What Is The Theme Of Substance Abuse In Sonny's Blues By James Baldwin

“Sonny’s Blues” by James Baldwin looks at the different elements which involve the both the strained and the forgotten relationships. These occur between the two brothers who choose to take different alternative paths neglecting and segregating the others (Inez). The older brother considers himself as being a genius and therefore choose to take a path with characterized by education and most importantly he considers his family to be vital to his wellbeing. The second one and the youngest one has fewer life experiences and has just been seen to recover from the lots of hardships comprised of criminal convictions due to being involved in the supply of narcotics (Inez).
The comparison of the two brothers according to the story gives a real …show more content…
Getting to analyze the entire plot of "Sonny’s Blues" we get to understand what exactly happened during the story and why it had to happen and the main reason why the characters had to behave in the way they were behaving. This gives the reader of the story a clear understanding for the situations together with the respective barriers which exist amongst the characters together with the set objective to ensure that they achieve them(Timothy). When we see the progression of the story, we get to understand the exact environmental settings which are more vital as far as influencing the decision of the narrator is concerned more so towards the approval of the decision of the young brother of his to become one of the jazz musicians. Even though the Narrator gets the news regarding the possession of drugs by his brother, it becomes hard for him to believe in such news he knows very well that his brother cannot get involved in such an act. According to the story, it talks of the commuter as one of the unnamed narrators because he has taken a lot of time without being in a physical contact with his brother who is left with one option of knowing about him via the media mainly the …show more content…
Even though we look at the story as invoking Sonny throughout its title, it is from the Narrators opinion that we get to see both the Sonny and Harlem brought onboard (Timothy). By making a comparison I of all the men living in the same community as that of the Narrator, he is considered the most successful person because of having had a wife a good job and with children. The Narrator always seems to be aware of what would happen on the darker side of the Harlem City, and he considers the place dangerous. He talks of the dirty deals of drugs which usually happen in the playgrounds next to where most of the housing projects exist. And he narrates of the ongoing battle of his brother and the world(Timothy). He does not get fully worried of the difficulties his family is enduring but he goes ahead to frame out the challenges which Sonny goes through, and he describes as somebody who has become a big challenge in the community because of being associated with drug, poverty and engaging in