The Bluest Eeye Bbackground A woman’s race and the time period she lives in influences not only whether she will be a victim of sexual assault but also, the punishment of the offender. Toni Morrison, The author of The Bluest Eye, a victim of segregation, deals with sexual assault and segregation in her book. Chole Anthony Wofford, who goes by the name of Toni Morrison when writing her books, was born in Lorain, Ohio on February 18, 1931. Her father had several jobs to support their family, while her mother worked as a domestic worker. Toni lived in an integrated neighborhood. However, she did not become aware of segregation until she was a teenager. Her and her family eventually moved to the North to get away from …show more content…
When giving a talk in England, someone in the audience asked Morrison how did she want to be remembered, her answer was “I said as an honest, trustworthy person - I think I even put humor in there” (Morrison). Instead of seeing herself as a hero to the African American community by discussing racial and everyday problems in her books she only wants to be remembered as someone who was honest when speaking and trustworthy. There are few comparisons and differences between Toni morrison’s real life and the life of the character in The Bluest Eye. The only difference between the main character and the author is that Morrison did not experience sexual assault when growing up. Although, there are few similarities. Both, Toni and the main character Pecola have siblings, grew up in the same hometown and endured the widely known social problem of segregation. In The Bluest Eye, Pecola lived in the same neighbor and experienced segregation just like Toni did as a child. The way Toni Morrison grew up helped her create the main character Pecola, the theme of this book and the way she now views white people. Growing up, Morrison and her family experienced hate crimes. At the age of two, her house was set on fire by white people who were trying to evict them while they were in it. This incident caused them to flee from the racial tensions in the South and move to the North. After that experience, Toni’s father grew to not like white people and believed
Toni Morrison, the author of The Bluest Eye, centers her novel around two things: beauty and wealth in their relation to race and a brutal rape of a young girl by her father. Morrison explores and exposes these themes in relation to the underlying factors of black society: racism and sexism. Every character has a problem to deal with and it involves racism and/or sexism. Whether the characters are the victim or the aggressor, they can do nothing about their problem or condition, especially when concerning gender and race. Morrison's characters are clearly at the mercy of preconceived notions maintained by society. Because of these preconceived notions, the racism found in The Bluest Eye is not whites against blacks. Morrison writes about
The Bluest Eye, written by Toni Morrison in the year 1970, places two things together in the twentieth century in the United States. The novel is mainly about the tragic life of the main character, Pecola Breedlove, a young African American girl, in the year 1940 that experienced different kinds of social issues that were depicted in the novel. The narrator of the story, Claudia Macteer, who is Pecola’s friend, narrated the novel through the use of her own point of view in both of her childhood and adult life. The novel portrays the advantages that black migrants from the South experience as they move their life to the North in the mid twentieth century. Because of the need to find new opportunities, they moved away from the different
The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison takes place in Ohio in the 1940s. The novel is written from the perspective of African Americans and how they view themselves. Focusing on identity, Morrison uses rhetorical devices such as imagery, dictation, and symbolism to help stress her point of view on identity. In the novel the author argues that society influences an individual's perception on beauty, which she supports through characters like Pecola and Mrs. Breedlove. Furthermore, the novel explains how society shapes an individual's character by instilling beauty expectations. Morrison is effective in relaying her message about the various impacts that society has on an individual's character through imagery, diction, and symbolism by showing that
“The Bluest Eye” by Toni Morrison is a very complex story. While not being a novel of great length is very long on complexity. It tells the story of Pecola Breedlove, a young African American girl immersed in poverty and made “ugly” by the Society of the early 1940’s that defines beauty in terms of blonde haired white skinned , and in this case specifically Shirley Temple.
The Bluest Eye takes place during a tumultuous time in America, segregation was still legal, and racial differences were apparent. The town in which the novel takes place, Lorain, Ohio, has a population that is considered ethnically unequal, even though the town was mostly integrated. This town is considered mostly interracial, where African-American’s attended the same schools as white children, and shopped at the same stores. Throughout the novel, Morrison portrays how vulnerable young African-American girls are as they are exposed to this implied white beauty and
Because "The Bluest Eye" crystallizes the negative affect society can have on people, specifically African American girls in this novel, it is a teachable book for kids to determine the difference between what society wants and what is right. In the novel, Claudia says “We looked hard for flaws to restore equilibrium” (Morrison 68.) Claudia was referring to a white girl in her school. This is significant because society lead these African American girls to drool over white girls because they are supposedly perfect or worthier then them. It teaches kids the effects of society’s actions, and makes them realize self-worth does not come from the way you look. On page 22 of the novel Claudia states, “I try to discover what eludes me” (Morrison
Throughout Toni Morrison's The Bluest Eye, many characters, including Soaphead Church and Geraldine, use Pecola Breedlove to make themselves feel better. Using Pecola as a scapegoat, the other characters justify their shortcomings by comparing themselves to her. When they think about Pecola, the other characters in the book feel superior and thus boost their egos.
