Theme Of Archetype In Beloved

Sethe is no doubt a complex character in the novel Beloved because even though she does fit into the archetype “caregiver”, it is only in the most twisted sense. She is a mother and nurturer to Denver, and she is obviously devoted to protecting her children even in the most unconventional ways. For example, albeit the murder of her baby Beloved makes it much harder for some to see how Sethe fits into such an archetype, Sethe only murdered Beloved to protect her from the harshness she would face, to preclude her daughter from undergoing the same derogatory experiences and pains ubiquitous to that type of oppressive society in the novel. The murder was not committed lightly, it took a toll on Sethe’s mental health which is why she jumped at the

A corrupt church official is someone who goes against the teachings and duties of the church, but in this case ‘church’ aspect isn’t taken quite literally. The connotation of ‘church’ is something that is supposed to help one acquire knowledge, a place to learn and promote truth like Mr. Garner did. However, just as the archetype entails, schoolteacher is completely the opposite and displays sanctimonious behavior by abusing his power as an instructor, relegating Sethe and other slaves from Sweet Home to animals by whipping them, taking their physical measurements, and teaching his white students the proper and invective ‘animal characteristics” for the slaves. Schoolteacher goes against the duties of a teacher, and instead of promoting knowledge he promulgates more bigotry and racism to his students, making the racism much harder to obstinate. A symbol that extends schoolteacher’s archetype is the Chokecherry tree. Trees generally carry a positive connotation such as flourishing in life and bearing fruits of knowledge. In this case, the tree permanently etched into Sethe’s back, thanks to schoolteacher’s severe punishments, represents schoolteacher’s corruptness in not only his duties but in the way he looks at slaves. Although Amy Denver attempts to place a more positive spin on Sethe’s scar, by referring the scars to, “... A chokecherry tree. Trunk, branches, and even leaves. Tiny little chokecherry leaves,” (Morrison,1.18) the chokecherry tree solidifies schoolteacher’s ignorance and