Paul D's journey in search of his sense of self begins with reclaiming his manhood in order to distinguish himself as a person who is an integral part of Beloved because the quest of his identity is only capable of because of Sethe and the need to be part of a family unit. When Sethe and Paul D's stories intertwine, they form the basis of the theme of introspection present in Beloved. Paul D's struggle to reclaim himself is a significant aspect that represents the collective journey of African men seeking to redefine themselves as individuals; to become entities distinct from their past injected by slavery. Paul D's initial image of his identity is a product of his life at Sweet Home under the care of the Garners; having been informed and treated like a man, Paul D is hopeful about his life and who he really is. By identifying as a man, he believed he would be able to support himself and control his own life and eventually care for the well-being of others, such as family. To discover what it means to be a man, freedom becomes essential. “You all have boys… Young boys, old boys, difficult boys, stroppin boys. Now at Sweet Home my niggas are all men. I bought them like that, I raised them like that. Men, everyone. “I disagree, Garner. There are no Negro men.' "(Morrison 12) While Mr. Garner believes his slaves are men, others do not and this will serve to destroy Paul D's frame of thinking once the schoolmaster becomes his master after the Garners have given up their property. Because of Sweet Home's unique authority, Paul D knows what it's like to have a family, a support system, and to be treated like a human being rather than property. Although Paul D is not free at Sweet Home, this sense of assumed identity allows him to hope that one day, middle of paper, they will overcome their difficulties and grow from the memories, so as not to leave the memories define their sense of self. For “definitions belonged to the definers – not the defined” (Carden 405). Their union is representative of a tree given new life, capable of flowering again after a rebirth in a community where a family will soon be born. Their love story is a symbol of life after a crippling past, of the ability to find oneself through love and a supportive and nurturing community. Sethe and Paul D symbolically represent the massive loss of individuality for the masses of slaves who experienced divided families and torture treatment and, by uniting as a community, can the past be overcome, l Can slavery be destroyed and a newborn race rise from its ashes to become a nation? realize and acquire their own individual identity, separate from a damaging historical life cycle.