Song Of Solomon Character Analysis

In Song of Solomon, written by Toni Morrison, a majority of the main characters struggle with haunting pasts, moral issues, and with their status as black people in the mid-1900s, which makes it difficult for them to realize the “good life” described in Aristotle’s Ethics. Analyzing the life of Guitar Bains, a main character in Song of Solomon, through an Aristotelian lens shows how Morrison’s treatment of race complicates Guitar’s ability to experience a true form of human flourishing, which ultimately leads to his skewed perception on life that can be seen through his motives and seemingly irrational actions as a member of the Seven Days. Guitar’s actions don’t mesh with the actions Aristotle describes as adding to the good life in that they aren’t virtuous; however, they do seem to bring him his own, modified

No, I am neither black nor do I have a family history rooted in the evils of slavery; however, I grew up on St. Croix in the US Virgin Islands where slavery used to be ubiquitous, just as it was in the South. Having been educated about this injustice occurring on my own island at a very young age and having close friends with family ties to slavery, I was immediately drawn to Guitar’s character development throughout the novel and specifically his choice to join the Seven Days. I see that decision as a means of coping with the injustices present in his life and a search for justice in the black community; however, there are several aspects of his actions and thoughts behind those actions that ultimately complicate his ability to achieve the same flourishing that Aristotle defines. His choice makes me wonder how the native people of my island reacted when faced with similar injustices after being “freed” and, more specifically, how they pursued their own versions of the good