I always thought that one of Belovedâs main purposes was to force Sethe to stagnate under the weight of her painful past. With that said, the moment I chose was when Paul D first banished the baby ghost from 124 at the novelâs start. Notice that the windows, as well as the open doorway, all burn a strong red, something I did to symbolize the intensity of the struggle between the baby ghost and Paul D. From the windows come vines, wrapping themselves around 124; and from the top right hand window, a giant flower makes itâs way out of the house. The flower represents Beloved, unopened and wilting before she was given the chance to bloom in life. Going with the interpretation that the baby ghost and Beloved are one in the same, the flower which represents Beloved is leaving the house, though not entirely, still holding onto 124 and itâs inhabitants with the vines coming through the windows. The flower is also going off in the opposite direction as the walkway, symbolizing the way Beloved served as a separator of Sethe from her community.
This is where the title comes from. âTwo Roadsâ represents the two choices which Sethe is eventually presented with: Denver, Paul D, and their community down one road, and Beloved down the other.
The further down the walkway, the more the red coming from the house begins to fade, a representation of the therapeutic atmosphere that the community can provide Sethe with.
For this piece, I drew the outline with pencil, then added color and effect using acrylic paints. The different shades of blue in the sky represent the patchwork of different experiences that exist in the world outside of 124, all of which are denied to Sethe and Denver so long as they allow themselves to be confined in 124. The blue, green and brown that make up the dirt floor represent the experiences of those long gone, and how the past can always be felt, as it intermingles with the present.
