Morrison's View of Race Problems
In Song of Solomon the depictions of white and black relationships hint at Toni Morrison’s views on race problems. There is a clear divide between white people and the black community. The book is built around black characters and we barely ever see any white characters. However, based on the time period and what is shown to us in the novel we know that they are living in a white dominated and oppressive world. This is shown immediately in the first chapter with the story of the emergence of Not Doctor Street and even the reluctant delivery of the first black child at Mercy Hospital. Even though white characters hardly appear in the novel, each time they do they leave a trail of devastation behind them. This can be seen in Macon Dead I being shot while sitting on a fence by a wealthy white family, and Guitar’s father dying in a sawmill accident due to the white owner’s inattention. After his father’s death the sawmill...