I've Got Psychiatry On My Side

Take a look:

http://www.sidran.org/sub.cfm?contentID=74&sectionid=4

(I'll point out the key things ;)

Let me put in my five cents in before I break down the article. First off, I believe that Beloved is the physical manifestation of the ghost of Sethe's dead baby girl. And just like some people believe ghosts feed off of certain emotions or whatever else that living humans give off, I believe Beloved has become what she is due to Sethe talking about her past; technically, the emotions Sethe (probably) gives off when talking about her past. Beloved feeds off of these negative emotions; thats why she always questions Sethe about her past and feels the need to always be around her. Its not just due to her childlike mindset.


Now, to the reason behind this blog:

The article I have found talks about trauma stress (post, mainly) and ways people deal with it. Trauma is a(n) event(s) that involves actual or threatened death or serious injury to that person suffering the trauma or another person. "One of the most effective ways that people cope with overwhelming trauma is called 'dissociation'." Dissociation is when there is a change in a person's consciousness that disturbs their identity, thoughts, feelings, and experiences.  I believe that Sethe and Paul D use dissociation to cope with their past; For Sethe, memories of the past interfere with her waking life(specifically called hypernesia) and for Paul D, he consciously locks away his feelings and memories (a mild form of amnesia).

But Beloved is changing them. She is forcing them to face their pasts, their trauma, unknowingly and unintentionally.