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Light and Darkness: Developing Each other in James Baldwin’s “Sonny’s Blues”

The most essential relationships in our life flourish when one person enables the other to develop in their own manner and pursue the dreams that they have in their hearts. As with many of his writings, “Sonny’s Blues,” a short story set in Harlem, was published in 1957. “Sonny’s Blues,” tells the narrator’s story, who remains anonymous, and how his life altered after discovering his brother’s drug use. Throughout the novel, “Sonny’s Blues” focuses on the concept of light and dark, the battle of brotherly love, and the challenges the narrator and Sonny confront as brothers since they were reared the same yet went their ways. Images of light and darkness are used in the topic of “Sonny’s Blues” to convey to us as readers what is good and what is terrible. On Sunday afternoons after church, the narrator recounts his brother Sonny as a youngster and how his face lighted up due to the pleasant and gracious occurrences that occurred.

The light serves as a beacon of hope and inspiration throughout the novel. When the brothers reconcile after the narrative, the light shines even brighter. Light is a metaphor for all of life’s uplifting experiences. The narrator’s views about his brother’s way of life and his grief at the death of his daughter are all examples of the darkness that permeates the story. They were growing up in a hurry, and their heads slammed against the low ceiling of their real capabilities with wrath,” the narrator begins as he stares out at the young boys in the story’s initial paragraphs.

It’s hard to read “Sonny’s Blues” without considering how much pain it contains. There are so many tragedies in this community, from the narrator’s daughter being killed to Sonny’s drug addiction to the cold-blooded murder of the narrator’s uncle. As Sonny fervently asserts, there is no escape from pain. The darkness that creeps into the narrator’s family and community’s lives and must be ensured throughout the work represents this suffering. Heroin is an escape from the pain that would otherwise paralyze him, says Sonny. Both art and redemption necessitate the experience of pain. Sonny thinks the reviving artist must have gone through a lot of pain to sing so beautifully. It’s reasonable to assume that similar gloomy events influence Sonny’s music. When used creatively, suffering and darkness can yield works of art that are simply breathtaking. True compassion for others is essential for salvation, which can only be achieved through suffering. The narrator’s journey to salvation begins only after losing his daughter in a tragic accident.

Sonny’s Blues” has a dark undercurrent of racism. It’s not talked about much, but it’s always there. For example, Baldwin refers to the “rocks in the middle of the boiling sea” that rise out of Harlem’s decrepit housing projects. Racism has a tangible effect on a community when it results in housing policies that discriminate based on race at the local and federal levels. Likewise, much of the narrator’s anxiety on behalf of his students can be attributed to the fact that they, like Sonny, are young African American men living in a system that ruthlessly and endlessly discriminates against them.

Much of the darkness and suffering in the story can be attributed to the effects of racism; the narrator speaks of suffering as something inherited from one generation to the next in the African American community. The continuous and subtle effect of racism suddenly becomes concrete and evident when the narrator’s mother describes how inebriated white men killed her brother-in-law. She cautions the narrator that a similar tragedy may befall Sonny, indicating her anxiety that racism is still a very serious danger to the family.

Even though both the narrator and Sonny were raised in the same home, their paths in life, in my opinion, diverged despite their shared upbringing. Affluent yet non-disruptive, the storyteller was one of the family’s sons. He was the kind of kid who excelled in school and aspired to be a successful person by putting in the time and effort required. Sonny was the antithesis of this when it came to achieving greatness through hard work.

In “Sonny’s Blues,” Baldwin employs light and darkness to illustrate the warmth, optimism, melancholy, and despair that characterize the lives of his protagonists. According to Baldwin’s description, a room full of people after church brings out the warmth in Sonny’s face. All of life’s pleasant and optimistic aspects are represented by light. Additionally, there is a spiritual undertone to it. In addition to representing life’s greatest aspects, light also signifies salvation and grace. A life lived in the light is a life lived following one’s values. The darkness continuously threatens the story’s protagonists, which stands in direct antithesis to the light. Many societal and personal issues are represented by the darkness that may be found in every corner of the world. As night falls, the characters in the novel become vividly aware of the shadows surrounding them. Despite being in jail, Sonny’s drug use and the overall status of Harlem may all be attributed to the gloom. Despite how ubiquitous darkness may be; it is always countered by a glimmer of light. In the end, light comes to represent rescue, comfort, and love, while darkness symbolizes the terror and despair that threatens to extinguish it all.

In the Civil Rights Movement context, “Sonny’s Blues” has a larger political significance. Focusing on embracing one’s heritage and community in the context of racial tensions was extremely timely for the African American community during this period. The narrator must re-establish ties with his family and wider heritage to be redeemed. Trying to fit in with the dominant white culture has done him no good. Only if he understands and accepts his roots can he be granted a respite. Baldwin probably wanted his listeners to take this lesson and apply it to their own lives.

Works Cited

Baldwin, James. Sonny’s Blues and Other Stories. Penguin, 1995.

Redirect Notice. https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.biography.com%2Fwriter%2Fjames-baldwin&psig=AOvVaw1d21ET6Z05Lz9Op9Gf8_xw&ust=1649885982670000&source=images&cd=vfe&ved=0CAoQjRxqFwoTCKiZnrG-j_cCFQAAAAAdAAAAABAD. Accessed 12 Apr. 2022.

Tackach, James and Marquette University Press. “The Biblical Foundation of James Baldwin’s ‘Sonny’s Blues’:” Renascence, vol. 59, no. 2, 2007, pp. 109–18. DOI.org (Crossref), https://doi.org/10.5840/renascence200759214.