In every society, age plays a very important role in shaping the relationship between siblings. In most cases, a larger age gap widens the relationship between family members as a result of the indifferences that exist between the individuals. In Sonny’s Blues, Baldwin brings to light the struggles that siblings encounter when they have a huge age gap between them. He explores the general lack of connection between the two brothers who seem to live in different worlds. As his brother gets entangled in a life of drug abuse and addiction, the narrator turns out to be a successful algebra teacher. This essay provides an exploration into the theme of brotherhood and how it be viewed from a larger societal perspective.
In many societies, people often believe that family comes first and as such, they would do anything to help their loved ones. Even though this may be true, there are some instances where individuals may feel as if their siblings are beyond help. In the story, the narrator does not seem to fully understand what his younger brother is going through in his life. There is definitely no connection between them and as such, they do not communicate on a brotherly level. The narrator seems to be against Sonny’s decisions to become a musician in life and this brings the rift between the two. As a brother, the narrator is supposed to support his brother because everyone has a different destiny in life. Not everyone will become a teacher, an engineer, doctor or a successful business man. The narrator was supposed to support his brother in his quest to become a musician but instead, he led Sonny to a path that led to his ultimate destruction.
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Communication between the two was evidently very minimal and as such, their relationship seemed to deteriorate as time went by. Sonny found comfort in music and if the narrator would have been close enough, he would have known this. The speaker’s decision to disapprove Sonny’s ambition and instead send him to college precipitated the latter to indulge himself in a life of drug abuse. As the story comes to an end, the narrator finally sees his brother play with the band. He realizes that he made a bad decision in life because his brother seems to be good at what he loves to do. He therefore tries to make up for his past mistakes and reduce his guilt by being there for Sonny and helping him to become a better person in life.
In most families, siblings are guided by a sense of compassion and a general responsibility to owe each other. They will therefore do anything to ensure that they take care of the other even if they live in different worlds. In other contexts, familial compassion normally fails and as such, siblings often fail to meet their obligation to the other. This normally comes a result of the indifferences in character, behavior and ambitions between the two. Many older brothers or sisters often feel as if they have to choose a career path for their younger ones yet they chose their own. Siblings who are too old often believe that they have to make all decisions for their loved one based on what they think is best. They fail to consider the fact that people have their own ambitions in life and as such, they should be allowed to choose what they want to be in life.
In the story, the narrator fails to live up to his mother’s promise because he is not there for Sonny. The latter despairs in life when he is taken to college and as such, he drifts farther away from his brother as time goes by. As the story comes to an end, the narrator begins to realize that he made a big mistake by trying to control his brother. Without communication, there is no connection or bond between siblings and as such, the level of understanding will be very low. Even though age plays a very important role in influencing the outcome of a relationship between the brothers, it is possible for both parties to connect with one other if they try to see things from each other’s perspective.
Baldwin tries to bring the issue of brotherhood to light as a lesson to older siblings who fail to take responsibility and support towards their younger ones. He believes that everyone should be given an equal chance in life and as such, a decision should not be made without proper communication and consent with the other party. He notes that through proper communication, maybe Sonny would not have ended up as he did. Who knows, maybe Sonny would have turned out to be a successful musician in future. This shows that sibling compassion is a very important part of familial obligation.
Older siblings should therefore strive to ensure that they take care of their younger ones even if they live in two different worlds. At the end of the story, it becomes clear that the narrator made bad choices that may have led to his brother’s downfall. He, however, makes up for his past mistakes and supports his brother to do what he loves. Even though Baldwin covers the story form a societal point of view, he fails to consider the role of individual ambitions in widening the drift between the two brothers. Even though age played a significant role in the deteriorating relationship, individual differences in character, behavior and future ambition also influenced Sonny’s outcome.
