Blog Post #8 - Song of Solemn Women (Haha! Take that, Sam!)

The fifth chapter of Song of Solomon concludes with a long narrative of Pilate's life. While Pilate is telling of her own struggle to find a home, this passage characterizes both Pilate and Ruth, her sister-in-law.

Both Pilate and Ruth have struggled to find love throughout their lives. Pilate left home, searching for relatives in Virginia and joining a group of migrant workers. Ruth only found love in her father, who died while she was young. But why do these women have such difficulty finding love? Both come from relatively wealthy families in the African-American community. Their parents have come the closest to realizing the American dream from among that community. Ironically, this quality isolates them. Ruth's position of privilege distances her from her neighbors. Pilate exemplifies the African-American values of strength and love, but she is as isolated as Ruth (having no belly button doesn't really help).

However, it is this isolation that brings the women of the Dead family together. At the time when Ruth was pregnant with Milkman, only Pilate was there for her. Even Ruth's husband wasn't there for her; in fact, he was the problem. The Dead women's struggles to break away from this isolation ironically lead them away from their comfortable lives but bring them to each other.

The Dead women's struggles to find love are essential to the characterization of women in the story. Their struggles also creates irony.