So, basically in this chapter, Beloved is sucking the life out of Sethe, and the reverse their roles as mother and child. Denver no longer thinks Sethe is the main threat, but Beloved.
I’m really glad that Denver starts to become more independent now. She sees the true threat now and leaves
124. She seeks help from the Bodwins, white abolitionists who helped Sethe escape. It’s pretty disturbing how they have a slave figurine that says “At yo’ service” (300), despite being abolitionists and believing “all life is holy”. I suppose you can’t group them with the Garners- their hypocrisy level isn’t THAT high, but it still shows a lack of true and mutual understanding and respect on their part. Anyway, by the end when Denver gathers up people to exorcise Beloved out, Sethe almost attacks Mr. Bodwin, confusing him as the schoolteacher. This demonstrates that
Sethe really is stuck in the past, and it’s almost like she was acting out in the way she wish she had before, killing the “schoolteacher” instead of her daughter. In the end, she was stopped and Beloved vanished. So I think that leaves room for Sethe to grow and finally leave whatever part of her past behind that troubled her, yet she still has a