The Struggles Of African American Males In Sonny's Blues, By James Baldwin

In the short “Sonny’s Blues” James Baldwin depicts the struggles of African American Males in Harlem, New York during the 1950’s. Although he gives subtle hints about trends within the country, he only focuses on these two brothers and their journey. To spite the harsh reality of his surroundings Sonny turns to drugs and music as a means of escape and expression. Music specifically the blues is the most significant idea in this story. (Albert, 1984) As Sonny acknowledges, his “only source of meaning in life is through music”. (Baldwin, 1957) The blues can be dated back to slavery in southern states of the U.S. It was considered folk music which documented the hard life of slaves working in the fields. Blues is a precursor to Jazz and Rock

They were the most popular illegal drugs found on the streets of Harlem (Baldwin 1957). Heroin became predominant in the urban areas after World War II where it was widely distributed. It began to make its way into the Jazz music scene where Sonny was able to obtain it. It became a source of refuge for him after his music became insufficient. It is somewhat understandable for Sonny when he became an addict. Being that it was within the music scene, Sonny found it not as an addiction but as a means to forget his past and that which was going on in his life. Because of his drug addiction his personality was altered causing him to withdrawal from his family which caused an even greater rift between him and his brother. (Baldwin 1957) His drug habit lead him down the wrong path where he was caught with drugs and thrown in jail. Imprisonment was seen as a repression during this time period. (Ralph Jr. 2004) It was not a place for anyone let alone an African American male. Although slavery was over racism was present and wide spread around the country. Blacks were seen as second class citizen. To add to that notion, Sonny was a black man who was caught selling drugs and he was addicted to heroin. Sonny was trapped both physically and emotionally. Throughout the story, Sonny and his brother were constantly struggling to break free from the many barriers they faced. Sonny is physically imprisoned in jail as well as by his

They were built to accommodate the lower class providing affordable housing but begun to deteriorate and became drug infested. Children were exposed to drugs from dealers selling and dealing in and around playgrounds on a daily basis. This facilitated sonny’s heroin use with no reservation of who was aware of his habits. Baldwin depicts this as a clear symbol of Harlem’s decline and fall. He describes the projects as “rocks in the middle of a boiling sea.” Which symbolizes hell on earth in a literary point of view (Baldwin, 1957). The occupants meaning African Americans knew what their community represented and the darkness that lurks outside their doors and windows. It was this image and stereotype that the narrator and Sonny was trying so hard to escape from but found themselves in the same if not a greater problem outside the