Words and Music: Narrative Ambiguity in Sonny’s Blues

Sonny’s Blues is a short story by James Baldwin that follows two brothers as they grapple with the events of their lives. The story is told through the eyes of the narrator, who is also Sonny’s brother.

Introduction

“Sonny’s Blues” is a short story by James Baldwin that was first published in 1957. The story is about two brothers, Sonny and the narrator, and how they deal with Sonny’s addiction to heroin. The story is set in Harlem in the 1950s.

Summary of the story

The story is narrated in the first person by an unnamed narrator who is Sonny’s brother. The story is set in Harlem in the 1950s. The narrator and Sonny grew up in Harlem, and their mother died when they were young. Their father was a preacher. Sonny’s father died when Sonny was fifteen, and Sonny became a heroin addict. The narrator tried to keep track of Sonny, but he eventually lost touch with him.

The narrator is now a high school teacher, and he lives with his wife and two kids. He gets a letter from Sonny, saying that he is coming to visit him. The narrator is surprised and happy to hear from Sonny, and he starts to think about their childhood together.

The narrator picks up Sonny from the bus station, and they go to the narrator’s apartment. The reunion is awkward at first, but they start to talk and catch up on each other’s lives. The conversation takes a turn when the narrator asks Sonny about his heroin addiction. Sonny starts to cry, and the two brothers hug each other.

The next day, the brothers go out for a walk around Harlem. They talk about music, specifically jazz. They go into a nightclub where Sonny used to play jazz piano. The owner of the club recognizes them and asks if they want to play some music together. They agree, and they play for awhile before leaving the club.

Sonny goes back to his own place after that night, and the narrator doesn’t see him for awhile. One day, the Narrator gets a phone call from one of Sonny’s friends telling him that Sonny has been arrested for possession of heroin. The police find heroin in his apartment, and he is sent to prison for two years.

The narrator visits Sonny in prison, and they talk about music again. When Sonny gets out of prison, he moves back in with the narrator. They start playing music together again regularly, and eventually start touring Together They continued to play music until shortly before Sonny’s death.”

Thesis statement

“Words and Music: Narrative Ambiguity in Sonny’s Blues”

In Sonny’s Blues, Baldwin uses the music to expose Sonny’s feelings and therefore creates a more effective story. The use of first person point of view also plays a role in the development of the plot as well as the characters. By allowing the reader to only know what the narrator knows, we are kept in suspense about what is going on with Sonny and are able to feel his emotional struggle along with him.

Sonny’s Character

It is difficult to say who Sonny is. He is a complicated man with a difficult past. He is a musician, but he is also a heroin addict. He is a brother, but he is also a father. Sonny is many things, and he is not always easy to understand. However, this does not make him any less of a compelling character.

His experience with heroin

Sonny’s experience with heroin is central to his character. He first turns to drug use as a way to cope with the death of his brother, and it quickly becomes a coping mechanism for the racism he experiences as a black man living in the United States. Sonny’s addiction leads him to criminal activity, and he is ultimately arrested and jailed for drug possession. While in jail, Sonny kicks his heroin habit and begins to turn his life around. He starts playing music again and eventually becomes a successful jazz musician. However, his experiences with heroin continue to haunt him, and he is always struggling to stay clean.

His relationship with his brother

Sonny’s older brother, the narrator, is the central character in the story. The two have a complicated relationship. The narrator loves Sonny and is proud of his talent, but he is also resentful of him. He feels that Sonny has wasted his life with drugs and that he, the narrator, has had to work hard to make up for it.

The brothers have not seen each other in years when the story begins, but they are brought back together by Sonny’s drug addiction and eventual imprisonment. The narrator visits Sonny in prison and helps him get clean. After Sonny is released, they live together for a while and play music together.

The relationship between the two brothers is ultimately one of love and respect. They are able to overcome their differences and come to understand one another.

The Narrator’s Character

It is through the narrator’s character that the themes of suffering and hope are explored in Sonny’s Blues. The narrator is a complex character who is struggling to make sense of his life and find his place in the world. The ambiguity in the narrator’s character allows for different interpretations of the story.

His experience with racism

One of the major themes in “Sonny’s Blues” is the narrator’s experience with racism, which colors his understanding of both Sonny’s experience and the world in general. The story is set in Harlem in the 1950s, a time when race relations were particularly tense. The narrator himself is a product of this environment, and his view of the world is shaped by it.

Racism is a central topic of conversation in “Sonny’s Blues,” both between the narrator and Sonny and between the characters in the story. The narrator himself is aware of his own racism, which he expresses in his conversation with Sonny about why he left Harlem. He tells Sonny that he “didn’t want to be around all that negativity.”

The other characters in the story also express racist views, including Cousin Ray, who tells Sonny that he should give up music because it’s “nothing but trouble for a Negro.” Mrs. Wright, Sonny’s mother, also expresses racist views when she tells the narrator that she doesn’t want Sonny to play music because “it bring[s] out the worst in him.”

Despite the prevalence of racism in “Sonny’s Blues,” the story ultimately suggests that understanding and empathy are more important than anything else. This is evident in the relationship between the narrator and Sonny, which is defined by their shared experience of racism. It is also evident in the ending of the story, when the narrator comes to understand Sonny’s pain and suffering.

His relationship with Sonny

The narrator’s relationship with Sonny is ambiguous, to say the least. On the one hand, the narrator loves his brother and is deeply hurt by his addiction. On the other hand, he is resentful of Sonny’s choices and feels like he can’t really connect with him. This ambiguity is part of what makes the story so compelling – we are never quite sure how the narrator feels about Sonny, and this changes as the story goes on.

Themes

In “Sonny’s Blues,” Jazz and the blues play an important role in both the plot and the theme of the story. The story is narrated by Sonny’s brother, who is a high school teacher. The story is set in Harlem in the 1950s. The narrator’s brother, Sonny, is a jazz musician who is struggling with heroin addiction.

Music as a form of expression

In “Sonny’s Blues,” music represents a form of expression that allows the characters to connect with each other and the world around them. The story’s title refers to a jazz song that Sonny plays, and the music is a central element in the story. It is used to communicate the characters’ emotions and experiences, and it also provides a link between the past and the present.

The narrator, Sonny’s brother, is a jazz musician who has given up music after his wife’s death. He reconnects with Sonny through their shared love of music, and he realizes that music provides a way for Sonny to express his pain and sorrow. The music also reminds the narrator of his own sorrows, and he begins to understand how music can help people to cope with their problems.

The story ends with the two brothers playing music together, and the narrator realizes that music can create a sense of unity and understanding between people. Music is a powerful force in the story, and it represents the characters’ ability to connect with each other and the world around them.

The role of family

The role of family is ambiguous throughout the story. Sonny’s brother is never really sure if he did the right thing by taking Sonny away from their mother’s house. He also doesn’t know how to talk to Sonny about what happened to him in the war. On the other hand, Sonny’s mother clearly loves her son and is very worried about him. She seems to want what’s best for him, even if she doesn’t always understand his choices.

Conclusion

In conclusion, it is evident that there is a great deal of narrative ambiguity in Sonny’s Blues. The reader is left to wonder about the true nature of Sonny’s relationship with his brother, as well as the ultimate fate of Sonny himself. However, this ambiguity is also what makes the story so powerful and affecting. It allows the reader to see Sonny’s blues in their own life, and to empathize with him in a way that would not be possible with a more straightforward narrative.