Toni Morrison Questions and Answers
Toni Morrison
How does Toni Morrison categorize the perils of free speech and the human response to chaos in her essay “Peril”?
In her essay “Peril,” Toni Morrison writes about how writers have the power to disrupt society. With their words, they can confront social oppression and work to create positive social change....
Toni Morrison
What is Toni Morrison’s overall purpose in her speech “Cinderella’s Stepsisters”? How does she use specific language...
In her 1979 commencement address, “Cinderella’s Stepsisters,” given at Barnard College, Toni Morrison urges women to support each other and use their power to help other women advance in society,...
Toni Morrison
What is the theme of Toni Morrison's novel God Help the Child?
I would argue that the themes of Toni Morrison's poignant novel are race issues and child abuse. Despite having blue-black skin that is described as beautiful, our protagonist, Bride, was rejected...
Toni Morrison
What is an analysis of the character Sweetness in the novel God Help the Child by Toni Morrison?
The character of Sweetness in God Help the Child by Toni Morrison is a light-skinned African American woman who has a deeply conflicted attitude toward race and skin color, which contributes to her...
Toni Morrison
How would one analyze "race" in Toni Morrison's short story "Recitatif"?
Race is a slippery concept in Toni Morrison's short story “Recitatif,” and it is meant to be. We cannot quite nail down the race of the characters, and the characters cannot quite nail down their...
Toni Morrison
In "Strangers," how does Toni Morrison address the concept of "otherness" and "outsiders," and how might this idea of...
"Strangers," an essay by Toni Morrison, addresses the concepts of "otherness" and "outsiders" with a personal anecdote. The anecdote begins with Morrison seeing a woman fishing in her neighbor's...
Toni Morrison
What is a summary of the novel God Help the Child by Toni Morrison?
God Help the Child by Toni Morrison is a 2015 novel about the role of colorism in the abuse that parents inflict on their children. As the novel’s protagonist, Lula Ann, who is known as Bride, is...
Toni Morrison
What does the Toni Morrison quote “If writing is thinking and discovery and selection and order and meaning, it is...
The quote "If writing is thinking and discovery and selection and order and meaning, it is also awe and reverence and mystery and magic" appears in an essay called "The Site of Memory" by Toni...
Toni Morrison
Why is Maggie so significant in Toni Morrison's "Recitatif"? What does she symbolize?
In Toni Morrison’s story “Recitatif,” Maggie is the “kitchen woman” at the orphanage where Twyla and Roberta live as children, and she becomes a symbol for their mothers and themselves. Let’s look...
Toni Morrison
How does Toni Morrison’s “Black Matter" argue for representation?
Morrison argues that American literature should be understood in terms of its relationship to what she calls "Africanism," a word that points to "the entire range of views, assumptions, readings...
Toni Morrison
In his book A Kind of Rapture, Robert Bergman included people he encountered on the street of America. Why does...
This question from The Norton Reader’s twelfth edition of its nonfiction anthology refers to Morrison’s “Strangers,” which serves as the introduction to Robert Bergman’s photography volume called A...
Toni Morrison
How do patriarchal forces act in Toni Morrison's novel God Help the Child?
In God Help the Child by Toni Morrison, patriarchal forces shape how the characters develop. From the very beginning of the novel, Bride, the main character, is rejected by her parents. No sooner...
Toni Morrison
How do race and gender form the novel "Love"? a short summary, analysis of the novel
One aspect of gender that is an integral element to this novel is the relationship between Christine and Heed. They begin as friends, children who play together and share a special bond, but when...
Toni Morrison
How race and gender form the identity of a person in Toni Morrison's novels?
One of the first things to remember when considering Morisson as a writer is the fact that she began her career during the Black Arts Movement in the late 1950s-60's. This movement's goal was to...
Toni Morrison
How did the settings and character in the story "Recitatif" capture the attention of the readers?
In “Recitatif,” Toni Morrison uses various elements of setting and characterization to draw readers into the story and hold their attention. Let’s explore some of these. We’ll start with...
Toni Morrison
Discuss the impact Toni Morrison has had on contemporary literature today. She is often criticized for being vulgar...
Some critics have written that Morrison's characters are too depressing and that they tend to play the role of victims, making them overdetermined. In other words, they think Morrison's characters...
Toni Morrison
What kind of standard was set for black girls in the 1940s? what was life like how were households run fathers...
Black girls at that time, depending on where they lived in the country, most likely lived in a religious home whether wealth was involved or not. A majority of black families practiced the...
Toni Morrison
What is the intra-hatred theme in Song of Solomon?
First of all, I edited your multiple questions into one because eNotes allows only one question at a time. The intra-hatred theme in literature refers to a type of strong dislike between members...
Toni Morrison
How does Morrison’s novel Beloved fall under the umbrella of postcolonialism? Does it compare in any way to Uncle...
The term "postcolonialism" is often widely debated in literature. However, most scholars agree that a piece of literature can be viewed as postcolonialist if it depicts a country or people after...
Toni Morrison
Select an author from the Literary 100 List or from the book. Compose a 5 source Annotated Bibliography in MLA...
I might choose Ernest Hemingway. Many authors have discussed his life and works. In fact, Michael Reynolds, included below, has written about Hemingway in five different volumes. I placed him in...