Sweetness

Content warning: This section of the guide discusses racism.

Toni Morrison is a highly celebrated African American writer who won a Pulitzer Prize in 1988 and the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1993. She is known for her nuanced portrayals of Black life, especially the experiences of Black women. Her stories and novels, such as Beloved (1987) and The Bluest Eye (1970), often tackle themes of racial identity, community, and the trauma of the past, particularly as it relates to the legacy of slavery in the United States.

“Sweetness,” one of her short stories, exemplifies her depiction of such themes. In “Sweetness,” Morrison explores the issue of colorism in the Black community. The story revolves around a Black mother named Sweetness who, due to her own internalized colorism, struggles to accept her daughter Lula Ann’s dark skin. It is an excerpt from God Help the Child which, like The Bluest Eye, has a confessional tone, is written in the first person, and explores the internalization of white standards of beauty. God Help the Child goes on to focuses on the child, nicknamed Bride, as she grapples with her mother’s shame.

This theme of colorism is a common thread in Morrison’s works and reflects her experiences of growing up in a predominantly white community in Ohio.