Free Essays - Abuse in The Bluest Eye :: Bluest Eye Essays

Abuse in The Bluest Eye The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison, is about an eleven year old girl, Pecola, who is abused by almost everyone in her life. Every day she encounters racism, not just from the white people, but also from the African American people. In her eyes, her skin is too dark, and the color of her skin makes her inferior to everyone else. The color of her skin makes her think that she is ugly. She feels that she can overcome this if she can get blue eyes. Pecola thinks that if she can be like the blue eyed Shirley Temple, everyone will love her. Pecola wishes to have blue eyes because she feels they will make her loved and accepted by the people in her life. Pecola is abused almost by everyone in her life. One day, she goes to Geraldine's house. Geraldine is a middle-class African American woman. Junior, Geraldine's son, harasses Pecola by throwing his cat around and eventually kills it. When Geraldine walks in, she says, "Get out. You nasty little black bitch. Get out of my house"(93). Geraldine thinks that her son does not kill the cat. She trust him more than Pecola. Pecola thinks that Geraldine called her "nasty" because of her appearance, dark skin. Also, calling an eleven year old girl a "bitch" is like killing committee a crime. A little girl does not really know what that word means, but she know it's horrible. Being called a "black beach", by an African American person hurts even more than being called by a white person because they are the same race. They go through the same types of things because of their skin color. They are suppose to support each other. This makes Pecola feel more ashamed of herself and want to change her appearance to be accepted and trusted by Geraldine's . Her family treated her the same way. Pecola's dad raped her. Mrs. Breedlove, her mother, did not pay attention to her. One day, Pecola decides to visit her mom at work. Mrs. Breedlove was a nanny for this white girl. Pecola accidentally knocks over a blueberry pie. Mrs. Breedlove says, " Crazy fool... my floor, mess... look what you... work...get on out. Hush, baby, hush. Come her. Oh, lord, look at your dress.