Veritatis Gaudium: Multidisciplinary Journal of Postgraduate Studies

This article examines the mother-daughter relationship amidst poverty in the context of slavery in Toni Morrison’s Beloved. It studies how this relationship reflects such a natural connection between mother and daughter that is often complicated, so that hardly anyone understands the hidden secrets between them. Thus, considering the complexity of the mother-daughter relationship, the study uses Erik Erikson’s Psychosocial Theory to illustrate how Morrison portrays the negative impact of racism and slavery on this relationship in Beloved. In doing so, the article examines the various ways the novel depicts the psychosocial connection between mother and daughter by illustrating how the mind triggers certain human actions and inactions. While previous studies on this text dwelt on the effect of slavery and the concept of absentee fathers in African American literature, this article demonstrates how Morrison’s socio-political ideology influences her perception and presentation of psychosocial reality. The findings of the study reveal that, like other contemporary African American literary works, Morrison’s novel addresses issues associated with the psychosocial relationship between parents and children in the context of racism, slavery and general disillusionment. Therefore, the study concludes that Morrison’s acquired ideology in the context of identity crises, racism, slavery and their resultant exploitation and oppression influences her perception and presentation of psychosocial reality.

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