Examples Of Racism In The Bluest Eye

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Joseph Romo Dr. Rudy ENGL 105 12 October 2015 Beauty and Racism in The Bluest Eye Toni Morrison’s novel The Bluest Eye tells a story about the feelings of black self-hatred as a result of the equality that society has created between racism and beauty. Throughout the novel, the main African-American characters show that they have been internally worn out by American societal notion that “whiteness is beauty”, and struggle to accept the socially defined definition of beauty and in the case of Pecola for example, find beauty in themselves. Through the use of symbolism, imagery, and conflict, Morrison is able to convey the message that although some of those who undergo self loathing eventually eventually give in to the identity they lack or grow past it, there are also those whose self esteems are silently destroyed. Morrison’s use of the doll helps present this idea in children, and uses Pecola and Claudia, the protagonist…show more content…
However, it is this misfortune that Pecola undergoes that really highlights Morrison’s key message on beauty and race. The key difference between Claudia and Pecola was the interaction of the family. Unlike Claudia’s family, Pecola and her family strongly applied the ideals of western beauty, not to mention, Pecola’s family did not show her the same love and care as Claudia’s family did. For example, when Pecola was scolded for vomiting, and the fact that she called her mother “Mrs. Breedlove”, as if she wasn’t anything important to her. The Breedlove’s seemed to was this results in Pecola feeling that she connects with her family through her ugliness when Claudia says “ As long as she looked the way she did, as long as she was ugly she would have to stay with these people... each night without fail she prayed for blue eyes...maybe they’d say, “Why look at pretty eyed Pecola. We mustn't do bad things in front of those pretty eyes””

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