Toni Morrison's novel "Sula" is extremely complex and interesting. It has various themes and elements that may seem confusing at first, but when put all together make perfect sense. This novel leaves a lot of room for different kinds of criticism. I have chosen to look at the novel as a Gender Critic and a Reader Response Critic. These two forms of criticism are very different and would offer opposite perspectives on the novel. This would help in trying to make more sense of the novel.
             "A Gender critic examines how sexual identity influences the creation of literary work." {Kennedy) In other words, a gender critic looks at the roles of both sexes in a work and tries to understand how they affect the story. In "Sula", the roles of the sexes are clearly defined. In the novel the women take the role of the cook, the cleaner, and the one who takes care of the children. One of the women in the book, Nel, is often seen doing housework. Nel stays home all day and cleans the house while her husband, goes out to work. This was common for a household during that time period. It was normal for women to stay home while the man works. In the novel, the one woman who defies the norm is looked down upon and shunned in their society. Sula, the main character, is independent and does not relay on a man for support. Because of this she is hated by most of the inhabitants of "The Bottom". In fact, when Sula dies, it brings a feeling of relief to the townspeople.
             Another interesting aspect that a gender critic might look at is the role of men in the novel. In "Sula" the men are often portrayed as mere sexual objects, dogs that will sleep with anyone or anything. They have no feelings of guilt when the cheat on their wives, and no remorse about leaving their families. It seems that men in this novel are portrayed in a negative light. The
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