Toni Morrison

Toni Morrison spoke to a packed house at War Memorial Auditorium last night. Thanks to some finagling from a friend at the N&R, I got into the reception prior to the talk. I love the idea of going to meet-and-greets but always freeze up during the "greet" part... at least, ever since meeting Koko Taylor.

I know, I know: who's Koko Taylor? None other than the Queen Bee of the blues - a favorite of mine for years. She played at the Triad Blues Festival (or whatever it's called) eight or nine years ago, coincidentally when the step-mother of my then-girlfriend was on the board of the Blues Preservation Society. That's how we got backstage passes and that's how I was able to have a conversation with Koko Taylor that went something like:

Me: I think you're wonderful!
Koko: That's nice.

Granted, it was a straight-forward, no irony "that's nice" but it has been a constant reminder that there's really no point in saying anything unless I have something to say. Since then, I have bypassed opportunities to speak with elected officials, a rocker or two and even Gregory Hines shortly before he died - and now Toni Morrison...

Be that as it may, it was a wonderful event. While I'm guessing most of us were expecting a talk about her journey and process as a writer, she instead spoke about Grendel, the monster from Beowulf as a metaphor for why violence is bad, even when directed at evil. She spoke of Beowulf's slaying of Grendel and his mother, the way their blood melted the sword he used, a moment in literature that is often interpreted to mean that they were so evil even their blood was toxic. But Morrison suggested that perhaps the sword melted because killing, even killing them, is such an atrocious act.

Though Morrison offered this as a generally anti-violence message, I couldn't help but wonder how much of it was inspired by Iraq or even the beating at Guilford College, particularly after GC President Kent Chabotar gave a moving opening speech about the ongoing impact of the attack including their renewed dedication to "tolerance and diversity."