Loss in Baldwins Music - Essay Example

Expression the Loss of Musical Expressions and MemoriesLoss is often expressed with music or other similar expressions. Authors like James Baldwin, Oscar Hijuelos and Annie Proulx have expressed the loss with musical expressions and memories. Baldwin’s sonny Blues depicts the story of his brother and the problems he overcomes in his life. Music plays a major role in this work of Baldwin’s, as his brother who is a musician gets tangled by problems associated with drugs. Due to this reason he is separated from his brother and this is associated with musical expressions.

Baldwin considers his brother’s separation as a loss and this form the main plot of the story. The experience in this case is purely personal, as the story relates to his brother. The reason why music is represented is his brother was jazz musician and his life takes a turn once he gets addicted to drugs. The story The Mambo Kings Play Songs of Love by Hijuelo is almost similar to that of Baldwin’s. The stories are similar in many ways, as this story also revolves around a musician and his losses in life.

In this story, Castillo, the main character loses his friends, brother and collaborators of his band. The loss is personal and similar to the one that Baldwin faces. Music plays a major role in this novel too, as Castillo is one of the most renowned musicians of the band, Mambo Kings. When comparing these two novels, it is certain that music has been used as a toll to represent their loss in life. The next story, Accordion Crimes by Annie Proulx revolves around the instrument which survives for a longer period of time.

This instrument’s journey is certainly remarkable, but the saddest part is the death of people who acquire the instrument. When compared to the other two stories, Accordion Crimes describes about the loss of people who sacrifice their life for the sake of music. The experience is societal, as many people, irrespective of their caste and creed are involved in this journey. The similarity between these three novels is the presence of music in each part of the story.