Dehumanized. That is what ghosts are. A less than, a shadow, a shallow copy of what it means to be a person. Ghosts are defined by their names. Because ghosts do not exist. In real life the most substance a ghost can have is a name, beyond that it is humans who attribute cold spots and disturbances to a ghost. Some ghosts collect so many stories and fits under their name, that they become legend. Ghost stories can droop over a house like low hanging branches, which people choose not to avoid and bump into allowing the fable to continue.
But I want to talk names. I have observed three categories of ghost names. They can be nameless or have a name associated with their residence like the Lady of White Rock Lake, they have a grand names which they have held onto from life like reported sightings of the ghost of Andrew Jackson, or they take the name of something like their own headstone like Beloved.
In Toni Morrison’s Beloved names have a lot of weight. Names are a form of control, and many of the characters choose their names, as symbol of independence as Stamp Paid or as a comfort like Baby Suggs. Regardless of origin, the majority of the names in Beloved have a childish air, as though Beloved the baby ghost has named everyone in the story. Names are used as a definition of the self, in slavery lacking a surname was a further blow of inferiority, slaves were associated with an owner’s name or a place’s name (Sweet Home Boys), taking away the stability of self and belongingness that comes with a last name. Re-naming someone can also be a source of control. A dictation of a word that defines a person is a serious power.
October in the Chair, a short story by Neil Gaiman, also recognizes the power of names. The main character, Donald, is re-named “the Runt” by his siblings. And the name sticks to him like any unwanted nickname. After ten years in his parents’ house, of being ignored and degraded the Runt decides to run away. He eventually gets to ghost town where he meets a ghost called “Dearly” who has taken the name of what’s left of a crumbling headstone.
There are parallels between humans with non-real names and ghosts with names similar in length and substance in both pieces. Jenny, for example ( the name on Baby Suggs’ sales papers) is a symbol of her slavery. A name on a sale ticket is no more important than the name of a purchased cow. So she changed it. The Runt’s name became sort of a self-fulfilling prophecy, as he could not take a stand to force others to respect him and call him by another name. While Dearly and Beloved both have epitaph names. Dearly’s name was forgotten while Beloved was never given a proper name.
