Roughly halfway through Beloved, we get the first one-on-one scene between Beloved and Denver. Much of Beloved's dialogue is left up to the reader's interpretation-- it strongly hints that Beloved is indeed the reincarnation of Sethe's baby.
Most memorable (or should I say, rememorable) was Beloved's mention of a bridge she hid on. Although she cryptically mentioned the bridge two chapters prior, Beloved elaborates to Denver during this scene. She describes being in a small, dark, and hot place where she was forced to lie in a fetal position-- a situation reminiscent of being in a grave. She says "A lot of people's down there. Some is dead.", after which Denver asks if she saw Baby Suggs -- reinforcing the connection to the dead. Beloved's description of it being down there, rather than up there, calls to mind the Underworld of Greek mythology. This interesting allusion to Greek mythology extends to the aforementioned bridge. I believe Beloved was talking about a bridge over the River Styx, the barrier between the underworld and realm of the living. Spirits of the deceased would cross over in order to reach the underworld. Her staying on the bridge could be a reference to the baby's ghost haunting 124, as ghost are often said to be spirits of those who refuse to completely leave the world of the living. Notice how she intially goes to the Underworld, and then later goes to the bridge-- a possible reference to the brief 'grace period' between Beloved's death and her haunting. Her seeing Sethe's earrings can also fit with my theory-- the River Styx is filled with lost hopes and dreams; the earring's could easily be a representation of Sethe's lost dream of a complete family after killing Beloved and the disappearance of Halle.
This scene, along with all of the implications, allusions, and metaphors, serves an early example of Beloved's supernatural nature, and also makes the reader wary of her in future chapters.
