Racial Prejudice In Toni Morrison's 'Recitatif'

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In the 1950’s-80’s racism was more prevalent than it is today. In Toni Morrison’s “Recitatif” racial prejudices were experienced by the two main characters, Twyla and Roberta, along with class issues, which are also present at the time. Twyla and Roberta are both placed into an orphanage whenever their mothers are not able to care for them because of personal reasons. One girl is black and the other white, but it is not mentioned who is of what race. Twyla’s mother “danced all night”, while Roberta’s mother is ill. These factors play a huge role on both girls’ thoughts and actions, which reflects on their interactions with Maggie who works in the kitchen for the orphanage . In Toni Morrison’s short story, “Recitatif”, the race and class issues reflect the prejudice experienced by Twyla and Roberta, which shapes their life views. …show more content…

Twyla also claims that it is strange to be stuck in a place with someone of a completely different race (1). These comments reveal that Twyla’s mother is prejudiced against the other race, which is passed onto Twyla because she tells Mrs. Itkin, “My mother won’t like you putting me in here” because of Roberta’s race (1). This reveals that Twyla has a preconceived conception about the other race without knowing the truth about them. Mrs. Itkin offers Twyla a sarcastic remark after her comment about her mother. Then, Twyla states that if Roberta would have laughed, she would have killed her (1). This makes it seem like Twyla thinks that she is superior to Roberta because of the prejudicial remarks made by her mother. This shapes Twyla’s views on Roberta when they first met. Twyla demonstrates racial prejudice toward Roberta because of their different skin

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