Studies on African American literature have widened their scope in recent decades. Thus, Foucault’s notions of power can be applied not only to political institutions, i.e. colonies or territories, but also to individuals in the process of fighting for their identity, against the constraints of history or tradition; similarly, postcolonial studies can also shed new light on issues of race and gender.
On the other hand, although Toni Morrison was born in Ohio, she is commonly included in anthologies and critical reviews of Southern American literature, as the child of migrants who moved to the North, escaping poverty and extreme forms of segregation. Morrison was also well-acquainted with a land she toured as a member of a travelling theatre group. Therefore, although her novels are mainly set in Northern states, the close connection of Afro-Americans to the South is present in her stories and characters. Song of Solomon is a case in point. In this paper I will consider how the South casts its shadow over a narrative marked by the underlying presence of Southern motifs, symbols or idiom, culminating in the spatial shift that takes the action to Virginia, where the protagonist reconciles himself with his African American background. I will pay special attention to the contrast between the urban ethics assumed by African Americans in the North and the legacy of the Southern environment.