Morrison, Toni: 1931 - 2019
Tar Baby, 1981 - Before Reading (AI Created)
- Before reading the book it helps to know that it’s not a straightforward love story or a simple social commentary novel. Toni Morrison builds the book around tensions involving race, class, gender, culture, ancestry, and identity — often through symbolism and myth rather than direct explanation.
- 1. The title is intentionally uncomfortable
The phrase “tar baby” comes from a folktale in African American and Southern storytelling traditions. In the story, a sticky tar figure traps anyone who strikes it.
Morrison uses the idea symbolically:
- characters become “stuck”
- conflicts deepen when people react impulsively
- identity itself can become a trap
The title is controversial because “tar baby” later became used as a racial slur. Morrison knew this history and deliberately chose the title to force readers to confront race and folklore together.
Example in the novel
The relationship between Jadine and Son works like a “tar baby” dynamic:
- they are attracted to each other
- they also trap each other emotionally and ideologically
- the harder they try to “fix” one another, the more conflict grows - 2. The novel asks: “What does it mean to be Black in modern America?”
This is probably the book’s central question.
The two main characters represent very different answers:
Jadine
- educated in Europe
- fashion model
- cosmopolitan
- wealthy-adjacent
- values independence and modernity
Son
- rooted in Black Southern traditions
- distrustful of elite culture
- values community, ancestry, and history
Neither is presented as fully right or wrong.
Example
Jadine may seem empowered because she has professional success and freedom.
But Morrison repeatedly hints that Jadine is disconnected from her cultural roots.
Son criticizes modern capitalist society, but he can also become controlling and romanticize tradition.
The novel constantly asks:
- Can someone succeed in dominant white culture without losing part of themselves? - 3. The setting matters a lot
Much of the novel takes place on a Caribbean island owned by a wealthy white businessman.
The island creates a “contained world” where:
- colonial history
- wealth inequality
- race
- power
- servitude
all become highly visible.
Example
Valerian Street, the retired white candy magnate, lives in luxury while Black servants maintain the household.
Even when everyone appears polite, the power imbalance is always present.
The mansion functions almost like a miniature version of colonial society. - 4. Morrison uses symbolism more than realism
If you expect a linear, realistic novel, parts of Tar Baby can feel strange.
Morrison frequently uses:
- dreamlike scenes
-folklore
-mythic imagery
-symbolic women
-nature imagery
-spiritual undertones
Some scenes are meant to feel emotionally or culturally true rather than literally realistic.
Example
The mysterious Black woman in yellow that Jadine sees in Paris is symbolic:
-she represents ancestral memory
-traditional Black womanhood
-cultural inheritance
-judgment
The scene is less about plot and more about identity and guilt. - 5. Nature vs. civilization is a recurring conflict
Morrison often contrasts:
- cities vs. rural spaces
- European refinement vs. folk tradition
- artificial beauty vs. natural existence
Example
Jadine is associated with:
- fashion
- artifice
- sophistication
- European culture
Son is associated with:
- earth
- nature
- instinct
- rural Black life
Their romance becomes a battle between competing worldviews. - 6. Gender expectations are constantly challenged
The novel is also about Black womanhood and Black masculinity.
Morrison questions:
- what men expect from women
- what women sacrifice for independence
- whether love requires submission
- how race changes gender roles
Example
Son wants emotional rootedness and traditional connection.
Jadine wants autonomy and self-definition.
Their conflict is not just personal:
- it reflects larger debates about feminism, tradition, and Black identity in the late 20th century. - 7. Morrison does not give easy moral answers
Readers sometimes become frustrated because:
- no character is fully admirable
- arguments remain unresolved
- Morrison refuses simple conclusions
That ambiguity is intentional.
Example
You may sympathize with Jadine in one chapter and then feel Morrison criticizing her in the next.
The same happens with Son.
The novel works best if you resist trying to decide:
- “Who is the hero?”
- “Who is correct?”
Instead ask:
- What values does each character protect, and what do they lose? - 8. The novel connects to African American folklore and oral tradition
Morrison frequently draws on:
- folk tales
- oral storytelling
- African diasporic memory
- mythic archetypes
Knowing this helps explain why the book sometimes feels closer to legend than modern realism.
Example
The “blind horsemen” mentioned in the novel are often interpreted symbolically:
- ancestral figures
- lost Black men
- mythic presences
- spiritual memory
Morrison leaves their meaning partly open. - 9. It helps to read slowly
This is not a “plot-first” novel.
Pay attention to:
- recurring images
- repeated phrases
- clothing
- food
- dreams
- names
- landscape descriptions
These often carry thematic meaning.
Example
Jadine’s fashion/model imagery is not just decorative:
- clothing represents constructed identity
- appearance becomes performance
- beauty becomes connected to cultural assimilation - 10. A useful lens while reading
A good question to keep asking is:
- “What is each character rooted in — and what are they disconnected from?”
That single question unlocks much of the novel.
- Jadine → disconnected from ancestry/community
- Son → disconnected from modern mobility and compromise
- Valerian → disconnected from moral responsibility
- Margaret → disconnected from emotional reality
- 1. The title is intentionally uncomfortable