Toni Morrison’s The Bluest Eye

Bahar BALIK

Deniz Dadik KIPGE

Hasan Can SARAL

Serra OREY

Toni Morrison’sThe Bluest Eye

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Dick and Jane ReadersShirley Temple and BojanglesThemes: Race and BeautySymbolsReferences

Outline

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Written by William S. Gray and Zerna Sharp, Dick and Jane Readers were used to teach American children to read from 1930s to 1970s.

Composed of a mother, a father, their children Dick and Jane, who belong to a white, middle class society that Pecola wants to be a member of.

Dick and Jane Readers

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Very simple use of vocabulary

Important point; black characters were not inclueded until 1965

How can you relate the fact that blacks were not included until 1960s to our novel?

Dick and Jane Readers

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The sentences belonging to Dick and Jane style narration  are simple and readable but gradually the narrative loses all its punctuation which can be a visual metaphor for Pecola's losing her perspective about her worth as a person.

When the paragraphs dissolve into a river of print, having absolutely no meaning, we can liken this situation to the madness of Pecola.

……..… would like to be Jane (Blue Hair & Blonde Hair)

How do these readers relate to our novel?

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The sentences belonging to Dick and Jane style narration  are simple and readable but gradually the narrative loses all its punctuation which can be a visual metaphor for Pecola's losing her perspective about her worth as a person.

When the paragraphs dissolve into a river of print, having absolutely no meaning, we can liken this situation to the madness of Pecola.

Pecola would like to be Jane (Blue Hair & Blonde Hair)

How do these readers relate to our novel?

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Late 1930s and 1940sChild starBlonde hair and blue

eyes

''my friend, my uncle,my daddy, who ought to have been soft -shoeing it and chuckling with me''.

Surname : Temple Idolized

Shirley Temple

Retrived on 10 March 2010 from; http://www.ioffer.com/img/1160290800/_i/14573461/1.jpg

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Shirley Temple VS Jane Wilkers

Retrieved on 10 March 2010 from; http://www.classicmoviekids.com/images/w/withers/withers303a.jpg

Retrieved on 10 March 2010 from; http://www.child-stars.com/shirley-temple/130-034~Shirley-Temple-Posters.jpg

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Greta Garbo

Pecola and Frieda?Ginger Rogers

Retrieved on 10 March 2010 from; 6MIOjrTc*xm5IV9UOA7bAH0gd-ONXxirUvqVXMg5PC4-uLFLrXPW/gretaicon.jpg

Retrieved on 10 March 2010 from; http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2094/2259441246_2dbe65ccfd_o.jpg

Mr Henry praises sisters with two white actresses. Related with self-hatred.

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Bojangles – Bill RobinsonFake smile, greate

dance.Blacks as actors."beau jongleur"

"fine juggler"Earns more than $2

million but dies in poverty.

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Catagorization of humans

Cultural AspectPhysical futures

Skin colourCranialFacial featuresHair

Race

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Has two meanings Differences in human character

Discirimination or Prejudice based on Race

For example: Blacks treating as slaves

Racisim

Do races got stereotyped in themselves? For example, which race do you think has the most beautiful women?

Why did you choose it?

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BeautifulMaureen PealShirley TempleRosemary

VillanucciGeraldine*

BreedlovesPecolaPauleenChollySammy

Claudia MacTeer + Frieda MacTeer*

Mrs Macteer ("Big Mama")

People According to Their Appearence

Ugly

Do you see the ugliness as a personal choice?

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Pauline

• despised not only by whites but also by blacks

“The sad thing was that Pauline did not really care for c...... and m….. . She merely wanted other women to cast favorable glances her way.”

Race and Beauty

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Pauline

despised not only by whites but also by blacks

“The sad thing was that Pauline did not really care for clothes and make-up. She merely wanted other women to cast favorable glances her way.”

Race and Beauty

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While she was 5 months pregnant, she went to the films of Clark Gable and Jean Harlow.

http://www.doctormacro.com/Images/Harlow,%20Jean/Annex/Annex%20-%20Harlow,%20Jean%20(Hold%20Your%20Man)_03.jpg

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She fixes her hair like Jean Harlow.

http://teegardennash.com/media/*MS/Harlow1TN.jpg

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“I hurt just like them white women.”

(p.125)

And Pauline said:

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Pecola…

was described “ugly” by her mother Pauline, while she was a baby

“…But I knowed she was ugly. Head full of pretty hair, but Lord she was ugly.”

(p.126)

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Long hours she sat looking into mirror, trying to discover the secret of ugliness.

(p.45)

She would see only what there was to see: eyes of other people.

(p.47)

Pecola…

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not white but a light-skinned girl

green eyes, perfect clothes

Maureen Peal

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Meringue Pie

Brown outside, white inside.

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CoalNecessity that they cannot give up Source of lifefatal‘black’ as they are

Symbols

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Flowers & Soil Frequent use of flowers

Marigold(Starts and ends the story, doesn’t grow in Lorain)

Forsythia(Holds no cheer)

Dandelion(“Nobody loves the head of a dandelion (. . .) so many strong and soon.”)

Hollyhocks((. . .) roots are deep, their stalks are firm and only the top blossom nods in the wind” - Geraldine)

Symbols

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Soil ; also symbolizing fertilityThey ‘bury’ if needed.

Flowers are season dependant Cyclical Writing Style

• House X OutdoorsHouse symbolizing a possessionGeraldine cares about her house, whereas Pauline

cares about where she worksBreedloves’ house burns downWhite Street X Black Street

Symbols

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The way they sleep

Symbols

Wall Claudia

Pecola Frieda

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Blue EyesProbably most obvious symbol of the novel;

beauty

Economic Symbols: BrandsIsaley’s, Frequent use of brands, economic wealth of

America before Great Depression

MetalsCold and TensionZinc BathtubSteel Industry

Symbols

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Famous People

Greta Garbo

Shirley Temple

Ginger Rogers

Symbols

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Suits Cleanness Funk

The CatSymbolizing Geraldine’s freedom and what she

desires to have as a relative or a friend

White Colored ObjectsWealth

Symbols

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Precious LordJesus Christ Ideal man that Pauline longs for

ToothAnother symbol of beauty

RainbowOrgasm Satisfaction

Soaphead Church’s Relationship With ObjectsHe can’t stand any human contact he can only

bear the objects (i.e. pot)

Symbols

Retrieved from http://brianmclain.files.wordpress.com/2009/04/rainbow_prev.jpg

ORGASM!

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Violence, Beauty and Blackness

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T. Morrison, The Bluest Eye, 1993, Vintagehttp://www.child-stars.com/shirley-temple/

130-034~Shirley-Temple-Posters.jpghttp://www.classicmoviekids.com/images/w/

withers/withers303a.jpghttp://www.ioffer.com/img/1160290800/_i/

14573461/1.jpg

References

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THANK YOU!!!