Song of Solomon: Judgement, Genuine Love and Facing Rejection

One of the last books that I read this past semester was a book called "Song of Solomon" by Tony Morrison (Not to be confused with the sexy Biblical book of the same name). I read this book for my "Myth and Literature" class which at first seemed kinda strange to me because, unlike Homer, Toni Morrison is an American author who is actually still alive. But as I read and thought about it, this book had a lot of connections to Mythology and a lot of insight in general, so here it goes!

1. Don't Judge a Book by its cover (Or the Language therein)

This book has a number of colorful metaphors that many people may consider to be "profane language" (There are some other people that consider these words to be part of their regular lexicon so I can't overgeneralize here). I have to admit, I had a lot of trouble at first because I felt like I was being walloped up the side of the head every time I read one but then I realized something. Morrison was trying to capture a specific way of speaking that a lot of people could find relatable, while this language made things tough for me, it probably helped a lot of people to connect with this book that may not have otherwise. Another thing I realized is that this book had deep levels of insight that I was missing out on by becoming too fixated on the language, so I made an executive decision to not get bogged down in the language and things went a whole lot better for me.

2. Naming

So, I said earlier that this book shouldn't be confused with the Biblical book, but I think Morrison named her book after the one in the Bible on purpose because she wanted to evoke a specific feeling that you get when you hear a certain name. So long as we are aware of the Biblical book, we automatically associate that name with love, a concept that is a major theme in this book. The name of the book also works on a literal level too because there is a literal song and a real Solomon and everything. I think Morrison was aiming for this duality on purpose. She spends a lot of time focusing on the way that we respond to certain names. For example, one of the nicest, most virtuous characters in the book is a woman named "Pilate", because we associate that name with the people-pleasing Roman Procurator who ordered Christ's execution, we connect that name to all sorts of nastiness and may be skeptical of Pilate's virtue. By making Pilate extremely nice, Morrison challenges our tendency to judge someone based only on an impression of them and this may help us to reexamine the methods that we use to judge others.

3. Love

This book really focuses on love and offers some examples of what love shouldn't look like while also giving some suggestions about what love should look like. Milkman, the main character struggles with how to be truly loving to people. He is loved by people but he treats people as commodities to use as he pleases. He is in a romantic relationship with his cousin Hagar and he chooses to dump her the moment that he gets bored with her, leaving her a brokenhearted mess. In contrast to Milkman, we are given the picture of Pilate who sacrifices herself repeatedly for the people that she loves, facing humiliation at one point in order to help get Milkman out of jail when he is arrested for something he didn't do. Fairly early in the book, an unexpected source offers a great insight: love is heavy, it takes a lot of pain and sacrifice to love someone truly. While love may seem too heavy sometimes, it is still totally worth it.

4. Rejection

After Hagar is rejected by Milkman, she has a very difficult time coping with it (This manifests itself in Hagar's attempts to kill Milkman which are all unsuccessful because she loves him too much to do that). Ultimately Hagar cannot handle this rejection and it destroys her. What is particularly difficult for Hagar is the fact that she doesn't have the "why", she doesn't know why Milkman rejected her and as a result, she theorizes that it must be because there is something wrong with her. Hagar tears herself up trying to figure out exactly which aspect of herself Milkman didn't like. Was it her hair? Was it her mannerisms? etc. The inability to know why someone has rejected you is a difficult thing, and I really feel for Hagar, but the solution as I have learned it is to just move on. You cannot uncover every "why" so sometimes you just need to be aware of your own value and move on with your life....unfortunately, Hagar doesn't do this...

5. Knowledge of the Past

To what extent does knowledge of horrible deeds done in the past help personal growth and to what extent does this knowledge serve to reopen scars that could have otherwise healed? Morrison explores this concept by having Milkman's Dad reveal dark, unsettling secrets that change the way that Milkman looks at his Mom. Later, his mom has a chance to explain her side of the story, which gives Milkman some closure, but until then, Milkman struggles with this newfound knowledge and the impact that it has on him. His friend Guitar tells him to forget it unless it affects him directly but Pilate seems to offer a better way of dealing with the past. Pilate carries the past with her, in some senses metaphorically and in some senses literally. Pilate realizes the impact that the past has held on the person she is today and so she takes it with her and remembers it without bitterness.

6. Taking Possession of Your Shortcomings

Instead of being insecure about your weaknesses, take hold of them, display them proudly and realize that your unique aberrations have helped make you into the person that you are. Pilate's name was given to her by her father who couldn't read and who pointed to the first name he saw in the Bible that looked good. This could have served as a reason for people to make fun of Pilate, yet, instead of being ashamed of her name, she sticks the piece of paper that her father wrote her name on into an earring that she proudly wears at all times. By wearing her name confidently, Pilate shows that she is satisfied with her name and with who she is as an individual, any insult of her name would probably lose its power at this point.

7. A Life Lived for Wealth is a Life Wasted

Milkman's Dad, Macon is a man who is extremely focused on collecting and displaying his wealth. While this presents a tempting example for Milkman to follow, he is shown the folly of this lifestyle when he goes on his trip of discovery. This trip starts out as a quest for treasure but Milkman discovers secrets about his ancestry that wind up being far more valuable than any pot of gold. During this trip, Milkman visits a mansion that used to be owned by one of the wealthiest families in the area. The father dies and the family loses everything and because the mother is unable to deal with an impoverished life, she commits suicide. The mansion is still inhabited by the former servant of this family who is doing everything in her power to destroy the last vestiges of success contained in this mansion. If your life's pursuit could potentially result in a ruined mansion, you may be pursuing the wrong things