With all the crazy, dysfunctional family drama going on in Beloved, it's no wonder communities play such a big role. These people need another support group. Sure, there's still all the pettiness that marks a typical Thanksgiving dinner with your relatives. But communities—especially for this group of ex-slaves—are as necessary as blood: they are what Morrison's characters fall back on when they're in trouble. Without a community, there's definitely no surviving slavery and its after effects.
Questions About Community
- How is Baby Suggs's "congregation" different from that of an actual church? What does she teach her community of followers?
- How is the community of Sethe and her daughters different from the community of the townswomen?
- What binds the community of Cincinnati together in Beloved?
Chew on This
Try on an opinion or two, start a debate, or play the devil’s advocate.
The community in Beloved needs an outcast to band together against.
There's no real community in Beloved. Everyone is out for themselves.