Literary Analysis
Brittany Morency
23 June 2013
ENG 120: Floyd
B02
Literary Analysis One
Literary Analysis: Sonny’s Blues
In “Sonny’s Blues,” by James Baldwin, the two main characters, Sonny and the narrator, face many conflicts with each other. These conflicts all contribute and lead to the climax of the story, the scene in the narrator’s apartment. The first conflict between these two characters occurs after their mother dies when the narrator discovers Sonny’s dream to become a jazz piano player, which the narrator believes is a waste of his life. Their inability to see eye-to-eye on this matter is what causes so much tension in their relationship throughout the rest of their lives. The narrator feels that it was his job to steer Sonny in the right direction after remembering the promise he made to his mother, a promise he made before she died. To help his brother, the narrator decides Sonny should live with his wife’s family, Sonny reluctantly agrees, which leads to the next conflict. The narrator believes that it is in Sonny’s best interest for him to live with his wife’s family while he is finishing college. Sonny is not thrilled with the idea but reluctantly agrees in order to avoid another argument. While living with his sister-in-law’s family, Sonny spends all of his spare time practicing the piano, which his hosts do not care for. Then, despite Sonny’s efforts to hide it, his sister-in-law’s mother discovers Sonny’s truancy. The two fight and Sonny understands the burden he has put onto the family, causing him to join the navy. When Sonny finally comes back from the war, the two brothers finally see each other weeks after Sonny returned home, leading to the climax of the story. When Sonny returned from the war to New York, the two brothers did not see each other for quite some time. When they finally did see each other they get into a huge fight about Sonny’s decisions in life. The narrator is upset about Sonny’s drug abuse and decision to waste his life
23 June 2013
ENG 120: Floyd
B02
Literary Analysis One
Literary Analysis: Sonny’s Blues
In “Sonny’s Blues,” by James Baldwin, the two main characters, Sonny and the narrator, face many conflicts with each other. These conflicts all contribute and lead to the climax of the story, the scene in the narrator’s apartment. The first conflict between these two characters occurs after their mother dies when the narrator discovers Sonny’s dream to become a jazz piano player, which the narrator believes is a waste of his life. Their inability to see eye-to-eye on this matter is what causes so much tension in their relationship throughout the rest of their lives. The narrator feels that it was his job to steer Sonny in the right direction after remembering the promise he made to his mother, a promise he made before she died. To help his brother, the narrator decides Sonny should live with his wife’s family, Sonny reluctantly agrees, which leads to the next conflict. The narrator believes that it is in Sonny’s best interest for him to live with his wife’s family while he is finishing college. Sonny is not thrilled with the idea but reluctantly agrees in order to avoid another argument. While living with his sister-in-law’s family, Sonny spends all of his spare time practicing the piano, which his hosts do not care for. Then, despite Sonny’s efforts to hide it, his sister-in-law’s mother discovers Sonny’s truancy. The two fight and Sonny understands the burden he has put onto the family, causing him to join the navy. When Sonny finally comes back from the war, the two brothers finally see each other weeks after Sonny returned home, leading to the climax of the story. When Sonny returned from the war to New York, the two brothers did not see each other for quite some time. When they finally did see each other they get into a huge fight about Sonny’s decisions in life. The narrator is upset about Sonny’s drug abuse and decision to waste his life