Blog 5: Jazz

Throughout Toni Morrison’s novel, Jazz, the theme of jazz music and its effect on the individual as well as African Americans as a whole is continually looked at and explored. The way in which jazz is represented in the novel is usually in a negative light. Characters such as Alice and Joe believe the jazz music makes them act a certain way. For Alice, jazz makes her angry and she believes it is music from hell, she states, “It made you do unwise disorderly things. Just hearing it was like violating the law” (Morrison 58 ). For Joe, it awakens a passion in him that he did not realize was there. For Dorcas, the music is said to have “encouraged” her misbehavior. The novel seems to imply that jazz is the cause of change. It awakens people to feel emotions that they have suppressed or did not even know they had. Passion, anger, mischievousness and maybe even restlessness is drawn out of the person who happens to hear it.

            The music also has a power over the listeners. While Alice believes the music is from hell, when she hears it she cannot help but listen. She wants to walk away, but something about the music has her full attention and she cannot leave, it makes her feel “secure and tight” (Morrison 58). Joe also is drawn into the music, and it is that music that seems to fuel his passion and actions when he shoots Dorcus. The music seems to shift in how it affects Joe; it is referred to as “Blues man. Black and bluesman. Black therefore blue man. Everybody knows your name. Where-did-she-go-and-why-man. So-lonesome-I-could die man. Everybody knows your name” (Morrison 93). The way it makes an individual feel, changes overtime and begins to define the person differently.

            My mother double majored in music at Indiana University, and she told me once about an experiment she read about in which scientist used different types of music such as rock, classical, and hard core, and played it to mice who were in a container in which were monitored. My mother told me she was shocked at the results the music had on the mice and she believes that just as the music influenced the mice to act a certain way, music effects people. The mice began to act unruly and angry when rock was being played but calm and content when classical music was played. Throughout Jazz, we can see that effect that music has on the individual. On Alice, Joe, Dorcus, the music plays a significant role in their lives. 

Morrison, Toni. "Jazz". the Penguin Group. 1992. Print. 

Blog 4: African American Read-In

            I attended the African American Read-In from 11:00am until 12:30. While I was there I heard selections from June Jordan, Maya Angelou, Toni Morrison, Audrey Lorde, and Lucille Clifton. Two new authors I learned about were Audrey Lorde and Lucille Clifton. Both of these author’s works were bold, moving, and truly inspirational. I thoroughly enjoyed hearing the work of these authors because it is completely different from what is normally studied in classes. Hearing it read aloud allows for certain words to be emphasized and ideas to be stressed in ways that would not be possible otherwise.

            Poetry is meant to be read aloud and when an audience is truly listening and participating with their attention focused only on the words, it allows for real meditation on the words that are being read. Even if you have read or heard the poem before a new reader will evoke new meanings and emotions in the poem that you did not notice before. It is an experience I truly appreciate. It allows the listener to connect with the poem in a new and different way. Even though I might not be able to relate to what the poem is trying to convey, I still get a rise of emotions and an understanding that might not have been possible otherwise.

            Without the poem in front of you, it encourages you to pay close attention to what is being said. The thought of missing a few words drives you to listen and watch the reader with full attention. As I mentioned earlier, I believe that hearing the poem without the words in front of you allows you to get a completely different meaning and emotion from the poem being read aloud. It was a really great experience and I look forward to it again next year. 

Blog 3: Passing (part two)

          Brody’s critical analysis of Passing, focuses on the race and class issues presented in the novel. These two ideas play a major role in the story and Brody makes a solid argument that class and race play a major role in Irene’s decision to murder Clare (Brody does point out that it is not clear in the text whether Irene does murder Clare or not, however, she believes with her analysis it is a believable outcome). Some of the ideas that stuck out to me about Brody’s argument were her ideas about how strongly class can take a hold on a person, in this case, Irene. Brody states that Irene “sides with Clare’s white husband, John Bellew” (Brody 405). Irene is consistently concerned with Clare being found out, so much so, that she councils Clare not to go out with them anymore in case she is found out. Brody believes that this concern is not for Clare, but rather for all that Clare would lose. Brody believes that Clare has everything that Irene wants, and also “because she sees Clare as [John] does – as ‘Nig’”(Brody 405). 

