Sonny’s Blues is a short story written by James Baldwin and the story deals with the life of a young man who is trying to find his true identity in life. Sonny finds his purpose in music while living in Harlem. He is black and he loves jazz and playing the piano. There are many conflicts in the story, but music is the motif that resolves all of them and makes lives of people fulfilled.
Sonny is the young man who is struggling to find his path in life and he has full support from his six years older brother. The role of family is important in this story because the members of the family help each other out through tough times to overcome all the difficulties. Finally, they are reunited though the power of music which connects people. Jazz has a deeper meaning than just entertainment because it serves for expressing the deepest emotions. Blues has the purpose of revealing the finest feelings and the most hidden parts of one’s soul. Everybody understands music in their personal way and that is why intimate interpretation matters. Blues provokes the most honest feelings and it is the place where all the secrets are revealed.
The narrator, who is Sonny’s older brother, is a man with much reason who values stability and security. He is not much older than Sonny, but after the death of their parents, he takes care of Sonny although he is not quite equipped for that. He is terrified when he reads in the newspaper that Sonny got arrested. “He had been picked up, the evening before, in a raid on an apartment downtown, for peddling and using heroin” (Baldwin 123). Sonny has a vulnerable personality and he keeps his feelings private which is why it is hard for him to open up to other people. His brother is intimidated by the fact that he should take care of Sonny, but he realizes that there is no other way. “And I didn’t write Sonny or send him anything for a long time. When I finally did, it was just after my little girl died, he wrote me back a letter which made me feel like a bastard” (Baldwin 126). The narrator feels the guilt for not being there for his brother and they are reunited because of unfortunate events, like the death of the daughter and Sonny’s arrest.
Isabel is an important character in the story as well, because she lives with her parents and Sonny while her husband. Sonny’s brother is in the army. They are strict, but they let Sonny play music on their piano which is what makes them good people. They cannot understand Sonny, but they want to make him feel comfortable while working on his music. The narrator says: “Well, I really don’t know how they stood it. Isabel finally confessed that it wasn’t like living with a person at all, it was like living with sound” (Baldwin 137). Music is part of Sonny’s identity which ultimately brings everybody together. This particular genre evokes feelings that can never be expressed though words. There is a mixture of feelings of all the people who are playing music together. On the other side, there is the emotional response from the audience.
Sonny is a fragile person who leaves Harlem to get away from the world of drugs. Although he gets arrested, he finds his purpose in music and in playing the piano which is the way for him to connect with the world, especially with his brother. The music the key that solves all the problems, although life in Harlem is not easy. However, there are many people in this place who chose music as their life path. The narrator does not believe that a person’s profession can be playing music and he is surprised when Sonny tells him about his decision. The narrator says: “I simply couldn’t see why on earth he’d want to spend his time hanging around nightclubs, clowning around on bandstands, while people pushed each other around a dance floor” (Baldwin 134). He lacks imagination and the sensibility that Sonny has, but both of them have problems which differ in their essence.
Sonny is determined about becoming a real artist and he makes success because he finds people who are supportive. Prior to that, he resorts to heroin and explains this as the sense of looking for something solid in life. Heroin gives the feeling of security, but this is temporary and corrupts people. However, some people find the strength from within and win the fight against the traps in life that lurk around every corner. Sonny is the person who manages to understand his own feelings and express them through music. The instrument which he chooses is the piano and he gets along with the other musicians. They support each other and they overcome all the difficulties though art, music and self-expression. The narrator says: “All I know about music is that not many people ever really hear it” (Baldwin 146). This means that people have to be open-minded and ready to reveal themselves to the music. There are no lies involved in this process, only the genuine truth.
The role of music in Sonny’s Blues is related to finding one’s true identity and the way to fulfill one’s life. For some delicate souls, music is the only way that carries them though life. These people live through music and Sonny is one of them because he worships sound. There is something holy about blues because it reveals the true essence of human beings and it converts their suffering to joy when it is shared with other people.
Works Cited
Baldwin, James. Sonny's Blues. London: Pengun 60s, 1995. Print.
