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Sonny's Blues

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Introduction This annotated bibliography is designed to give readers an understanding of how Sonny’s Blues by James Baldwin is a modernization of the biblical account of Cain and Able. While the text of Sonny’s Blues does not align with the story of Cain and Able verbatim, the underlying theme of being a “brother’s keeper” is central to both stories. I set out to identify the various elements involved in being a “brother’s keeper”. After reading the biblical account of Cain and Able, two sub-themes came to the forefront self-identity and responsibility. I selected the sources listed below to highlight the ways Baldwin uses the themes of identity and responsibility, and other literary mechanisms to connect Sonny’s Blues to the biblical account of Cain and Able. Byerman, Keith A. "Words And Music: Narrative Ambiguity In 'Sonny's Blues'." Studies In

Short Fiction 19.4 (1982): 367. Academic Search Complete. Web. 25 Feb. 2013. Byerman discusses how music and words create ambiguity in Sonny’s Blues. He points out the rhythm of the wording in the text and how the narrator uses the words to communicate his ideas and as a defense mechanism when his reality is too harsh to handle. The narrator’s candid wording at times draws the reader in with understanding and intrigue. Yet, his vacillating uses of metaphors seem to shut the reader out when the details become too sensitive. Just as the narrator uses words to present his case to the reader, Sonny uses music to do the same. Both literary approaches present each character’s conflict from his own perspective.

Mosher, Marlene. "Baldwin's SONNY's BLUES." Explicator 40.4 (1982): 59. Academic

Search Complete. Web. 25 Feb. 2013. Mosher’s piece discusses the significance of Baldwin’s allusion to the biblical text, Isaiah 51:17-22, in the final scene of Sonny’s Blue’s. As the author inserts the phrase, “the cup of trembling...”, He uses it as a metaphor to signal both the relief and salvation of the two main characters. Mohsher’s assertions give

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credence to the common thread that both the biblical account of Cain and Able and Sonny’s Blues share. While Mosher’s writing primarily focuses on the symbolism of “the cup of trembling”, a deeper look at it’s meaning highlights the characters’ fulfillment of being a brother’s keeper. In Short Fiction 14.4 (1977): 353. Academic Search Complete. Web. 25 Feb. 2013.

Murray’s writing emphasizes how Baldwin’s use of light and darkness contributes to his goal of depicting man’s struggle to find identity. It references many subtle clues in Baldwin’s writing that points to the communal despair of the characters and their surroundings. Murray also presents Sonny’s Blues as a journey of self realization for both main characters and how both past experiences and their ultimate outcome of one another shapes their individual identities. This angle contributes to the theme of being a brother’s keeper and it’s effects. Thereby, drawing close similarities between Baldwin’s Sonny’s Blues and the biblical account of Cain and Able. Renascence 59.2 (2007): 109-118. Academic Search Complete. Web. 25 Feb. 2013. Tackach and James present Sonny’s Blues as a contemporary fusion of the two biblical accounts of Cain and Able and the Prodigal Son. They highlight the two different paths chosen by the the narrator and Sonny to draw character comparisons with the two sets of brothers from the biblical allusions. Tackach and James calls on Baldwin’s personal theology and religious upbringing as the context and inspiration for writing this short story. They further substantiate their claims by referencing multiple details from Baldwin’s text and aligning them with the details of the biblical allusions.

Murray, Donald C. "James Baldwin's 'Sonny's Blues': Complicated And Simple." Studies

Tackach, James. "The Biblical Foundation Of James Baldwin's "Sonny's Blues.."

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