Novel Update 4

The Bluest Eye

Marla Rodriguez
A01186833
Explain the meaning of the title.
The Bluest Eye makes reference to the Pecolas request of having
blue eyes because she associated them with beauty. The title is
very significant because it relates to Pecolas dream of having blue
eyes, which will make her beautiful and wanted.
The reference of blue eyes related to beauty is portrayed since the
beginning of the novel, where Claudia refuses to play with dolls
because they reflect beauty, and make her feel ugly. She
expresses that From the clucking sounds of adults I knew that
the doll represented what they thought was my fondest wish. I was
bemused with the thing itself, and the way it looked. What was I
supposed to do with it? Pretend I was its mother? I had no interest
in babies or the concept of motherhood. (Morrison, 1970, p. 20)
Claudia did not like these dolls nos only because she wasnt
interested on playing with them, but also because she didnt feel
identified with them.
The girls grew up ith these standards of beauty, which makes them
feel ugly and hated. Pecola grows up thinking that her ugliness is
the cause of all of her family problems, and blames herself for her
mother unhappiness and her fathers abuses. Pecola wishes to
have blue eyes so she can see the world in a different perspective,
the perspecive of a pretty and happy girl.
This symbolism portrays racism and self hate in the African
American community, which was a conflic in the 1960s. Since the
story is narrated from a childs perspective, it makes us realice that
these problems where so constant, that even children started to
grow salf- hate and they felt ugly.