Thursday, February 12, 1998
Morrison novel is paradise for readers
BOOK: Nobel laureate’s latest shows even more of her amazing
talents
By Traci Mack and Stan Johnson Jr.
Daily Bruin Senior Staff
"They shoot the white girl first."
That opening sentence, which grabs the reader’s attention on so
many different levels, sets the tone for Toni Morrison’s newest
novel, "Paradise."
Morrison, a recent recipient of the Nobel Prize in literature,
adds to her already impressive stable of literary masterpieces with
this story of a small African American town in Oklahoma.
In "Paradise," Morrison introduces themes of sexuality, race,
ageism and classism in a spellbinding manner.
While some authors tend to preach when addressing such subjects,
Morrison slips them into the text so seamlessly that the reader
will be hard-pressed to notice their didactic nature.
Morrison’s signature style is evident on every page of the
novel. It is almost impossible to distinguish the time period in
which the story is set until well into the novel. The author’s rich
plot devices afford so many twists and subtleties that if not
closely read, one may miss an important point, as Morrison is the
mistress of understatement.
However, Morrison’s trademark is the unforgettable characters
she envisions.
The inhabitants of Ruby, Okla., are more than caricatures of
African American life; Morrison crafts substantial characters whose
actions and judgments are entirely believable. The wars that these
people fight – both outwardly and inwardly – are true portraits of
courage, love, spirituality, selfishness and complexity.
The story deals with how the arrival of newcomers relates to a
small town; however, Morrison leaves it ambiguous whether it is the
newcomers affecting the town or the town affecting the newcomers.
It is in this context that Morrison plays with the ideas of
prejudice and the unknown in a clever yet delicate manner.
The novel has been touted as a return of sorts for Morrison, who
took a much-needed break from novel writing since winning the Nobel
Prize.
When she is not writing, Morrison is a Robert F. Goheen
professor of humanities at Princeton University.
The novel has received mixed reviews from literary critics with
some commenting that her prose is too convoluted for the "average
reader." In her critique of Morrison’s text, U.S. News and World
Report magazine’s Anna Mulrine writes, "Initial reviews of
‘Paradise’ have been less than stellar.
While praising the book’s lush lyricism, critics have noted
heavy-handed foreshadowing and contrived plot devices." Perhaps her
commentary stems from the fact that this text is Morrison’s first
novel that deals with religion.
However, for the most part critics have praised Morrison for
once again creating a novel that forces one to re-read it before
making an assessment of it in one sitting
Since winning the 1994 Noble Prize in literature, Morrison has
also written and collaborated on other works. She has co-edited
"Birth of a Nation’hood (with Claudia Brodsky Lacour) – essays on
the O.J. Simpson trial" and "The Dancing Mind," an acceptance
speech written for winning the 1996 National Book Foundation medal
for Distinguished Contribution to American Letters.
Though having won many awards in the past few years, Morrison’s
popularity as a novelist came about some 20 years ago. Her first
novel, "The Bluest Eye," matriculated her into the elite mainstream
of American writers.
After a series of successful novels, Morrison was awarded the
Pulitzer Prize for her most acclaimed novel "Beloved," the story of
a mother who kills her daughter so that she does not have to endure
the same inequalities and heinous treatments of slavery that she
did. Morrison’s nail-biting, yet carefully written prose deals with
the subject of slavery and created a narrative that was both
sensitive and astounding. Oprah Winfrey will star in the film
version of "Beloved," which is due out sometime this year.
Perhaps comparable to the theme of John Milton’s "Paradise
Lost," which articulates the fall of man from God’s grace,
Morrison’s "Paradise" alludes to themes of marginality and sin and
helps to answer, in her own words, "Why paradise necessitates
exclusion." "Paradise" is an excellent, engaging and thoughtful
work that deserves and demands the attention of a great
mystery.
"Paradise" is certainly going to be a novel that ranks high with
her other novels. It is a text that deals with a sensitive subject
and Morrison’s writing style helps to unfold the work into a
beautifully written, cogent and lucid interpretation of a somewhat
silenced period of American history.