Racial Hierarchy in the Bluest Eye

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Racial Hierarchy in The Bluest Eye In the novel, the social roles are defined based on the race and social class in the society. For example, black people are either workers, farmers, or maids depending on their gender, while white people are wither businessmen or housewives. It is the same for the children because black kids are known to be uneducated, poor, and helpless, while white kids are well-educated, rich and loved. Transition from one class to another in the social ladder depends on the occupation whether it’s going up or down. However, for blacks, it is impossible to escape from the mistreatment because they cannot simply change their skin color. The roles that are dictated in the novel are not the same as those we confront today because as time went by, blacks gained more freedom and better treatment through laws that helped eradicate discrimination, and enforce equality. Unlike the roles in the novel, the roles that the blacks have today are the same as those of whites. Their roles are not limited to just workers, farmers, and housemaids, but free. In my opinion, Morrison is not attempting to reinforce racial stereotypes regarding beauty, but rather she is trying to convey her message through it to the readers. By talking about how Pecola is considered ugly by all people, Morrison is telling the readers that the world manipulates the society with wrong standard of beauty, and thus brainwashes some people making them into victims. Pecola’s beauty is compared with that of pretty white girls because the author wants to tell the readers that the brainwashed victim strives to reach that standard of beauty to be accepted by the society and be loved. Her purpose of creating this racial hierarchy is simply to illustrate the perspective of the society, not of her. Thus, she is not racist, but an author who writes to portray the reality of the society. Morrison

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