            This view of Clare then leads Brody to believe that her murder was premeditated by Irene. While there were obvious references to Irene’s dislike of Clare, I did not predict murder in Clare’s future. Brody builds the argument that Irene had been planning Clare’s murder since she began to “objectify her” (Brody 405). Brody believes that Irene begins to no longer see Clare as a person, but as an “Other” and Irene must get rid of her (405). Brody believes one clue to Clare’s murder lies in the breaking of the teacup. Irene’s speech to Hugh after breaking the cup is filled with resentment to the heritage “which she can no longer bare” and “foreshadows Clare’s own broken body at the end of the text” (406). The teacup embodied a smaller idea of what was going on in Irene’s head. 

            Brody’s argument helped me to see this text in a new light. I did not catch all the clues to class and race that Brody points out. Her analysis of why Irene murdered Clare makes for a logical argument. I believed it had more to do with Clare and Brian’s involvement but perhaps it was both. There is a very important aspect of race and class in this novel and Brody’s argument helps to understand why the characters act they way they do at certain times. This analysis helped me to appreciate Nella Larsen in a new way.

Brody, Jennifer Devere. “Clare Kendry’s ‘True’ Colors: Race and Class Conflict in Nella Larson’s Passing”.  Carla Kaplan. Passing: Authoritative Text, Backgrounds and Contexts, Criticism. New York: W.W. Norton &, 2007. Print.

Blog 3: Passing (part one)

        The critical article I read is entitled “Clare Kendry’s ‘True’ Colors: Race and Class Conflict in Nella Larson’s Passing” by Jennifer Devere Brody. Brody’s thesis is that “Irene Redfield and Clare Kendry as representatives of different ideologies locked in struggle for dominance” (Brody 394). These two ideologies are the American middle class society, represented by Irene, and Black culture seen in Clare. Brody believes that throughout the novel, Irene continually fights to uphold her middle class status and wants to move up the social ladder. Her insistence for her husband, Brian, to remain in New York to practice medicine is based on her own view of herself as an American, not a black woman, but strictly as an American and that she belongs in America. Clare’s opposite ideology is a threat to Irene. Clare does not worry about her husband finding out that she is partly Black because it is Black Harlem that she wants to belong to. She is tired of living a double life and has realized that it is Black Harlem that she identifies with most. It is Irene who is constantly worries about Clare’s true identity being discovered and Brody argues that it is because Irene is the character who struggles with her race identity. Irene wants to move up in society and leave the Harlem scene behind and Clare is making that difficult for her.
            Brody believes that Clare’s reason for wanting to be associated with the Black, middle class Redfields is because the Redfields represent what Clare wanted as a young girl. Brody notes that Clare’s father was a janitor when she was young, implying that Clare was poor. Clare wanted to get away from that lifestyle so she left, started passing as White due to her light colored skin, and was able to marry a white man. Now, however, Clare has a chance to associate with the people who she can really relate to, Black middle class. But since Clare has charmed Irene’s husband, Brian, Irene now sees Clare as a possible hindrance to achieving higher status in society. It is then, Brody argues, that Irene plots to murder Clair. 
          Brody believes that the most important aspect of this story is race and class and it is the fear of losing her class status that causes Irene to murder Clare. Her research method is based on a close reading of Irene's attitude throughout the entire story. She begins with seeing how Irene reacts to being allowed into the Drayton, she refers to it as a "rising tower" which can be translated into how Irene feels about being with the upper class. Brody focuses on Irene throughout the story in order to make the claims she does.




Brody, Jennifer Devere. “Clare Kendry’s ‘True’ Colors: Race and Class Conflict in Nella Larson’s Passing”.  Carla Kaplan. Passing: Authoritative Text, Backgrounds and Contexts, Criticism. New York: W.W. Norton &, 2007. Print.