Sweetness

“You should’ve seen my grandmother; she passed for white and never said another word to any one of her children. Any letter she got from my mother or my aunts she sent right back, unopened.”

This quote highlights the issue of passing, a central topic in the story. It refers to Sweetness’s grandmother’s decision to pass as white and abandon her Black family in order to gain access to the privileges and opportunities that white people have. The fact that she never spoke to any of her children again after passing speaks to the emotional and psychological toll that passing can take on an individual and their relationships. The use of the phrase “passed for white” also suggests a performance, emphasizing the constructed nature of racial identity.

“My mother was housekeeper for a rich white couple. They ate every meal she cooked and insisted she scrub their backs while they sat in the tub and God knows what other intimate things they made her do, but no touching of the same Bible.”

Morrison highlights the racism and hypocrisy that Black people faced during the Jim Crow era. Sweetness’s mother was a housekeeper for a wealthy white couple who treated her with disrespect. The quote illustrates the power dynamic between Black and white people, since the phrase “God knows what other intimate things they made her do” suggests the possibility of sexual abuse.

“Some of you probably think it’s a bad thing to group ourselves according to skin color—the lighter the better—in social clubs, neighborhoods, churches, sororities, even colored schools. But how else can we hold on to a little dignity?”

Sweetness reflects on her upbringing and the social norms that perpetuate colorism. The rhetorical question posed by Sweetness suggests that she is aware of the racist nature of this practice but ultimately sees it as necessary for survival in a society that values whiteness. The use of the phrase “hold on to a little dignity” emphasizes the societal pressure faced by Black Americans to conform to white standards of beauty and behavior in order to gain respect and access to opportunities.

“But because of my mother’s skin color, she wasn’t stopped from trying on hats in the department stores or using their ladies’ room. And my father could try on shoes in the front part of the shoestore, not in the back room.”

Sweetness explains how her family’s lighter skin allowed them to enjoy privileges in society that darker-skinned Black people could not. However, Morrison uses the double negative of “wasn’t stopped” to suggest that having lighter skin does not denote real privilege but rather the absence of further discrimination.

“I know I went crazy for a minute, because—just for a few seconds—I held a blanket over her face and pressed. But I couldn’t do that, no matter how much I wished she hadn’t been born with that terrible color. I even thought of giving her away to an orphanage someplace. But I was scared to be one of those mothers who leave their babies on church steps.”

This quote demonstrates the extent of Sweetness’s internalized colorism. The use of the phrase “terrible color” reinforces Sweetness’s belief that dark skin is inherently undesirable and shameful. The fact that she momentarily considers suffocating her own child highlights the destructive and dangerous nature of colorism. The quote serves as a commentary on the harmful effects of colorism.

“All I know is that for me, nursing her was like having a pickaninny sucking my teat. I went to bottle-feeding soon as I got home.”

Sweetness is expressing her disgust toward nursing her daughter Lula Ann, who has dark skin. She uses the derogatory term “pickaninny” to describe her own child, which shows the extent of her internalized racism. Sweetness’s rejection of her daughter’s skin color is further highlighted by her decision to bottle-feed her instead of nursing her. Sweetness’s words are deliberately shocking, highlighting the deep-seated prejudice against dark skin, but they also highlight her lack of self-esteem since she refers to her body part in animalistic terms: “teat.”

“I did the best I could and didn’t take her outside much anyway because when I pushed her in the baby carriage, people would lean down and peek in to say something nice and then give a start or jump back before frowning. That hurt. I could have been the babysitter if our skin colors were reversed.”

Sweetness is reflecting on her experiences raising her daughter, and her discomfort with being seen in public with her daughter due to the negative reactions she receives from others. Sweetness’s point that she “could have been the babysitter” further highlights race as a social construction, since she “passes” as white until her proximity to whiteness is destabilized by the passerby’s discovery that her daughter has dark skin.

“I told her to call me ‘Sweetness’ instead of ‘Mother’ or ‘Mama.’ It was safer. Her being that black and having what I think are too thick lips and calling me ‘Mama’ would’ve confused people.”

This decision highlights the internalized racism within Sweetness, as she believes that being associated with her Black daughter in public would be a negative thing. The use of the word “safer” implies that the narrator feels as though being identified as the mother of a Black child would put her in danger. The nickname “Sweetness” also emphasizes the irony in the narrator’s character, as she is anything but sweet in her treatment of her daughter.

“I don’t care how many times she changes her name. Her color is a cross she will always carry. But it’s not my fault. It’s not my fault. It’s not my fault. It’s not.”

Throughout the story, Sweetness keeps going back to her past and the way her life turned out after the birth of Lula Ann, and even over halfway the story, Sweetness continues to justify her actions and distance herself from responsibility for the hurt she caused her daughter. Sweetness mentions that Lula Ann has changed her name many times, but she believes that her daughter will always carry the burden of her race. The repetition of the phrase “[i]t’s not my fault” highlights how Sweetness is trying to absolve herself of any blame or guilt, even as she recognizes the weight of the racial inequality and discrimination that her daughter faces.