Toni Morrison's "Beloved"

In Toni Morrison's Beloved, the characters struggle with accepting the horror of their pasts in the world of slavery and moving on with their lives. Despite their theoretical emancipation, Paul D and Sethe are still enslaved, not only by continuing societal prejudices, but also their own need for self-preservation. A major part of that self-preservation is maintaining their hard-sought emancipation, not just from slavery, but from any type of bondage. Paul D upsets that precarious …

…maintaining only a little love for anything that causes him heartache and leaves him bound to his need for freedom. When Paul D finally comes to terms with his fears and returns with love to Sethe, it is their mutual need for one another that gives them hope and strength. In allowing himself to love Sethe, Paul D releases himself from his self-repression and becomes free to accept the past and look for a future.