Final answer:
The phrase refers to Sethe, the protagonist of Toni Morrison's 'Beloved', who is trapped between a difficult life and the haunting presence of her past.
Step-by-step explanation:
The character described as "Suspended between the nastiness of life and the meanness of the dead" is b) Sethe. This quote is from Toni Morrison's novel 'Beloved,' which examines the psychological impact of slavery. Sethe, the protagonist, is indeed caught in a limbo state, troubled by the harsh realities of her past life and haunted by the ghosts of her traumatic history, including the baby daughter she lost, whose tombstone is marked with a single word, 'Beloved'.