Sunny\'s Blues James Baldwin\'s Short

Sunny's Blues

James Baldwin's short story "Sonny's Blues" provides readers with an account relating to two brothers going through great efforts trying to understand each-other and to escape their difficulties they come across. The storyline puts across two diverging African-American characters, considering that the narrator is an individual struggling to escape the prejudice he comes across in a white-dominated society while his brother appears to ignore racial discrimination and prefers to follow his passions instead, even when these are related to heroin addiction.

Because Sonny does not manage to adapt and constantly feels that he does not belong he is willing to take on anything he considers to be liberating. In this case, heroin addiction and music playing are some of the central elements in Sonny's life, the former because it makes him feel empowered and the latter because it allows him to express himself freely. The illegal substance provides Sonny with everything he needs in order to escape the suffering produced by the unfortunate events in his past and with the feeling of being indifferent to what happens around him, namely the fact that he did not assimilate.

Sonny and the narrator are contrasting characters, considering that Sonny is devoted to do whatever he feels is right whereas the narrator is merely doing what society dictates. The narrator initially believes that Sonny's passion for music is absurd and unlikely to assist the boy in any way in the future. Moreover, when he learns that Sonny wants to give up high-school in order to get actively engaged in singing, the narrator expresses his dissatisfaction. The narrator does not understand why Sonny is withdrawn and why he favors singing the piano instead of socializing with Isabel and her family. However, when the two go out together at Greenwich Village, it all becomes clear. The narrator observes how Sonny is treated like a celebrity at the club, as everyone appears to be very fond of him. Furthermore, when his little brother starts playing the piano and gradually produces better music the narrator and all of the people in the club are captivated, making it obvious that Sonny believed that his passion could surpass heroin in putting his suffering behind.

The devastating news that the narrator's uncle was murdered has a somewhat beneficial effect on the narrator, given that he takes on the role of caring for himself and the rest of the family. Suffering and the diverse methods through which it can be subdued is the main theme of the short story. The suffering produced by the fact that society rejects him influences Sonny's passion for playing the piano. The drug bust makes the narrator aware that he does not know Sonny and that his brother is completely alone, inducing a feeling of remorse. Later on, with the narrator's daughter, Gracie, dying because of polio, the narrator wants to get back in touch with his brother. Gracie's death is the actual reason for which the two brothers are reunited, since the suffering both of them had come across during their lives made them aware that family was essential in getting over harsh times.