The Bluest Eye - Toni Morrison Writing Assignment

Reading response blog - The Bluest Eye - Toni Morrison



You should not summarize or talk about “plot,” but rather highlight a particular aspect of craft as it pertains to character development, that interests you as a writer, or that as a reader enriches your reading experience and understanding of the story.



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Here is an example from one of my classmates - do not copy it the professor has read theirs!



Right off the beginning of this novel, Toni Morrison gives the impression that Claudia has never lived a happy life. Her parents neglected her completely, and rarely shows love to her or her sister. Claudia grew up emotionally relying on her sister, who has always been there for her. Her surroundings are filled with gossip and neglect. The main theme surrounding the very beginning of the story was the idea of white beauty vs nonwhite beauty. In this case, Toni Morrison uses the primary example of a doll. Claudia was never attached to her white doll despite everyone's belief that blonde beauty is the most beautiful. This illustrates the uniqueness of Claudia in being able to avoid the influence of loving white-standard beauty.



Although Claudia grew up with hardly any comfort from her parents, her values and desires are obvious when she mentions that the greatest gift on Christmas would be spending time with her family and feeling their warmth of love. I felt really bad for Claudia at this point because although she mentioned that this is what she desires, she was not provided any of this. Toni Morrison was able to illustrate, also, how messed up the family. For example, one of Claudia's found memories was of when she played with her sister and Pecola. She enjoyed their company very much, however, it was interrupted when her mother began complaining loudly of Pecola's stay.



Overall, Toni Morrisons main illustration in the first section of the novel was to show readers Claudia's childhood life and to show the era in time in which she lived in (racism, differences in standard of beauty, etc.). Readers are able to see that Claudia is different in her own and various ways. However, as we continue to admire Claudia and support her differences in the society she live in, we may find (later in the novel) that she becomes obsessed in meeting the desire of society and to eventually despise her own differences.



I admire the way Toni Morrison allows us to explore other perspectives and narratives from multiple characters. In the beginning of the story, it was simply mentioned the Pecola was raped by her father. However, nearing the end of the novel, readers are allowed to understand why Cholly condoned to this act. We learn about his history of being rejected by his father, his humiliating moment with the cops, etc. Over and over, the major issues of being unloved and constantly rejected led him to hate woman and abuse them. Unfortunately, his upbringing to this world ever since he was a child affected Pecola as well.





As much as I was disgusted for what Cholly did, I pitied him. I pitied Pecola too. The community they live in is so harsh that I don't really blame them for what they did.