The Poetry found in "Beloved"

Picture from the film adaptation of Beloved

If any prose has poetic elements, it's the prose found in the neo-slave narrative Beloved by Toni Morrison. This is honestly one of the most beautiful books I have ever read, along with one of the most disturbing and touching. Morrison uses southern black colloquial speech which creates a rhythm and style unlike any other. Repitition of sounds and words also plays a large part in making much of Morrison's writing feel like poetry. For example, even when the main character tries not to remember  horrific past experiences as a slave, memories of her brutal treatment on the plantation still return to her spontaneously: "and suddenly there was Sweet Home rolling, rolling, rolling out before her in shameless beauty. It never looked as terrible as it was and it made her wonder if hell was a pretty place too" (Emphasis mine). This is just one of they many instances of repetition which adds rhythm and emphasis. The repitition of words is also seen in one of my favorite scenes in the novel: "He leans over and takes her hand. With the other he touches her face. 'You your best thing Sethe. You are.' His holding fingers are holding hers. 'Me? Me?'" (Empasis mine). This exerpt is not as meaningful out of context, but I hope you can still see how the repitition creates a sort of poetic rhythm. If you didn't read Beloved in highschool, now's the time!