Lemonade & Beloved: Red, The Color of the Narratives
By: Gabby Cataldo
Lemonade and Beloved both share narratives of the generational trauma of Black Americans. While Lemonade follows the story of Beyoncé as she navigates and heals from her husband’s infidelity; Beloved details the numerous journeys of enslaved African Americans and their escape to freedom. What also connects these two works is the key attention to detail as they both use colors to enhance the storyline. Throughout both works, the color red similarly appears to provide context and symbolism.
Red: Symbolizes excitement, energy, passion, love, desire, speed, strength, power, heat, aggression, danger, fire, blood, war, violence, all things intense and passionate
LOVE, PASSION, AND ANGER
In Lemonade, the color red first emerges as Beyoncé is sitting on a stage in the famous black hoodie. It is apparent to the viewers that there is a strong contrast between the muted colors of the wardrobe and the boldness of the stage curtain. With Beyoncé’s recent discovery of her husband’s betrayal, the red curtain could be a symbol of all her emotions. In a place where she should be most comfortable, Beyoncé is facing the truth in front of everyone. While she still may love her husband, the anger, passion, and emotions of his betrayal have been released to the public. In Beloved, we see that same release of emotions in Paul D when his tobacco tin spills all out in front of him. As he seduces Beloved, Paul D says out loud “Red heart. Red heart,’ over and over again. Softly and then so loud it woke Denver, then Paul D himself. ‘Red heart. Red heart. Red heart’” (Morrison 137). His red heart symbolizes all Paul D has faced in his life, the trauma and the emotions. The red heart is put on display for all to see.
This idea of loving red and exposing all emotions can be seen in Taylor Swift’s song Red released in 2012. In her lyrics, Taylor Swift states “But loving him was red, loving him was red” and “when I still see it all in my head, in burning red, burning, it was red”. The love she had was wrapped up in all the meanings of the color red. It was passionate, with power and love; however, it was dangerous and angering. The emotions were so intense that they were never easy to forget which we see in both Beyoncé and Paul D.
BLOOD, POWER, AND VIOLENCE
Our first introduction to the color red in Emptiness is Beyoncé wearing a blood-red dress surrounded by a raging fire. In “Beyoncé’s Lemonade is Black Women Magic” we learn that Beyoncé’s fiery introduction pays tribute to the Haitian goddess Erzulie Red Eyes, who “the Haitian lwa Edwidge Danticat calls the “hot-blooded Erzulie who feared no men but rather made them her slaves, raped them, and killed them … the only woman with that power.” In Haitian voodoo, Erzulie is the spirit of love which the color red is a symbol of. Despite entering into emptiness, Beyoncé feels a sense of power and love which she portrays by taking the role of Erzulie. The red dress is also a symbol of blood and the actions of Erzulie. The color red in relation to blood is addressed multiple times in Beloved, sometimes creating a gruesome scene. In the early pages of the book, we learn that Sethe stopped seeing color instantly, it states “it was as though one day she saw red baby blood, another day the pink gravestone chips, and that was the last of it” (Morrison 47). In this specific section the color red and blood are linked together, it details the violence that occurred against the child. It is one of the many detailed sentences that paint an image of the actions and struggles of Sethe.
DANGER, VIOLENCE, AND DEATH
The color red continues to take a prominent role in the visual album during Emptiness. In Emptiness, Beyoncé introduces the red ominously lit hallway which the camera draws closer to it. In many ways, this red-lit hallway symbolizes “The Door of No Return” which is an opening out to the Atlantic Ocean. This doorway is observed as the final threshold enslaved Africans passed through before boarding slave ships embarking on the Americas. The intensity of the red symbolizes danger, violence, and unfortunately death. It may also represent “the curse” and the inter-generational wounds inflicted upon the identities of African Americans. Throughout Beloved, that same pool of red light ominously covers the house of 124. In one of Paul D’s first interactions with 124 it is described that “Paul D tied his shoes together, hung them over his shoulder, and followed her through the door straight into a pool of red and undulating light that locked him where he stood” (Morrison 10). For 124, this same idea of danger, violence, and death blanketed the house. 124 housed many actions of violence and danger from the killing of Sethe’s child to the almost complete destruction of Sethe’s life.
POWER, DESIRE, AND SEXUALITY
Additionally, in emptiness we watch Beyonce drenched in red light as she is driven in a luxurious vehicle down a street. In a reverse role, Beyonce is set out to capitalize on her sexual desire for her own profit and power. As we move away from the red-lit hallway, the color red is introduced as a way to symbolize her passion for power and wealth. This is also seen in Beloved when we meet Amy Denver — the woman who helped Sethe deliver her baby after escaping. In a conversation between Amy and Sethe, we learn that Amy is traveling to Boston to find carmine velvet. Amy states “the velvet I seen was brown, but in Boston they got all colors. Carmine. That means red but when you talk about velvet you got to say ‘carmine’” (Morrison 44). The desire for the specific carmine velvet shows the thirst for power and wealth. She sets foot on this long journey to acquire something “rich” which will fulfill a desire and need to move to a brighter future.
Wherever we look, the color red takes a prominent role in our daily lives, music, film, and literature. From the ruby red shoes in the Wizard of Oz to the red balloon in the It movies, the color strikingly produces symbolism and meaning. It is a powerful color that captures the audience and continued to do so in both Lemonade and Beloved.
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