RR #3 - Sonny's Blues

            
Pak-tung Le
EN 102

Each person has a path that he or she is destined to follow. While the path that one individual chooses may not be ideal for another person, it is the road that he or she must travel. Sonny’s Blues, by James Baldwin, is a story that illustrates the different choices that each brother decides on. Each brother has different views and desires and has picked a path that was not the other’s choice. This story hit home with me since my two sons are going down two different paths and each of them is unable to understand the other’s decision. I believe that Baldwin understands that while Sonny’s brother is taking the path that is the societal “norm,” Sonny’s path is fraught with mistakes and is not one that a parent or society deems as safe or preferred. His path is one that he takes in order for him to reach his final destination. To be a musician, you need to “feel” the music. I believe that in order to “feel” the Blues, you have to have some pain. Perhaps his experiences of having a less than stellar childhood, get involved with drugs and being incarcerated helped to fuel his music.

            Upon reading Sonny’s Blues, Baldwin is not stating that either brother’s life is better than another. He understood that each decision in life brings forth pieces that ultimately make the individual complete. For example, the hardships that Sonny faced helped his music. The pain of his childhood, the drugs and prison flowed through in his music. His brother on the other hand had the same childhood, but chose the more conservative and expected path. He joined the military to escape, got his education and yet came back to Harlem. He has a middle-class  life with his own pain. The loss of his parents and his daughter had him questioning what he perceived as a normal life. In many respects, he did not deal with his situation. Instead, he managed to bury his feelings since he was not able to process it. Is that any better than trying to escape through drugs?