In Jesmyn Ward’s Sing, Unburied, Sing, readers are introduced to Michael and Leonie, parents of Jojo and Kayla, and the codependent relationship that they have that leaves room for no one else. The story of Michael and Leonie’s relationship is interwoven throughout the novel, as readers learn about how they met and also read about their present-day interactions.
The beginning of their relationship should have already been seen as a red flag because Michael’s cousin killed Leonie’s brother, Given, in high school (Ward 49). Michael apologized to Leonie for what happened, and they began to spend time together before eventually dating. Leonie became wrapped up in Michael to the point of “when I woke up in the morning, I thought of Michael’s laugh, of the way he flipped his cigarettes before he lit them, of the way his mouth tasted when he kissed me” (Ward 154). Her obsession with Michael is reminiscent of the craze of high school dating and crushes. She defined herself by Michael and they became codependent on each other, in a toxic, disturbing way, that only got worse as they got older because they became parents.
If Michael and Leonie were not responsible for two other lives, the tunnel-vision they have for each other might have been slightly less toxic, however, they are both neglectful towards their children because of their obsession with each other. Neither person seemed to mature, even as they became parents; Leonie was not even sure she wanted to be a mother but ultimately decided to because “of how happy [Michael] would be, of how I would have a piece of him with me always” (Ward 158). Granted, Leonie was only 17 when making this decision but it still feels immature and irresponsible. Instead of thinking about if she had the capacity to be a mother, Leonie only thought of Michael’s reaction to it; she did not think about what it would mean for her own life. In the present-day, Leonie even seems to resent her children for the change that they brought in her relationship with Michael because they always “had Jojo and Kayla around us, making those spaces bigger between us” (Ward 153). She feels like all that she needs is Michael, and everything else in her life is just in the way of them being together. In theory, the world melting away when someone is with the one that they love sounds romantic, but, in reality, Michael and Leonie need to think about the responsibilities that they have as parents to Jojo and Kayla.
When looking at their relationship together, they are arguably all they have; they are obsessed with one another. After Given dies, Mam and Pop grieve in their own ways to a point where they stop caring about Leonie. Leonie is stuck in a position where there is nobody who understands her. Michael is there for her, comforting her first out of guilt, but their relationship evolves from there (Ward 53). Then, if we look at Michael’s side, his family disowns him because he is dating a black girl and they are racist. Therefore, this relationship must work out, and their obsession with one another is the only way this will happen.
ReplyDeleteAs you said, Leonie gets pregnant at 17. I think the fact that she got pregnant during high school, to her high school boyfriend, one would be stuck in this high school love. A few years pass (some with Michael being gone while working on the oil rig) and then he comes back, and they start doing drugs together. Doing drugs together is almost a childish, pleasure-driven activity that brings out this high school desire once again. Michael then goes off to jail, and within the story we see them continue to have this obsession with one another the moment he gets out, kissing right away (Ward 125). The lack of incentive to develop a mature relationship, along with the fact that they only truly have each other that causes their relationship to be an obsession.
Michael and Leonie’s relationship is certainly unhealthy, and also results in little to no genuine parenting from them. It seems there are certainly warning signs that Michael and Leonie’s relationship is a source of pain rather than pleasure, starting from how they first meet. They don’t fall in love through creating a lasting friendship, but rather merely form a bond out of the pain of losing Given (50). When Leonie first gets pregnant, the fact that Mama openly offers to help her terminate the pregnancy further proves that their relationship is more bad than good. Mama objectively recognizes that Michael and Leonie’s relationship wasn’t likely conducive for raising children, since a spiritual woman such as Mama would likely enjoy the opportunity to have grandchildren.
ReplyDeleteYou perfectly describe their codependence, and I think that’s the root of their current parenting failures. Michael and Leonie still act like they’re teenagers in a relationship, when they’re at the stage where they should be in a mature adult relationship. This could be perhaps due to Leonie and Michael entering the parenting stage, a rather mature stage, while they were still very young (Leonie was 17 at the time). They likely don’t truly identify themselves as adults with responsibilities, seen through how when they are pulled over Leonie finds the officer appears “young, young as me, young as Michael” (161). They’re certainly not older people, but the fact that they identify themselves as being young shows they don’t see themselves as full-fledged adults just yet.
I believe you did a great job at capturing the so-called "codependence" that is such a staple of Leonie and Michael's relationship. Both seem to lack a level of maturity that is expected from an adult their age, much less a parent of two. However, it seems that along with the factors mentioned above, the role that Jojo's age as a narrator plays a big role in how we as the readers see Michael and Leonie's relationship.
ReplyDeleteIt is stated that the teen pregnancy that thrusts both of them into parenthood could be a cause of their lack of maturity when reading from Leonie's point of view. However, when Jojo flashes back to his childhood, it seems there were periods of time where he at least believes his Mom was a more traditional "Mom" and cared for him. He states, "Leonie sang them to me so long ago, I remember them only in snatches" (179). This flashback serves to show that Jojo only saw their relationship through a child's eyes, which is how we see it as readers for a majority of the story.
This point of view offers a very naive and honest view that an adult narrator might not touch on. For instance, when Leonie narrates we as readers are thrown into her complicated life, feelings, and grief. When Jojo narrates, all we see is the facts and how he feels about their relationship, which is the section I feel shaped me into feeling so negatively towards Leonie and Michael's relationship.