Chapter 13
Paul D, disgusted by his own weakness and Beloved's control over him, meets Sethe at work to walk her home and tell her what's been going on. He wants to explain that Beloved is some evil force. When he tries to do so, Sethe looks so accepting of his failure as a man and so expectant that he is leaving her, he chickens out and instead declares he wants her to have his baby. He sees having a child with her as an excellent way to hang on to her and to break Beloved's power over him at the same time. Their walk home is playful and fun until Beloved comes to meet Sethe, taking her attention away from Paul D. This angers him.
Topic Tracking: Anger 10
That night Sethe asks him to sleep in her room with her for good. Paul D believes Beloved's spell on him is broken because Sethe chose him in front of Beloved. Then Sethe begins thinking he wants a baby because he resents her connection with Denver and wants to have his own family. But Sethe,
"had all the children she needed. If her boys came back one day, and Denver and Beloved stayed on -- well, it would be the way it was supposed to be, no? Right after she saw the shadows holding hands at the side of the road hadn't the picture altered? And the minute she saw the dress and shoes sitting in the front yard, she broke water. Didn't even have to see the face burning in the sunlight. She had been dreaming it for years." Chapter 13, pg. 132
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