Sing, Unburied, Sing: Literaty Analysis Essay

Sing, Unburied, Sing is a novel written by Jesmyn published in 2017. The novel revolves around the relationship of a family in Bois Sauvage in Mississippi. The family can be described as dysfunctional, and the story starts during Jojo’s thirteen birthday when he narrates what has transpired in his life and his family. The novel explores critical themes such as family, love, death, and race. This paper discusses the forms that love takes and to what effect is based on the novel.

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Storge love is also reflected in the book when Jojo learns that he and Stag have the same father but different mothers. The storge love is seen between the extended family members where they love each other and live as one family despite having different mothers. The interest of the extended family has remained even when the family is experiencing challenges (Ward 29). The novel take on love is that people need to love each other and abandon factors that might cause conflicts between them. When families are united, they are able to work as a team to achieve common goals and help members of the families that might be going through different difficulties in their lives. Love helps to unite large families where all members have different interests that might be conflicting.

The forms of love in the book Sing, Unburied, Sing includes storge love, which is love between children, parents, and other relatives in the family. The storge love makes family members work as a team towards achieving a common goal where the family members are keen on improving the quality of their lives. Jojo experienced storge love from his grandfather where; the grandfather is keen on improving the basic life skills of Jojo to enable him to have skills of handling different circumstances in life. Storge love is reflected in the novel, where the grandfather shows Jojo how to slaughter a goat (Ward 26). Many parents are keen on improving the skills of their children to make them better where the children are able to handle the challenges they encounter in their lives. Storge love helps in dealing with family challenges where the family members focus on engaging in activities that unite them as a family.

This form of love is witnessed between Jojo and his grandparents Mam and Pop, and his younger sister Kyla (Ward 2). Mam is suffering from chemotherapy and has been undergoing chemotherapy sessions, so she has not been very active. He and his sister are close to their grandparents than they are to their mother, who he now calls her first name Leonie. Leonie has been absent and irresponsible, therefore leaving her children with her sick mother. Mam has always taken care of Jojo and his younger sister Kyla, and it is for this reason that Jojo loves his grandmother. Due to this form of love, he is devastated when his Mam succumbs to cancer. Apart from the love he has for Mam. He admires his grandfather. Mam, pop, and Kyla love Jojo, and although he had had a complicated life and his family is dysfunctional, he has had an exceptional relationship with his family except for his mother and father.

The other form of love evident in Sing, Unburied is Eros, which is depicted through pleasure, lust, and passion. This form of love is witnessed between Jojo towards Misty. Jojo is attracted to her, although he is embarrassed about sex (Ward 30). Misty is Jojo’s mother, and she is white, while her boyfriend is black. This might be the reason why Jojo is afraid of approaching her even though she admires her. Also, the reason for fear of approaching her might be because she does not have a good relationship with who is Misty’s friend; therefore, he does not want to have a confrontation with her.

The other form of love is philia which friendship is shared out of goodwill (Fresh). Friendships are based on pleasantness, usefulness, and goodness. Friendship relationships that are founded on goodness are long-lasting and not only result in mutual benefit but also trust and companionship. In Sing, Unburied, sing Philia love is witnessed between Misty, who is Leonie's best friend (Ward 29). She is the only one that Leonie has, and although they are from different races, their friendship is exceptional in the novel. The two use drugs, and their friendship is therefore bound mainly by their drug addiction. They are also bound by their interacial relation since Leonie’s husband Michael is white and Misty’s boyfriend Bishop Black is black. The two friends, therefore, can learn something from each other that will help them relate better with their partners.

There is also a Philautia form of love that entails someone loving himself or herself. Philautia love focuses on having happiness, where one engages in activities that give him or her happiness. Philautia love is also included in the novel by the character Leonie where he participates in activities that he will benefit from and avoids activities that are likely to be stressful. Leonie works hard to earn a living at the oil company, where he knows that to achieve the things he wants in life, he has to work. Philautia's love is seen where he works hard so that he can achieve the things he wants to achieve in life because he wants to improve the quality of his life. Self-love makes one focus on issues that will improve the quality of life and overcome the challenges experienced in life.

There is also a mania form of love in the sing unburied sing novel where different characters in the novel emotionally depend on where the love strengthens the relations among different characters. Examples of mania love include love between Leonie and Mam. Leonie is emotionally connected to Mam as portrayed when Mam falls ill, and Leonie is emotionally disturbed because he feels that he needs to do something to help Mam in the healing journey where she has Cancer. Leonie believed in mother love hence the emotional attachment he had with Mam and the sympathy over the illness. Mania form of love is experienced the most when ones loved one is experiencing challenges such as one is going through sorrow that makes one have difficulties in their lives. Cancer is a major disease that can cause death; thus, Leonie is worried about the challenges experienced by Mam.

In conclusion, loves takes different forms, such as storge, Philia, mania, Philautia, and Eros. These forms of love are present in Sing, Unburied, sing through characters such as Jojo, Mam, Misty, Leonie, pop, and Kyla. Storge love is between Jojo, Mama, Papa, Kyle, and Stag. Jojo loved his grandparents, who have raised him, and they and Kyle also love Jojo. Eros is evident in Jojo towards Misty, and philia is witnessed between Leonia and Misty. Mania, on the other hand, is evident between Leonia and Mam.

Works Cited

Fresh, FTD. "The 8 Different Types Of Love + The Perfect Combo For You | FTD". FTD.Com, 2020, https://www.ftd.com/blog/give/types-of-love. Accessed 3 Dec 2020.

Ward, Jesmyn. Sing, unburied, sing A novel. Simon and Schuster, 2017. https://www.amazon.com/Sing-Unburied-Novel-Jesmyn-Ward/dp/1501126067