The Marxist and Feminist schools of theory are two sides of the same coin. In attempting to analyze Toni Morrison’s The Bluest Eye through the lenses of a Marxist and a Feminist critic, the close relation of the seemingly different schools of theories becomes evident. It is seen where both theories require the same procedure as Bressler projected; both theories required for the reader to pay close attention to the text itself as it regards to the plot, themes, language and the society in which the literary work is set. This allows for the reader to unearth the effects that these factors might have had on the meaning of the text and the reader’s overall interpretation of the novel. In comparing the two, it becomes evident that both theories are explicitly about power and its unequal and somewhat unfair distribution. They both deal with the social conflicts between a dominant group and an oppressed one as it relates to this unequal distribution of power. The key difference that sets the two apart is in their issues of priority; the feminist critics are concerned with equalizing power between the sexes while the Marxist critics are concerned with equalizing power between societal classes as it relates to race and social hierarchy determined by economics. Tyson expresses Feminist Criticism to be concerned with "...the ways in which literature reinforces or undermines the economic, political, social, and psychological oppression of women" (82). This theory seeks to expose how features of our culture are innately patriarchal. He expresses the school of Marxist Criticism to be concerned with class differences whether economic, racial or otherwise; "Marxism attempts to reveal the ways in which our socioeconomic system is the ultimate sou...
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...rying to look like them. She got a job merely because she wanted to be able to afford clothes and makeup. Pauline hoped that wearing makeup and the same type of clothes that these women wear would gain her the acceptance of these other women. For a Feminist critic this would prove to be one of the many prominent issues that women alone face. They posit that women are always competing with one another with the desire of being accepted by other females and even their male counterparts alike. Living in a patriarchal where they are viewed and treated as the minority, the oppressed group or as inferior, they involuntarily start to view and think of themselves in this light. Women are socialized to depend on men, and as such they compete to get the most attention from these possible protectors and providers. This situation causes the chronic negative stereotypes of women.
The theme of social class in The Bluest Eye can be seen throughout the whole book. Most of the examples of social class are hidden in the theme of race. Toni Morrison did not only write a book about a corrupt and judgmental neighborhood but also wrote about the view of people’s life with and without money and how or if it differs.
Smith, Nicole. "Literary Analysis of “The Bluest Eye” by Toni Morrison : History and Slavery." Article Myriad. N.p., 15 Jan. 2012. Web. 4 June 2014.
Toni Morrison's novel "The Bluest Eye", is a very important novel in literature, because of the many boundaries that were crosses and the painful, serious topics that were brought into light, including racism, gender issues, Black female Subjectivity, and child abuse of many forms. This set of annotated bibliographies are scholarly works of literature that centre around the hot topic of racism in the novel, "The Bluest Eye", and the low self-esteem faced by young African American women, due to white culture. My research was guided by these ideas of racism and loss of self, suffered in the novel, by the main character Pecola Breedlove. This text generates many racial and social-cultural problems, dealing with the lost identity of a young African American women, due to her obsession with the white way of life, and her wish to have blue eyes, leading to her complete transgression into insanity.
Toni Morrison’s novel The Bluest Eye provides social commentary on a lesser known portion of black society in America. The protagonist Pecola is a young black girl who desperately wants to feel beautiful and gain the “bluest eyes” as the title references. The book seeks to define beauty and love in this twisted perverse society, dragging the reader through Morrison’s emotional manipulations. Her father Cholly Breedlove steals the reader’s emotional attention from Pecola as he enters the story. In fact, Toni Morrison’s depiction of Cholly wrongfully evokes sympathy from the reader.
Patriarchal silencing can be enforced in three different ways; physical abuse, emotional abuse, and social demands and/or expectations. Although both books have opposite cultural and racial factors that influence the way in which the women in the books are treated, we can still see that these three ways of silencing women are present. In Alice Walker’s “The Color Purple”, the form of patriarchal silencing that is most prominent is the viole...
In Toni Morrison's The Bluest Eye, published in 1970, the struggle begins in childhood. Two young black girls -- Claudia and Pecola -- illuminate the combined power of externally imposed gender and racial definitions where the black female must not only deal with the black male's female but must contend with the white male's and the white female's black female, a double gender and racial bind. All the male definitions that applied to the white male's female apply, in intensified form, to the black male's, white male's and white female's black female. In addition, where the white male and female are represented as beautiful, the black female is the inverse -- ugly.
