Trees in "Beloved"

page 79
It's a tree, Lu. A chokecherry tree. See, here's the trunk -- it's read and split wide open, full of sap, and this here's the parting of the branches. You got a might lot of branches. Leaves too, look like, and dern if these ain't blossoms. Tiny little cherry blossoms, just as white. Your back got a whole tree on it. In bloom. What God have in mind, I wonder."

Questions:
1) What does the tree on Sethe's back represent?
2) Does the way in which Sethe received the tree on her back (from the whipping) add anything to its meaning?

[Next] View the next Trees quote.
Return to the Beloved page.
Return to the Toni Morrison Homepage.