The Power of Music in James Baldwins Sonnys Blues Essay -- Sonnys B

The Power of Music in James Baldwins Sonnys Blues At first glance, Sonnys Blues seems ambiguous about the kinship between unison and drugs. After all, the worlds of bed and drug addiction are historically intertwined it could be possible that Sonnys passion for jazz is merely an excuse for his modus vivendi and addiction, as the narrator believes for a time. Or perhaps the world that Sonny has entered by becoming involved in jazz is the danger- if he had not encountered jazz he wouldnt have encountered drugs either. But the clues given by the portrayals of medication and what it does for other figures in the story demonstrate musics beneficial nature music and drugs are not interdependent for Sonny. By studying the moments of music interwoven throughout the story, it can be determined that the author portrays music as a good thing, the refinisher and sustainer of hope and life, and Sonnys only way out of the deep and funky hole of his life in Harlem, with its attendant peril of drugs (414). The storys first encounter with music is after the narrator has learned of Sonnys arrest. He is thinking about the sons he teaches, and how they could all be sucked under (419) just as Sonny has been. He hears their laughter in the schoolyard and notes its mocking and insular quality, a noise made by disillusioned youth rather than the untainted, joyous sound one expects of children (410). One boy whistles a tune, a cool and moving, complicated and simple melody, pouring out of him as though he were a bird, and the music manages to soar above the boisterous sounds of disenchantment (410). Clearly this music is joy and salvation. Because he concentrates on this simple music, one boy does not curse and den... ..., because this tale is the only light weve got in all this darkness (438). Sonnys Blues is filled with examples of music and how it makes things better. The schoolboy, the barmaid, the mother, the brother, the uncle, the street revivali sts, all use music to create a moment when life isnt so ugly, scour though the world still waits outside and trouble stretches above. Music and the tale it tells provide hope and joy instead of being the instrument of Sonnys destruction, introducing him to the world of drugs, music is his way out of some of the ugliness. For Sonny and the other characters in this story, music is a bastion against the despair that pervades stunted lives it is the light that guides them from the darkness without hope. Works Cited Baldwin, James. Sonnys Blues. The Oxford nurse of American Short Stories 1992 409 - 439.