The Bluest Eye...

‘The Bluest Eye’

                                                  -  Toni Morrison

       The literary context of the novel ‘ The Bluest Eye’ is more complex. Writer uses the techniques of ‘ Stream of consciousness’ , multiple perspectives and deliberate fragmentation. Morison understands and uses the particular culture tradition and strives to create  a distinctively black literature. She writes in a black vernacular full of turns of phrases and figure of unique speech to community in which she grew up, with the expectation that if she is true to own experience, it will be universally meaningful. To study , American culture we have to know first about race or racism.
 

                  “ Race – specific yet race – free prose.”

 It is about the damage the internalized racism can do the most vulnerable member of the community – a young girl , whose name is Pecola.

                 

                  The Bluest Eye – is not simple story, but we find multiple , sometime contradictory , interlocking stories. The story has tremendous power for good and evil. In this novel, we can take any character which we like as central character and read the novel from his / her perspective.  Because , all are suffering one or another way. The central character Pecola get sympathy from readers and all time , at the end of the novel she stands as the central character  with her lots of pain. Different people have different ideas and thoughts to see the every action in both way – Positive and negative. While Morrison apparently believes that stories can be redeeming . she is no blind optimist and refuses to let us rest comfortably in any one version of what happens.

                 

                  We also apply the theory of Post Colonialism. We see the superiority of the whiteness. Black are considered as ugly, slave, just like animal not human being, unlovable , particularly in appealing absence of black cultural standards of beauty.  So, whiteness is the standard of Beauty there. Pecola is more suffer than any other because her own mother – Polly Breedlove also hates her. Pecola connects beauty with the happiness and joyful life. She believes that if she has “ Blue Eye “ she will become happy and lives good life.  For her , Blue Eye stands for Happiness.

                  “ Having Blue Eye would change the way other people see her !”

The large part of the novel is covered with sexual initiation.

Examples:

     Prostitutes  - China , Poland , Marie

    Groccer – Yacobowasksi teased Pecola

   Henry Washington fondled Frieda

  Pecola is raped by Cholly Breedlove , her father in her first menstrual period.

      Seeing such examples , we may conclude that

            “Women bodies are available for the abuse, only.”

 After reading above experiences and facts , readers obviously take side of Pecola who is more suffered.

“Frieda’s experience is less painful than Pecola’s because Frieda’s father saves her life where as Pecola’s farther himself destroyed the life of the daughter.”

·        Archetypes : 

                      There is four  seasons but  it pointedly refuses to meet the expectations of these seasons. Mention seasons are… Spring, Summer , Winter and Harvest.

                        Morrison uses natural cycles to underline the unnaturalness and misery of her characters’ experiences. We can say that nature is kind and beautiful as when Claudia wonders whether as ................

“ The earth itself might have been unyielding to someone like… Pecola.”

     

       “ Pecola’s fate is worse than the death.”

   The Marigolds: 

 

            Flower Marigolds are the most important. Claudia and Frieda associate marigolds with the safety and well being of Pecola’s baby.

“ If the flowers bloomed , it would be a sign that every thing was going to be all right with Pecola and her baby.”

 There are many other things , just like…

1.     Whiteness and colour

2.     Cleanliness and Dirtiness 

3.      Satisfying appetites V/s suppressing desire

      Above all things describe the suffering of black people and racism of America . How they are treated and conflict between white people and black people that itself suggest the Master slave Relationship.

·         Bluest eye(s) :

       Bluest  Eye seems to impact the cultural beauty to whiteness in America. Here, wish of Pecola for blue eyes is symbolize….

    “ Her own blindness – at the cost of sanity herself.”

 Pecola herself accept as ugly and inferior than other and never believes in her own beauty or her own free will. So, Blue eyes also represents  the sad isolation.

                                      

   “The Bluest Eye could also mean the saddest eye.”

    Over viewing , whole novel we may say that  The desire of Pecola is unrealistic. She and her family mistreated in past because of black skin . By wishing Blue Eyes rather than lighter skin , Pecola indicates that…..

   “ She wishes to see things differently as much as she wishes to be seen differently.”

       She can only get this wish , in effect by blinding herself. But the connection between how one is seen and what one sees – a uniquely tragic outcome for her. The hopeless desire leads to Pecola ultimately to madness and wish for Bluest Eye may be even more tragic than the wish impulse itself………..