Bluest Eye Essay. The Tragedy Of a Young Black Girl

“The Bluest Eye” essays describe the difficult life of the little black girl Pecola. This child was unhappy during all her life. On our website you can read one of “The Bluest Eye” essay and order different kinds of written works.  In “Bluest Eye” you will read about the great problem – problem of racism. The young Pecola was sure, that all her problems were because of her black skin and dark color of eyes. The girl had the greatest dream. What was her dream you will read in our essay on “The Bluest Eye”.

About The Author

Toni Morrison was a talented American writer. She was a mother of two handsome sons.  For same time Toni was a teacher in Howard University. At that time she was a member of some writing group and decided to write her first novel. It was “The Bluest Eye”. Later Morrison explained why she had chosen such a difficult theme. The author said that at that time a lot of black male authors started to publish their aggressive revolutionary books and many readers liked their works. At that moment Morrison thought that maybe these black writers would forget something important and all the people would not remember anymore how harmful racism was.  The author remembered that in her childhood children often called each other different names, but no one thought that it was serious. They were just kids and they were sure that they are beautiful. Toni Morrison wrote a perfect novel about how it is awful to feel forever ugly. She described those people whose color of the skin had ruined the whole life, people, who were unhappy.  And what is true happiness?

The Plot And The Characters

The novel is about a tragic life story of Pecola Breedlove, her family and other people, who influence on Pekola’s life. Pecola was born in a strange family, and during all her life the poor girl was sure that she is ugly. From the very beginning the author tells us that the girl will be raped by her father. Her story and the story of her parents are the same. All of them at first were an innocent people, but later the life in that society had changed them. Pecola was sure that all her problems because of her black skin. She dreamt that blue eyes and white skin will make her happy, and parents will love her, and her mother will stop to call her a little nasty black bitch. Everybody make fun of her, and even the grocer never looks at her, when she comes to buy some candies.

Pecola prays about blue eyes, but nothing changes. Once she even decided to visit one pedophilic fortune-teller and ask him for blue eyes. But the man just used Pecola. He asked her to kill the dog, and after that promised to change her eyes. But when the dog was in agony, the girl was afraid and quickly run away. At last poor girl lost her mind. All the time she continued to talk with her imaginary friend. And she was the only person whom Pecola talked with. The theme of conversation was always the same – about Pecola’s beautiful blue eyes. The poor girl was sure that at last she received the bluest eyes in the world. All her life she was mad.

Pauline (mother of Pekola) was a kind child, and she just wanted to love and to be loved. But she married violent, cruel and almost uncontrollable man. Pauline is a lonely woman, she lives in her own isolated world of dreams and hopes. This world Pauline created herself, watching a lot of films. She works as a housekeeper in a white family. Polly likes this family and she is really happy, while stays at their home. In her own home she was poor wife, her husband drank a lot of alcohol and often moked her.

Cholly Breedlove (Pekola’s father) did not remember his parents. His aunt raised him up, but she died when Cholly was a teenager. Later Cholly decided to become a free man but his black painful past was always with him. He became an alcoholic, once he burnt his own house, often he beat his own wife and at last he raped his daughter twice. In his childhood he had a negative sexual experience and maybe that’s why he was so cruel to his daughter. He loved her, but to rape her was the only way to express his feeling. He died in the workhouse.

MacTeer Family. In this family Pecola lived for some time. Claudia and Frieda MacTeer was kind-hearted sisters. They understood that Pecola is unhappy, but what could they do? When they knew that the girl is pregnant from her father they wished Pecola’s child to be alive. Two sisters decided to plant marigold seeds. The girls were sure that if the flowers live, the same will be with the baby. But flowers were not going to bloom, and the poor child had died.

The Themes

In her novel Toni Morrison describes two large problems in the society. The first is the tragedy of violation of children and the second is the question of racism. Morrison shows us how the problem of racism affects the children’s life. Pecola was born at that time, when everybody thinks that whiteness beautiful and blackness forever ugly. Even the title of the novel shows us that there were some beauty standards, and even a child understood it. So from the very beginning Pekola had no chance. The society killed her.

Having read the novel “The Bluest Eyes”, I was deeply impressed.  The tragic story of this unhappy child could not leave us indifferent. With all my heart I sympathize to this poor girl, but nothing can be changed. Toni Morrison wrote the realistic book with realistic problems, which were the horrible reality at that time.