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What is the meaning of the last sentence in "Sonny's Blues"?
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The last sentence in "Sonny's Blues" signifies Sonny's overcoming of his struggles and the narrator's newfound understanding of Sonny through his music. The phrase "the cup of trembling" is a Biblical allusion to Isaiah 51:22, indicating that Sonny will no longer suffer as he did before, symbolizing peace and redemption for both brothers.
By the end of “Sonny’s Blues,” Sonny, a troubled person who is usually very quiet and private, opens up to the narrator, his older brother, about his drug addiction, his passion for music, and his thoughts on the meaning of suffering. After this exchange, the narrator attends a club where Sonny is slated to play the piano. Sonny’s performance starts off tentatively, but by the end his music is transcendent. The narrator says, “For, while the tale of how we suffer, and how we are delighted, and how we may triumph is never new, it always must be heard. There isn't any other tale to tell, it's the only light we've got in all this darkness.” The story ends with all the musicians gathered around Sonny at the piano, and every once in a while, one of the players says, “Amen.” This comparison of the jazz club to a church...
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service sets up the final sentence in the book, which is a reference to a passage in the Bible, Isaiah 51:22: "I have taken out of thine hand the cup of trembling . . . thou shalt no more drink it again." This serves as a nod to all the suffering that Sonny, his brother, and so many people must endure.
The last sentence of this excellent short story is actually an allusion to The Bible and is used to denote the way in which Sonny has made peace and gained understanding both with himself and with his brother. After a story that talks about the various misunderstandings and animosity that has existed between Sonny and his brother, it is only at the end, when Sonny takes his brother to hear him play jazz so that he can understand how important it is to him, that the narrator makes peace with him, as symbolised when the narrator buys drinks for his brother and the other musicians on stage. Note how the story ends:
For me, then, as they began to play again, it glowed and shook above my brother's head like the very cup of trembling.
This is a reference to Isaiah 51:22 where is says, "I have taken out of thine hand the cup of trembling... thou shalt no more drink it again." Thus this allusion signifies how Sonny has overcome his various problems and sufferings and found release through his music, and likewise how his brother has made his own peace with Sonny and how attached he is to jazz music.