Characters
Sula Peace
Sula Peace stands out as the protagonist, distinguished by her stark contrast to the conventional women of Medallion. Embracing pain and pleasure alike, Sula seeks companionship in men after losing her best friend, Nel Wright. Her return to Medallion after college and travels brands her as a pariah, and she's scapegoated for the town's misfortunes. Sula exacerbates her estrangement by engaging in affairs with married men and crossing racial boundaries by consorting with white men. Morrison utilizes Sula's character to delve into the corrosive nature of egoism, yet she remains an icon of fortitude. Her determination to leave and pursue education distinguishes her in a community that views her as a harbinger of doom, as her death is followed by a severe ice storm and a disastrous tunnel collapse. Despite the moral complexity surrounding her character, her friendship with Nel illustrates a profound completeness, suggesting they could have formed a "wonderful single human being," needing each other to be whole.
Nel Wright
Nel Wright, Sula’s best friend, emerges from a stifling household aspiring for self-determination, distancing herself from her mother's authoritative influence. She marries Jude Greene to satisfy her yearning to be needed but holds Sula accountable for seducing him and fracturing their marriage. Nel's resistance to change is evident in her refusal to purchase a car. Even years after her marriage's collapse, she comes to realize her sorrow was for Sula, not Jude. As the novel's moral compass, Nel epitomizes perseverance and constancy, setting a benchmark against which other characters’ actions are assessed. The friendship between Nel and Sula underscores their mutual dependence, with Nel representing those who choose a life of selfless dedication to rearing children and affirming insecure husbands.
Nel is portrayed as the embodiment of goodness, while Sula is perceived as embodying evil due to omens like robin deaths and a warm winter. However, Morrison disrupts these simplistic dichotomies, as Sula challenges Nel's assumptions, prompting her to reconsider her notions of innocence and wrongdoing.
Eva Peace
Eva Peace, the indomitable matriarch of the Peace family and Sula's grandmother, is a force of nature despite her physical impairment. Driven by animosity towards her philandering husband and the need to ensure her family's survival, she is not one to display affection easily. Following her husband's abandonment, Eva entrusts her children to a neighbor, returning after eighteen months with one leg and a determination to build a new home. Her conceit is symbolized by the ornate shoe on her remaining foot. Eva’s controversial decision to kill her son, Plum, to spare him from a life ruined by addiction, sparks debates on maternal obligations and justice. Morrison depicts Eva as a "triumphant figure," commanding reverence and presiding over her household with authority.
Eva's character also explores the theme of playing God, as Morrison suggests in her commentary that Eva's one-legged rule over her household is a testament to her dignity and strength.
Shadrack
Shadrack, the shell-shocked World War I veteran, is a Medallion fixture known for his eccentric behavior. Earning a living through fishing, cursing, and public antics, he establishes National Suicide Day on January 3rd in 1920, a symbolic event he marks with a hangman's noose and a cowbell. This day culminates in tragedy in 1941, leading to a parade and the deadly tunnel collapse. Shadrack’s madness is emblematic of the relentless repercussions of war, paralleling Plum’s internal battle with addiction.
The Deweys
The Deweys, Eva’s adopted sons, are an enigmatic trio, unified in identity despite having no familial ties. They are characterized by their unpredictability and their collective refusal to be individuated. After Eva's institutionalization, they...
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enjoy a life of freedom, and their mysterious disappearance during the tunnel collapse underscores their role as symbols of lost identity and individuality, leaving a lingering enigma in Medallion.
Hannah Peace
Hannah Peace, Sula’s alluring and self-indulgent mother, becomes renowned for her promiscuity following the death of her husband, Rekus. Her quest for daily physical connection incites disdain among Medallion's women. Hannah's lifestyle is detached, treating sex as a mere pleasure, a lesson imparted to Sula. Her relationship with Sula is complex, marked by a love devoid of liking. Hannah’s fiery death, with Eva's desperate attempts to save her, highlights the intricate familial ties within the Peace household.
