Storytelling - SoS

In Song of Solomon by Toni Morrison, storytelling plays an integral role in the depiction and reputations of different characters. Throughout the story, Milkman listens to the different perspectives of people in his life. This allows him to see how bias affects stories, and how people can manipulate a story by exposing some details over others. In some instances in the novel, the stories told are filled with nostalgia and express fondness of the storyteller's past; however, in other instances, some stories told from different perspectives cause conflicts in the novel. When Milkman first meets Pilate, he doesn't have any pre-meditated judgements about his aunt. Pilate reminisces about her childhood with Macon and speaks about their father's death as Milkman and Guitar listen. However, immediately after his visit to Pilate's house, Milkman is reprimanded by his father for going to see her. Nonetheless, when Macon goes on to talk about his childhood experience, there isn't a significant difference between the two perspectives. In both stories, Pilate and Macon express feelings of immense, crippling, grief and fear surrounding the murder of their father. Later on, the difference between the two stories is revealed to be about the white man's gold and their experience in the cave. Pilate, in stark comparison to Macon, is not concerned with material matters whatsoever. Her motivations surround spirituality and self-guidance whereas Macon is acquisitive and self-absorbed. Therefore, the differences in the stories revolve solely around the motivations of the characters.
Ruth and Macon also have different perspectives in their storytelling that divide the two characters. Macon hates Ruth because he believes that she was in a strange, sexual relationship with her father. Ruth, however, claims that the relationship was not sexual; instead she claims that her father was the only person who cared whether she lived or died. Furthermore, Ruth believes that Macon was involved in expediting her father's death by hiding his medications. In this case, Ruth's craving for love and affection changes her perspective of her story, whereas Macon's jealous and domineering attitude changes his perception of the past.