Finding a self-identity is often a sign of maturing and growing up. This becomes the main issue in Toni Morrison’s novel The Bluest Eyes. Pecola Breedlove, Cholly Breedlove, and Pauline Breedlove are such characters that search for their identity through others that has influenced them and by the lifestyles that they have. First, Pecola Breedlove struggles to get accepted into society due to the beauty factor that the norm has. Cholly Breedlove, her father, is a drunk who has problems that he takes out of Pecola sexually and Pauline physically. Pauline is Cholly’s wife that is never there for her daughters.
In Toni Morrison’s The Bluest Eye the main conflict of the story is about an African American girl that believes her life would be better if she had blue eyes, or in other words being white. The setting takes place in Ohio during the 1940’s, also their is a lot of racism in The Bluest Eye although it is not directly brought out. Instead Toni Morrison addresses racism in this story by having people look at themselves with a form of self hatred rather than a race with privilege judging them.
Toni Morrison’s novel, The Bluest Eye, presents the lives of several impoverished black families in the 1940’s in a rather unconventional and painful manner. Ms. Morrison leads the reader through the lives of select children and adults, describing a few powerful incidents, thoughts and experiences that lend insight into the motivation and. behavior of these characters. In a somewhat unconventional manner, the young lives of Pauline Williams Breedlove and Charles (Cholly) Breedlove are presented to the reader. Through these descriptions, the reader comes to understand how they become the kind of adults they are. Background information is given not necessarily to incur sympathy but to lend understanding.
Toni Morrison’s book The Bluest Eye tells the story of Pecola Breedlove, an eleven-year-old black girl who desperately wants blue eyes because she thinks they’ll make her beautiful. Because of her father, she becomes the epicenter of town gossip and a scapegoat that the people use to make themselves feel superior. Pecola feels hated and ugly in her community because she’s black and seems convinced that if she had blue eyes, all her problems would go away. Morrison’s novel is a timeless work of art that explores and develops many themes such as the idea that being white is equivalent to being beautiful. Like many incredible pieces of literature, the novel continues to inspire people.
The rape of Pecola is a tragic occurrence. In The Bluest Eye, Toni Morrison focuses heavily on the topic of her rape. Morrison shows how the rape has affected Pecola by creating a powerful and compelling tale, allowing the reader to connect with Pecola and better empathize with her. Morrison’s stylistic choices and use of powerful language make her story even more commanding and eye-catching and further the reader’s understanding of Pecola’s misery and their sympathy towards her.
Toni Morrison was like the average single black woman in the 1960’s. Newly divorced, she worked hard at her nine to five job at a publishing company trying to care for her two sons. Although she majored in English in college, being a novelist and winning awards for her stories was the last thing on her mind. And after being rejected from publishing companies saying that her stories “had no beginning, no middle, and no end” and “it [was] great but…..’ she surely thought that her stories were a waste of time. After the publication of her first novel, “The Bluest Eye” did not sell very well, it did receive reviews by book critics saying that the novel was like poetry and filled with emotion and pain. They also mentioned that her novels gave a
The novel The Bluest Eye written by Toni Morrison is subjected on a young girl, Pecola Breedlove and her experiences growing up in a poor black family. The life depicted is one of poverty, ridicule, and dissatisfaction of self. Pecola feels ugly because of her social status as a poor young black girl and longs to have blue eyes, the pinnacle of beauty and worth. Throughout the book, Morrison touches on controversial subjects, such as the depicting of Pecola's father raping her, Mrs. Breedlove's sexual feelings toward her husband, and Pecola's menstruation. The book's content is controversial on many levels and it has bred conflict among its readers.
The Bluest Eye is a novel written by Toni Morrison that reveals many lessons and conflicts between young and adult characters of color. The setting takes place during the 1940s in Lorain, Ohio. The dominant speaker of this book is a nine year old girl named Claudia MacTeer who gets to know many of her neighbors. As a result of this, Claudia learns numerous lessons from her experience with the citizens of Lorain. Besides Claudia, The Bluest Eye is also told through many characters for readers to understand the connection between each of the adults and children. Many parents in the novel like Geraldine and Pauline Breedlove clearly show readers how adults change their own children. Furthermore, other adult characters like Cholly Breedlove