The Guilfordian

Issue date: 3/23/07 Section: News

Media Credit: Daniel Miller Author Toni Morrison took time to meet with students during her visit.

Media Credit: Daniel Miller

Acclaimed author and intellectual Toni Morrison visited Guilford on March 13 as the last lecturer in this year's Bryan Series.

Morrison, who became the first African American to earn the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1993, met with a small group of students in the afternoon to discuss her experiences and her first novel, The Bluest Eye. In the evening, she spoke before a capacity audience at War Memorial Stadium.

Morrison's lecture, "Off the page: Literature and the Imaginative Intellect," addressed the the role of language and literature in a violent and divided global society.

"Literature has the power to transform," Morrison said, "the power to elevate, to discourage base actions."

Morrison's talk focused on the literary character Grendel, the monster of the Old English epic poem "Beowulf," revisited in John Gardner's 1971 novel "Grendel." She used the dual versions to shed light on contemporary notions of evil, fear, and foreignness.

"I am going to tell you a story," Morrison said, "because narrative is probably the most effective way that knowledge is structured, and because I am a storyteller."

The method had significant impact on some students.

"I come from a place where the oral tradition is alive and (Morrison) brought me back there," said junior Vital Akimana, who was born in Rwanda. "She reminded me of the lessons of stories and the true power of stories. It's been too long since I have heard a storyteller like her."

In the epic, Grendel is a swampland beast that spends his nights reigning terror on the nearby kingdom of Denmark. He kills the King's subjects and livestock, destroys the ramparts.

For Morrison, the Grendel of "Beowulf" represents evil drawn "from the margins of the world … It is evil without a father, prenatural …Evil without reason and without decipherable language and therefore absolute and unknowable."

Beowolf, the poem's protagonist, kills both Grendel and then the monster's speechless mother, who sought revenge for Grendel's death. In the latter battle, Beowulf's sword melts when it touches the mother's blood.

"The traditional interpretation has it that her blood was so caustic as to melt the sword," Morrison said. "There is another possibility: that violence, even against violence, is itself so foul that the sword of violence collapses and pulls disparate histories into meaning."

"What never seemed to bother anybody was - who was this guy, this Grendel, who came every night?" Morrison said. "And why had he put them on the menu?"

Morrison compared the epic poem with Gardner's novel, which retells the story from Grendel's perspective. Morrison argued that in the adapted tale, the monster is given subjectivity and complexity. His violence stems from his inability to express himself.

When Grendel recieves language from the poet Wulfgar, his wrath subsides. It is at this point that Beowulf kills him.

It is this failure to communicate, Morrison said, that has led to the strife in our world. Morrison proposed the development of a "noble language-straightforward, honest, careful."

"Who or what is the foreigner?" she asked. "Is it them or is it us? And what is it that makes that matter?"

"(Morrison) had the whole audience wrapped around her finger," said Cat Jaques, '06. "I was surprised at first at all the explanation and thought I was a little lost. But when I realized that she meant to be allegorical, her message came through very clearly and profoundly."

Aside from the obvious parallel to be drawn regarding the geopolitical climate, the War on Terror, and the war in Iraq, many saw Morrison's talk as relevant to recent events at Guilford.

President Kent Chabotar took the opportunity during his introductory remarks to talk about what he called the "horrible brawl" that occurred at Guilford in January and the College's response.

"Our values have clearly been tested," Chabotar said, "But we sought the truth …in the spirit of reconciliation … (We have) renewed our appreciation and commitment for nonviolence and diversity."

"I feel a bit ill whenever (Chabotar) starts talking about core values," Jacques said, "But he was definitely right in offering a segue to Morrison's speech. Her words were very timely for Guilford, and much needed."

The Guilford College choir performed two songs in honor of Morrison's visit. Suzanne Galer performed "Do you know him?" with lyrics by Toni Morrison.

After the speech, Chabotar, awarded Morrison with the Bryan Presidential award "recognizing the speaker's commitment to one of Guilford's seven core values."

Upon offering her the crystal statue, Chabotar said, "Toni Morrison is being honored for her relentless commitment to integrity."

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