TIMED WRITINGS

each of the timed writings assigned have been written out by hand, which i told you in class. If you need to see any of them I carry them with me in my notebook :)

Toni Morrison v.s The Bluest Eye

After having watched the interview, I had absolutely no idea what I was going to write about. This was mainly because most of the interview had nothing to do with the book, it only made reference to other books which Morrison has published. I still have no clue what to write about, but I guess I must write about something or receive a 1.

Within the interview, Morrison talked a lot about how at times there were white slaves along with African American slaves, and even though their social classes were equal, the white people still felt and acted superior to the African American slaves. This is only partially the white peoples fault; the African Americans could have done the same thing or at least could have stood up for themselves when this thought of inferiority was beginning. We see the same situation occurring in the book. Many of the African Americans undergo much unnecessary abuse and torture. It is understandable that at the time, white men felt superior; therefore, they did not treat the African Americans very nicely, but the amount of abuse could have been reduced by at least 40% had the African Americans stood up for themselves and for the few amount of rights which they had.

Toni Morrison gave me the impression that she doesn't feel pity for the African Americans, rather, she applauds those who made their lives by fighting for every right they had. In the interview, she also spoke about researching the era, which she was writing about. This allowed her to be sure of all the aspects which took place in those tough eras. I'm sure The Bluest Eye contains much historical fact even if the characters and plot are fiction.

White equals Beauty?

As I continued reading the rest of the novel, I noticed some things that were out of line or abnormal to what usual happens in literature and/or life. Each of Morrison's character's lives in The Bluest Eye, full of hardships which they must deal with in their own ways. The young black women were the ones who seemed to suffer the most at the time due to bad upbringing and/or abuse. Some aspects of the novel seemed odd and did not follow their usual symbolism.

The first was the color white. In the small amount of literature I have studied, white means clean, innocent, or pale/ lifeless (with a bad connotation.) The characters in the novel such as Geraldine make it seem as if colors of any type were bad. They made it seem as if it made one look unclean and unworthy of the privileges of the life of the "whitemen". The white women were subject to abuse, rape, and many other terrible things, but they didn't exactly help themselves either. The African American society could have revolted to the white people, but because it was drummed into them and they saw themselves as inferior, they did not have the spirit to fight and win a battle against the whites. Morrison then shows how the colors represent happiness (when Pauline makes love to Cholly) rather than white which lacks any color and/or life.

The seasons also seemed to have opposite meanings in the book than they do in most literature. The book begins with Autumn, which is when Pecola's child dies. Autumn is seen as the time of the crops, of harvesting; therefore, one would assume that it would be a time in which children would be born, but in the book, it has the opposite effect. Spring, a time of joy and rebirth, is of the worst times in the novel. In this time Pecola is raped and there is much fear in the village due to the abuses occurring at the time. The moodiness of the earth during these changes can be seen as symbolism for the moodiness and misery of the African American girls at the time who suffered constantly, yet still went on with their lives as if nothing were wrong.