Music and Harlem,

 

The short story “Sonny’s Blues” by James Baldwin illustrates Freud’s concepts of sublimation and artistic gift through the hardships and experiences of Sonny and his brother, the narrator. Sonny and his brother represent two different perspectives of growing up in 1950s Harlem. Living in Harlem surrounded by drugs, segregation, poverty, racism and the duality of both brothers lead to family issues. The narrator tries to incorporate himself into white society by distancing himself from the African American experience and culture. His actions are what Freud considers sublimation, as he is substituting his culture with the behavior that white people claim to be socially appropriate. Music was to Sonny what Freud would call an artistic gift, which was his way of channeling his pain, staying sober, and escaping his past. In 1950s Harlem, African Americans and the music industry were considered the epitome of addiction and trouble. At the end of the tale, Sonny’s brother finally understood that there was more to music than just useless sound. The duplex life of the brothers created tension and problems between the two until music brought them together. The author of this story demonstrates the evolution of living in fear of not meeting social standards to valuing one’s culture despite stereotypes and bias.

The short story “Sonny’s Blues” written by James Baldwin showcases the relationship of two brothers affected by their ideologies, and the “Five Lectures on Psycho-Analysis” written by Sigmund Freud explains the concepts of artistic gift and sublimation. The article “Self-Hate as Life Threat Pathology Among Black Americans: Black Pride Antidote Vis-à-Vis Leukocyte Telomere Length (LTL).” by Ronald Hall introduces the ideas that black self-hate creates different perspectives within the black community, while the article “Singing the Harlem Renaissance: Langston Hughes, Translation, and Diasporic Blues.” by Jonathan O. Wipplinger show that Jazz is an outlet for African Americans to express themselves. In “Sonny’s Blues” Sonny and his brother are African Americans living in Harlem in the 1950s. The two brothers have a complicated relationship as Sonny struggles with drug addiction, and the narrator does not understand how important music is to Sonny. In “Sonny’s Blues” by James Baldwin, the illustration of Freud’s concepts of artistic gift and sublimation demonstrates Baldwin’s critiques of society, that music changes lives and brings people together; can be seen in the evolution of living in fear of not meeting social standards of whiteness to valuing one’s culture, Blackness in the 1950s, despite stereotypes of poverty and bias thoughts of racism, through Sonny and his brother’s different experiences and struggles in 1950s Harlem.

To begin with, Sonny and his brother represent two sides to an African American experience. Both brothers live in Harlem, but while the narrator, Sonny’s brother, is an Algebra school teacher and a devoted husband and father, Sonny lives in drug dens, struggles with drug abuse, and gets arrested for selling heroin(Baldwin). Wipplinger shows, “This blues disposition of Hughes’ work is perhaps best expressed in the lyric… This combination of laughter and tears, comedy and tragedy was essential to Hughes’ deployment of the blues and jazz.” (168). Jazz was Sonny’s expressive outlet, his way of fighting addiction, but “Unfortunately, displays of Black pride are perceived as aggressive and otherwise less polite”(Hall). Since Sonny’s brother tries to fit into the white society, black pride challenges that because it empowers Black Americans. Sonny’s artistic gift of music gave him power and later helped him have a better connection with his brother.

Without a doubt, Baldwin demonstrates Freud’s idea of sublimation when the narrator jazz incorporates himself into white society by dissociating himself from his culture and being a dedicated teacher and a family-oriented person. The author argues, “Black self-hate in the larger society today is frequently subordinated… creating a line between Black and other Black perspectives.”(Hall 405). The narrator’s black self-hate created a bigger cap in the relationship with his brother. African Americans who self hate often judge other African Americans harsher than white people (hall). Throughout the story, Sonny’s brother tries to get Sonny to follow the path he follows, but Sonny has a passion for music that his brother is yet to understand. At the end of the tale, Sonny’s brother goes to see him play and has a moment of appreciation, understanding, and admiration for Jazz. The author shows, “For me, then, as they began to play again, it glowed and shook above my brother’s head like the very cup of trembling.” (Baldwin 21). The “cup of trembling” is a biblical verse in the book of Isaiah 51:22 often symbolizes forgiveness and redemption, therefore hinting that the brothers have a greater connection during the performance. Black self-hate was destroying the narrator’s relationship with his brother, but he was finally free from blackness stereotypes when he had a better understanding of Sonny’s take on Jazz.

Ultimately, Jazz changed Sonny’s life for the better and brought both brothers together. Black pride is a way to fight black self-hate because black pride provides you with a sense of empowerment to not only embrace your culture but be at your best. Sonny’s brother’s actions to fit into a white society pushed him away from his brother, but Sonny’s artistic gift of music helped them create a connection as Jazz embraces black culture.

 

 

Work Cited

 

Freud, Sigmund. FIVE LECTURES ON PSYCHO-ANALYSIS. Norton, 1910. Pdf, https://bbhosted.cuny.edu/bbcswebdav/pid-50145738-dt-content-rid-393885161_1/xid-393885161_1. Accessed 25 November 2020.

 

Baldwin, James. Sonny’s Blues. Penguin Books, 1957. Pdf, https://bbhosted.cuny.edu/bbcswebdav/pid-50362920-dt-content-rid-394074960_1/xid-394074960_1. Accessed 25 November 2020.

 

Hall, Ronald E. “Self-Hate as Life Threat Pathology Among Black Americans: Black Pride Antidote Vis-à-Vis Leukocyte Telomere Length (LTL).” Journal of African American Studies, vol. 18, no. 4, 2014, pp. 398–408. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/43525563. Accessed 25 Nov. 2020.

“Singing the Harlem Renaissance: Langston Hughes, Translation, and Diasporic Blues.” The Jazz Republic: Music, Race, and American Culture in Weimar Germany, by Jonathan O. Wipplinger, University of Michigan Press, Ann Arbor, 2017, pp. 165–196. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/j.ctt1qv5n7m.10. Accessed 25 Nov. 2020.