The Bluest Eye By Toni Morrison - 2351 Words

How does one define beauty? The term white is often associated with synonyms like purity, godly and innocence. In comparison, the color black is typically associated with ugliness, darkness and evil. Toni Morrison’s The Bluest Eye illustrates the struggles many black women faced in a patriarchal society, as they struggled to meet an impossible standard of beauty. â€Å"Black females were double oppressed. First, they have been sexually oppressed by white masters under the institutionalized slavery. Second, they have been victimized by family members and social institutions† (Tahir 3). From a feminist perspective, I will examine how The Bluest Eye depicts a standard of white beauty that led to the oppression and self-destruction of black women†¦show more content†¦Morrison questions the foundation of white supremacy imposed by the standards of beauty in The Bluest Eye. In the novel many characters attempt to conform to the white standard of beauty. Pecola Breed love the eleven-year-old African American protagonist of the novel, has been told her entire life that she wasn’t ‘good’ enough, or ‘pretty’ enough by society. â€Å"It had occurred to Pecola some time ago that if her eyes, those eyes that held pictures, and knew the sights – if those eyes of hers were different, that is to say, beautiful, she herself would be different† (Morrison 46). Pecola believes that if she had blue eyes not only will she be viewed as beautiful by her community, but she believes beauty will change her status in society. Pecola’s desire to become beautiful illustrates her psychological oppression. Pecola associates beauty with status. She believes by meeting the standard of white beauty, her life will be better. Feminist theory describes the psychological effects oppression has on the individual. â€Å"Feminist psychoanalytic theory is interested in patriarchy’s influence on women’s psycholog ical experience creativity. Its focus is on the individual psyche, not on group experience. For the oppression of women is not limited to the economic, political and social† (Tysons 99). Pecola’s