Beloved recognizes Sethe's song

One evening, as they sit by the fire, Beloved begins to hum a song that Sethe recognizes as one she made up and sang only to her children. Sethe realizes with a shock that Beloved knows the song, a song that no one else could know. This moment confirms what Sethe has been suspecting: Beloved is the ghost of her dead daughter, returned to her in the flesh. The revelation is both terrifying and exhilarating for Sethe, who sees it as a chance for redemption and reunion. Denver, who has also suspected the truth, is filled with a mixture of awe and fear.