ABSTRACT
The key to understanding a positive Africana man-woman relationship is described in Morrison’s Beloved in the assessment of the relationship of a male character named Sixo and his woman, the Thirty-Mile Woman (wherein Sixo explains to his friend, Paul D, the nature of his relationship with his lady). The focal point for Morrison’s writing is the woman, the culture bearer, who must operate within the constructs of her own culture in order to lead an authentic existence. From Morrison’s first novel, The Bluest Eye, to Sula, Song of Solomon, Tar Baby, and finally to her fifth novel, Beloved, the author develops the roles of the male and the female in this collective struggle. The focal point for Morrison’s writing is the woman, the culture bearer, who must operate within the constructs of her own culture in order to lead an authentic existence.
