49 pages • 1 hour read
James BaldwinSonny's Blues
Fiction | Short Story | Adult | Published in 1957A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more. For select classroom titles, we also provide Teaching Guides with discussion and quiz questions to prompt student engagement.
Essay Topics
Could the neighborhood of Harlem be considered a character in “Sonny’s Blues”? How does the environment where the brothers live impact their lives and choices?
Does “Sonny’s Blues” offer a hopeful or nihilistic view of living in a racist society? Use concrete examples from the text to justify your answer.
How does the narrator and Sonny’s relationship develop over time? What key events cause their relationship to either splinter apart or heal?
Related Titles
By James Baldwin
Another Country
James Baldwin
A Talk to Teachers
James Baldwin
Blues for Mister Charlie
James Baldwin
Giovanni's Room
James Baldwin
Going To Meet The Man
James Baldwin
Go Tell It on the Mountain
James Baldwin
I Am Not Your Negro
James Baldwin
If Beale Street Could Talk
James Baldwin
If Black English Isn't a Language, Then Tell Me, What Is?
James Baldwin
Nobody Knows My Name: More Notes of a Native Son
James Baldwin
No Name in the Street
James Baldwin
Notes of a Native Son
James Baldwin
Stranger in the Village
James Baldwin
The Amen Corner
James Baldwin
The Fire Next Time
James Baldwin
The Rockpile
James Baldwin