between family members against the backdrop of African American struggles and the journey of self discovery, yet one embraces both the cultural and personal identity…

Words 968 - Pages 4

Paper 4 Point Of View

View “Sonny’s Blues”, by James Baldwin describes what it is like, for a black male in Harlem, in the 1930’s, and the way music helps someone express themselves. It is told in first-person by Sonny’s younger brother who tells the story through many people. He is very descriptive and really captures what others around him are saying and doing. Sonny’s Blues shows the complex relationship between brothers (Shmoop Editorial). Starting off, you don’t know that the narrator is Sonny’s brother right…

Words 426 - Pages 2

Essay about Sonny's Blues

Sonny’s music releases deeply embedded emotions in both the narrator and Sonny. Sonny’s Blues by James Baldwin is about two young brothers that are raised in a ghetto in Harlem, New York. The story is narrator by Sonny’s older brother and in the book both brothers tell of their hardships in Harlem. In the quote it says, “But the man who creates the music is hearing something else, is dealing with the roar rising from the void and imposing order on it as it hits the air” (Baldwin, 146). This quote…

Words 409 - Pages 2

Bond of Brotherhood and Sonny Blues by James Baldwin Essay

be better people. In most families, parents teach their children the importance of brotherhood. For instance, in “Sonny Blues” by James Baldwin, the narrator recalls when his brother first learned to walk: “When he [Sonny] started to walk, he walked from our mother straight to me. I caught him just before he fell when he took the first steps he ever took in this world” (Baldwin 117). According with this statement, the older brother –the narrator- is the one that helps, teaches, protects, and disciplines…

Words 555 - Pages 3

Analysis Of Sonny's Blues By James Baldwin

“Sonny's Blues" is a story written by James Baldwin that addresses some of life’s most prevalent obstacles. The narrator tells the story of his brother, a man named Sonny who returns to Harlem following his release from prison. Baldwin portrays Sonny’s hardships growing up surrounded by racism, societal pressures and drug abuse. As an adolescent Sonny lost his parents and turned to music as an emotional outlet. His journey displays how in the process of growth, struggle is inevitable because the…

Words 248 - Pages 1

Comparing The Lottery And Sonny's Blues By James Baldwin

"The Lottery" by Shirley Jackson and "Sonny's Blues" by James Baldwin are two famous short stories that talk about tradition, community, and family. Even though they have different settings, characters, and plots, they both have similar ideas that help us understand people and society better. This essay will look at how these stories are alike and different. One thing both stories have in common is that they focus on family relationships. In "The Lottery," people in a village follow a brutal tradition…

Words 312 - Pages 2

The Complexity of Family Essay

times they are alienating and destructive. In the short story “Sonny’s Blues” by James Baldwin we are clearly shown just how complex the family dynamic can be. This story shows the relationships between family members that are close and distant, caring and closed off, understood and misconstrued, yet through it all you are given the message that family is always there, even when they appear not to be. In the opening of “Sonny’s Blues” we show the distant aspect of a family relationship. Here the…

Words 1463 - Pages 6