Feminism is a group of movements and ideologies that have a common goal: the political, economic and social equality of the sexes ("Feminism," 2015). Historians have debated the origin of feminism (Rampton, 2015). Did it begin with the greek poetess Sappho? Or with the french author, Christine de Pizan, who is regarded as the the first woman to take up her pen in defense of her sex (Beauvoir, 1953, p. 105)? Women throughout history have challenged society's attitudes when it comes to the female gender and their contributions overtime have made a great impact for women all around the world today. It was around the eighteenth century when Mary Wollstonecraft, often distinguished as the first feminist philosopher, advocated for the same respect and rights for the female sex. However, it was not until the late nineteenth century, that the feminist movement, or rather a series of movements, emerged.
In the novel “Sula”, Toni Morrison presents a very different view on gender in the black community between 1919 and 1965. Written in 1973 after the Civil Rights movement and during the feminist movement, Morison breaks down the traditional gender barriers from as early as 1919, proving that black females were “women” much sooner than their white “lady” counterparts. Morrison depicts matriarchal homes where the women are the dominant figures who even go as far as to emasculate their male opposites. All the women are presented as being independent due to being either abandoned by their husbands or refusing to conform to the convention of marriage. The relationship between Nel and Sula goes far beyond the bounds of a normal relationship. They are doubles or ‘doppelgangers’ whose bonds are severed when Nel conforms to the expectations of the community and marries Jude. Both are able to express the desires or dreams of the other and Sula escapes from Medallion, just as Nel wished when she was a child.
Toni Morrison, the author of The Bluest Eye, centers her novel around two things: beauty and wealth in their relation to race and a brutal rape of a young girl by her father. Morrison explores and exposes these themes in relation to the underlying factors of black society: racism and sexism. Every character has a problem to deal with and it involves racism and/or sexism. Whether the characters are the victim or the aggressor, they can do nothing about their problem or condition, especially when concerning gender and race. Morrison's characters are clearly at the mercy of preconceived notions maintained by society. Because of these preconceived notions, the racism found in The Bluest Eye is not whites against blacks. Morrison writes about the racism of lighter colored blacks against darker colored blacks and rich blacks against poor blacks. Along with racism within the black community, sexism is exemplified both against women and against men. As Morrison investigates the racism and sexism of the community of Lorain, Ohio, she gives the reader more perspective as to why certain characters do or say certain things.
The difference of color is seen through the eyes, but the formulation of racial judgement and discrimination is developed in the subconscious mind. Toni Morrison’s short story “Recitatif (1983)” explores the racial difference and challenges that both Twyla and Roberta experience. Morrison’s novels such as “Beloved”, “The Bluest Eye”, and her short story “Recitatif” are all centered around the issues and hardships of racism. The first time that Twyla and Roberta met Twyla makes a racial remake or stereotype about the texture and smell of Roberta’s hair. Although they both were in the orphanage because of similar situations, Twyla instantly finds a racial difference. The racial differences between Twyla and Roberta affects their friendship, personal views of each other, and relationship with their husbands.
The article is written by Bell Hooks as a critique of the article by Sheryl Sandberg. The author analyses the feminist theory as propounded by Sandberg. She acknowledges the fact that Sandberg’s view on Feminism is clouded by her race and privileged social status. It is thus apparent that Sandberg’s views are subjective to her situation and status in life. The largest failure of the piece is the fact that the writer fails to discuss how multiple intersectionality as defined by Kimberle Crenshaw affect the gender power matrix.
Humanity has always been overlooked by certain societal standards. Before technology, these norms travelled through proxies like religion, politics, wealth, and certain scientific beliefs. In modern day America, these ideals are now also filtered through mediums such as media, movies, tv shows, fashion, etc. As time goes, we become more aware of the inequalities these ideals create and come up with theories such as feminism and Marxism to analyze them. Socially, Marxism addresses the relationship between one 's economic class and how it affects them in civilization. Meanwhile, feminist theory aims to address the oppression and issues dealt with under a patriarchal lifestyle. In this story we can see how both of these theories affect the central
In the novel The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison, she exposes the suffering produced by the problems caused by gender and race oppression through the experiences of African-American children. During the 1940’s, the United States had composed an identity through mass media with books such as “Dick and Jane”, and movies like “Sherley Temple.” These media sources provided a society based on national innocence. In the novel, Morrison relates to and exposes the very real issues that were hidden by the idea of the stereotypical white middle-class family.
“Beauty is in the eye of the beholder”: A Marxist reading of Toni Morrison’s The Bluest Eye
In the book, women have been given the ability to amass power and threaten the authoritarianism of men. On the other hand, the story revolves around the era of civil right. People are oppressed and threatened because of what they believe during this period. It is in the same process that the woman transforms into the victim and oppressed. It is through violence that the women undergo repression from men. In the same moment, it can be identified that the black community starts fighting for equality in the black community that became patriarchal (Shreerekha et al. 34). Throughout the