Memory; The Past and the Present in Toni Morrison's Beloved

In this essay I discuss the notion of memory and its effect on the three main characters of the book "Beloved" by Toni Morrison and additionally how these characters through their individual relationships with a ghost (in the shape of a young woman) are assisted to move towards a healthier life where they can live in the present. The memories of these characters, Sethe, Denver and Paul D, all differ, but still not one of them has the ability to live in the present. For Paul D and Sethe the haunting memories are due to their days as slaves, and additionally for Sethe, the fact that she murdered one of her children. Denver however, is merely the victim of her mother?s memories, and is more or less imprisoned in a monotonous life. The young (ghost) woman, who relieves these characters from their pasts, is though to be the reincarnation of Sethe?s murdered child Beloved. With her arrival, Beloved forces the characters to move away from their stagnated lives through dealing with their memories of the past and simultaneously finding new knowledge about themselves.