In Sula, Toni Morrison tells a story with elements of friendship, war, motherhood, racism, and shame. Racism, in particular is crucial to this novel’s storyline because Morrison seeks to reveal the ways in which black people live in the United States. In the city of Medallion, black people were confined to live at the “bottom,” the area where the living conditions were undesirable to say the least. This clear separation introduced the racism that exist in Medallion. It revealed the prejudice that white people had for the “colored” people. This issue was problematic for the people at the “bottom” because they were denied of opportunities and rights. When Helene and Nel were boarding a train, they accidentally step into a train of white people.