Hannah's character challenges traditional morality, as her detachment and promiscuity place her at odds with societal expectations, yet her lack of passion and distrust in relationships reflect a deeper vulnerability.
Tar Baby
Tar Baby, an enigmatic, alcohol-dependent man residing with Eva, is perceived as half-white. Arrested for causing a car wreck involving the mayor's niece, he perishes in the tunnel collapse. His character symbolizes a yearning for escape and the desire for a solitary yet not entirely lonely demise. His quiet existence, punctuated by whispering and introspection, signifies a quest for a place to die with dignity.
Jude Greene
Jude Greene, Nel’s husband and Sula’s lover, is consumed by frustration over his thwarted efforts to work on the New River Road project. Driven by a need to assert his masculinity, he marries Nel, yet remains disillusioned by societal racial constraints. Upon Nel discovering his affair with Sula, he abandons her, highlighting his dependence and incompleteness. Jude's character exemplifies the plight of black men in a racist society, where employment and fulfillment remain elusive.
Albert Jacks
Albert Jacks, known as Ajax, represents Sula's true love. Nine years her senior, he is a free spirit enamored with airplanes and women. Unlike Sula's other lovers, Ajax sees and listens to her, but when he perceives her transformation towards conventionality, he leaves abruptly, underscoring the ephemeral nature of love and human connection. His departure reflects a resistance to being trapped in traditional roles.
Helene Wright
Helene Wright, Nel’s formidable mother, relocates from a brothel in New Orleans to Medallion, seeking to sever ties with her past. Embracing the town's conservative black church in lieu of a Catholic one, she enforces strict discipline on Nel. Helene's life is a testament to the struggle for propriety and the challenge of escaping one's history, as she grapples with the legacy of her upbringing and her desire for social respectability.
Her relationship with her mother, Rochelle, highlights this struggle, as Helene's adherence to propriety starkly contrasts with Rochelle's vivaciousness and Creole heritage, creating a familial tension that underscores her determination to forge a new identity.
Plum Peace
Plum Peace, Eva’s once-pampered son, falters into aimlessness after World War I, succumbing to heroin addiction. Unable to reclaim his life, Eva’s drastic measure of immolating him while intoxicated is a desperation-fueled act meant to liberate him from further suffering. His demise sheds light on the brutal truths of maternal love and the devastating impact of addiction on families.
BoyBoy
BoyBoy, Eva Peace's elusive husband, epitomizes absentee fatherhood. He abandons Eva with their children, Hannah, Pearl, and Plum, only to reappear years later, seemingly lured by rumors of Eva’s wealth. Eva’s refusal to offer him anything upon his return illustrates his insignificance, and he vanishes once more. BoyBoy's character underscores the novel’s depiction of men as irresponsible and transient.
Chicken Little
Chicken Little, a young boy who meets a tragic end, is inadvertently drowned by Sula during a playful moment by the river. His body, discovered by a white man, becomes embroiled in jurisdictional disputes before being returned to his family. His death becomes a haunting secret that cements Sula and Nel’s bond in guilt, a poignant reminder of the innocence lost and the weight of shared responsibility.
Eva Peace II
Also known as Pearl, Eva Peace II is Hannah’s sister and Sula’s aunt. Marrying young and relocating to Flint, Michigan, she maintains a distant connection with her family through sporadic letters. Her character remains a peripheral presence within the Peace family saga.
Cecile Sabat
Cecile Sabat plays a pivotal role as Helene Wright's grandmother, who rescues her from a life in a brothel, raising her within a strict Catholic framework. Her influence shapes Helene's stringent outlook on life and parenting, leaving an indelible mark on her granddaughter's upbringing.
Rochelle Sabat
Rochelle Sabat, Helene's mother, is a vibrant Creole prostitute whose reunion with Helene at Cecile's funeral is devoid of warmth. Rochelle’s vivacious nature starkly contrasts with Helene’s rigid propriety, emphasizing the chasm between them. Rochelle’s lively presence and Helene’s reluctance to embrace her past illustrate the complexities of familial estrangement and identity.
