Magical Realism

Not having belly buttons, believing in ghosts, and having wings, characters in The Song of Solomon are portrayed with a combination of mythical and realistic elements, blurring the lines between reality and fantasy for the readers. 

During my first read of "her smooth was as smooth and sturdy as her back, at no place interrupted by a navel"(27), I ignored this detail, thinking it was not important.I just thought maybe Pilate ends up being some unusual person. But after a second read, I wondered how not having a belly button was possible. The biggest physical similarity between all humans is most likely our belly buttons because our belly buttons are what define our birth. Although not having a belly button is possible through medical issues, it is such a rare case that an average person wouldn't know that it's even possible without researching about it.  Also, since Pilate doesn't have a navel, it symbolizes her uniqueness and provides foreshadowing for her characterization. It could also be correlated to her freedom and confidence; she openly makes fun of "[Milkman's] school, teachers, and [milkman] even though she is poorer than them. She doesn't let her wealth define her relationships, unlike the relationship between Daisy and Gatsby in the Great Gatsby. Pilate becomes Milkman's mentor and guides him through his journey of discovering the forgotten past of their family. Morrison also incorporates the fact how Pilate can turn humans into vegetables when he says "turn a man into a ripe rutabaga"(94). This also adds on to her supernatural abilities and how she isn't normal. Perhaps many of the other characters in the book use the detail that Pilate has no navel as an excuse for why she is very successful in life and happy with herself.