Sonnys Blues (An Insight) Essay -- essays research papers

Baldwin’s â€Å"Sonny’s Blues†, set in Harlem in 1957, was largely about the struggles of an ethnic minority and the stagnation they feel, but moreso how two brothers come to understand each other due to their struggles and from years of living their own, very different lives.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Baldwin’s constant, detailed, reflections helped me immensely in understanding this story. I feel that they served as a constant reminder of the social context in which this story takes place. It helped to have those incessant reminders because I kept thinking it takes place in recent years, versus the 1950s, before the Civil Rights Movement was in full swing. The biggest idea that I had to keep in mind was that the racism (ultimately leading to stagnation/oppression) presented in the context was â€Å"accepted† at this point in time. By â€Å"accepted† I mean that there were not yet any written laws in place to protect blacks against these acts, not that the actions were morally correct or acceptable.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Sonny’s side of the story represented one perspective of the African American experience in this time period. He accepts his status & tries to live within the black culture and deal with it distress that goes along with it, just to keep his dignity. At first, he channels his afflictions through music. There eventually becomes a time in his life when can no longer deal with the pain or suffering and Sonny takes the well-beaten path of turning to heroin, t...