Paul D reveals to Sethe that Halle had been present the day she had been sexually abused in the barn; when schoolteacher’s men stole her milk. Sethe panics, and starts to question Paul D why her beloved husband chose to stand by and let the abuse happen. Paul D fully understands Halle’s actions; he realises the shock Halle must have experienced when seeing the love of his life being abused over and over again. The two points of view are presented equally by Morrison, who chooses to exclude any descriptions or narrative during Sethe and Paul D’s steamy discussion. The change in structure suggests an ascending climax, catching the reader’s attention, foreshadowing an issue about to arise.
Paul D’s perspective is established from the very start of the passage, as he asks the rhetorical question, “What did Halle ever do to you?”, on page 80. The way he chooses to establish where he stands in the discussion shows how sure he is on the matter: he is positive that Halle has always been by Sethe’s side, and does not deserve to be labelled as a bad man, husband, or father. Sethe, too, is sure of what to say, and fully trusts her own judgement. This is particularly clear from the way in which she answers, “[…] he did worse; he left his children”, on
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He tries to put a stop to her anger by exclaiming “Hey! Hey! […] A man ain’t a goddamn axe. […] Things get to him. Things he can’t chop down because they’re inside”. He tries to explain to Sethe that, although Halle was her husband and he was meant to protect her, he is not omnipotent; he too has feelings, and he deserves understanding. Morrison gives a true sense of humanity to both Paul D and Halle himself through a series of objectifications: “Chopping, hacking, busting every goddamn minute of the day”. The author chooses to emphasise them being men, human beings, and not objects, by contraposing the