Peacock

The novel Song of Solomon is filled to the top with symbolism, so I wasn't surprised when the beautiful peacock suddenly became a symbol of wealthy whites oppressing blacks and the critique on masculinity. In chapter eight of the novel, Guitar and Milkman find a white peacock. Guitar immediately starts running after it, symbolizing the poor chasing after wealth, while Milkman hangs around, confused as to why Guitar cares so much about it. The peacock is taunting the men with its dazzling jewels, dangling the prospect of wealth in front of them before snatching it away. Guitar goes on to explain that peacocks can't even fly because of all the weight of the jewels holding them down. This goes back to the beginning of the novel, when Robert Smith "flies" off the building. The idea of the white peacock not being able to fly because of its jewelry symbolizes that fact that whites could never fly because of their own materialistic goods weighing them down. In addition, the fact that this peacock is a man gives a critique on masculinity in the novel. Sexism plays a big role in the book, with females being downgraded to nothing but a worthless piece of trash. The role of the male peacock showing off its eccentric feathers is to give light to the fact that men are also degraded in society, having to be very macho, or else they're stereotyped as being gay. Song of Solomon is jam-packed with various symbols with multiple meanings, as seen by the peacock.