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Imagery
Definition of Irony
Irony is a literary device or event in which how things seem to be is in fact very different from how they actually are. If this seems like a loose definition... read full definition
Irony is a literary device or event in which how things seem to be is in fact very different from how they actually are. If this... read full definition
Irony is a literary device or event in which how things seem to be is in fact very different from how... read full definition
Chapter 5
Explanation and Analysis—Death and Killing:
In Chapter 5, Son confesses to killing someone in his hometown of Eloe, Florida before he arrived at the Isle de Chevaliers. Jadine questions his motives, and Son responds with verbal irony:
“Sure. You didn’t mean to, right?”
“Oh, I meant to, but I didn’t mean to. I meant the killing but I didn’t mean the death. I went too far.”
“That’s not so smart. Death frequently follows killing. Definitely unhip.”
“Yeah.”
The phrase “I meant the killing but not the death” is nonsensical in a literal sense, because killing, by definition, connotes death. There is irony to Son's speech and a bit of dark humor in Jadine's response that death is "Definitely unhip."
Although the phrase "I meant the killing but I didn't mean the death" is ironic and nonsensical on the surface, it also reveals a bit of complexity within Son's reasoning. Perhaps Son had a desire to inflict violence and pain upon his victim (hence the admittance that "I meant the killing") but did not, in his anger, have the foresight to understand that his actions would lead to his victim's death. Throughout Tar Baby, Jadine and Son often exchange morbid quips. Ultimately, Morrison uses these scenes of dialogue to establish the characters' connection and unique dynamic with each other.
Related Themes:
Chapter 8
Explanation and Analysis—Margaret's Beauty:
In Chapter 8, tensions between Valerian and Margaret reach a breaking point when Margaret reveals the full extent of her abusive actions towards their son, Michael. Although Valerian is furious and distraught over Margaret's confession, he cannot help but notice Margaret's physical appearance. Morrison chooses to develop this crucial point in Tar Baby with situational irony, demonstrating how shock has the power to disorient human priorities:
Valerian said nothing; he only stared at her. She was even lovelier now that her head had no spray in it, that it was not tortured into Art Deco, now that it hung according to its own will and the shape of her head. And she wore no make-up. Little charming eyebrows instead of styled ones [...]"
It is ironic that Valerian appears to recognize and cherish Margaret's physical beauty at the very moment when he discovers her internal ugliness. Throughout Tar Baby, Margaret and Valerian consistently spar, mostly due to their complex relationship with Michael, and their different worldviews as two individuals with a 20-year age gap. However, Valerian rarely pays full attention to Margaret's "lovely" appearance. Morrison's choice to detail Margaret's beauty during the moment of her confession heightens the complexity of the two characters' dynamic. Morrison seems to indicate that Valerian turns to Margaret's physicalities in shock to avoid facing the truth of her abusive nature. However, regardless of Valerian's reasoning, the depiction of Margaret's more natural appearance creates a striking image of irony and contradiction.
Related Themes:
Chapter 9
Explanation and Analysis—The Trap:
In the climax of Tar Baby, Jadine and Son engage in an argument over the best way to protect their Black identities in a dangerous world controlled by violent White power structures. During this fight, Son rapes Jadine, at the same time recalling the story of Brer Rabbit from which the novel takes its title. Morrison uses situational irony in this pivotal scene in the novel, as Son does not seem to understand that he critiques the very figure who seems to closely resemble him:
“So he got this great idea about how to get him. How to, to trap… this rabbit. And you know what he did? He made him a tar baby. He made it, you hear me? He made it!”
During this horrific moment in Tar Baby, Son appears to imply that Valerian—the powerful White figure at the center of their world—is akin to the abusive farmer in the tale of Brer Rabbit. However, Son relays this information to Jadine at the same time as he physically and sexually assaults her—an uncomfortable irony. In this passage, Morrison also explores Son's anger, his abusive tendencies, and—crucially—his hypocrisy. Son has the ability to recognize abuse and wrongdoing in others, but not himself.
Related Themes:
