The Weight of History: Bildungsroman and the Black Experience in A Mercy and God Help the Child

Human life is like an unfinished symphony — a work in progress, constantly being composed through experiences, emotions, and relationships. Two works by Toni Morrison, A Mercy and God Help the Child, have constructed profound readings into the genre of bildungsroman, especially when viewed as the formation of identity in oppressive social conditions and personal trauma. A Mercy is based on Florens, a young girl soon to be lost between different wants and needs that drive her. In contrast, God Help the Child is primarily based on the material conditions of contemporary society; it places at its centre a woman named Bride, later revealed to be the successful but emotionally stymied bearer of dark skin. Through a psychoanalytic lens, this paper seeks to compare the two narratives within the bildungsroman genre, highlighting the effects of trauma and abandonment on identity formation.