A STUDY OF THE REASONS AND THE IMPACT OF PECOLA’S SUFFERINGS IN TONI
MORRISON’S THE BLUEST EYE
Sayyidatur Rohmah
ABSTRACT
The
writer analysis is about the reasons and the impact of Pecola’s suffering in
the novel The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison. It is chooses because it
provides adequate data concerning with the reasons and the impact of Pecola’s
suffering. The writer has two problems: (1) what the reason of Pecola’s
suffering in The Bluest Eye novel? (2) What is the impact of pecola’s
suffering in The Bluest Eye novel?
The writer uses a qualitative
approach because the data are collected in the form of words. She also uses a
content analysis technique because she wants to analyze the reason and the
impact of Pecola’s suffering in the novel. The writer takes two procedures of
data collection: (1) reading the novel (2) quoting the evidence containing the
reason and the impact of Pecola’s suffering.
After
analyzing the data, the writer finds that Pecola is suffering because of her
physical appearance that makes her unloved by her parents and society. Her
parent always angry to her, she is uncared and given to Mcteer’s family. She
also always bullied by her friends. Pecola’s teacher does not respect to her.
All the conditions above made her lost in her fantasy to having the bluest eye
even bluer than the white people has. And finally, all that suffering makes
pecola become insane.
Based
on the findings above, the writer concludes that there are four reasons of
Pecola is suffering: the first reason is Pecola is ugly, the second reason
is because Pecola is black, Pecola is poor, and the last reason is Pecola is
unloved.
All the reasons of Pecola’s suffering above finally make the impact that bring
her to insanity.
Keywords : The
Bluest Eye, Reason, Impact, Toni Morrison
Literature
(from Latin litterae (plural); letter) is
the art of written
work, and is not confined to published sources (although, under some
circumstances, unpublished sources can also be exempt). The word literature
literally means "things made from letters" and the pars pro toto term "letters"
is sometimes used to signify "literature," as in the figures of speech "arts
and letters" and "man of letters." The four major
classifications of literature are poetry, prose,
fiction, and non-fiction (http://en.wikipedia.org/literature/). In relation to this, according to Robert and Jacobs (1989:2-3): “Prose fictions are
includes novel, short story, myths, parables, romance and epics. Those works
are generally focus on one or few major characters that undergo some kind of
change as they meet other character or deal with the problems or difficulties
in their lives. Poetry, in contrast to prose fiction, is much more economical
in the use of words, and it relies heavily in imagery figurative language,
rhythm, and sound. Drama (on plays) is the form of literature that designed to
be performed by actors.” From the quotation, we learn that prose fiction is literary works
that generally focus on a major character or few ones that change and meet
other character and facing some problems and conflict. We also know that poem
or poetry, as contrary to the prose fiction is does not use much word, contain
imagery figurative language, rhythm and rhyme. In relation to this, as state in
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/literature/poem/ “A poem is a composition written in verse
(although verse has been equally used for epic and dramatic fiction). Poems
rely heavily on imagery, precise word choice, and metaphor;
they may take the form of measures consisting of patterns of stresses (metric feet)
or of patterns of different-length syllables (as in classical prosody); and they may or may not utilize rhyme”
There is also
a literary work that focus on the life of Afro-American society and written by
the African Americans as state on http://www.worldbook.com/aawriters/html/intro.htm:
“African American literature is literature written by black Americans of
African descend. Its themes include the exploration of black identity, the
condemnation of racism, and the celebration of unique aspects of African
American culture. Those facts, finally make the writer to choose one of the Afro-American writers in order to know
further about the life of African Americans that is reflected on their works.”
In Afro-American novel, the roles of Afro-American
woman authors are indeed as significant as the roles of black male writers for
development of Afro-American novel. For black woman, creativity has often been
survival tactic since black women had experienced many kinds of oppression
either from white or black men. For
the thesis writer, it is really noteworthy to choose the African American novel
since the writers still hold their origin and express all of it in the
literature writings. In relation to that, as stated in http://www.worldbook.com/aawriters/html/intro.htm, “African American literature is literature
written by black Americans of African descend. Its themes include the
exploration of black identity, the condemnation of racism, and the celebration
of the unique aspects of African American culture.”
One of the greatest
Afro-American women authors is Toni Morrison. She is the first Afro-American
woman who wins a Nobel Prize for literature and the first American woman who
has won the award since 1938 (kitwana, 2004). She had published some novels.
They are The Bluest Eye (1970), her first novel, receives great critical
acclaim even though it is not commercially successful. Her second novel, Sula
(1974), become an alternate selection by the Book of the Month Club. Some
quotations from this novel are published in the Redbook magazine and it is
nominated for 1975 National Book Award in fiction. Morrison’s third novel Song
of Solomon (1977) wins the National Book Critics Circle Award and the
American Academy and Institute of Arts and Letters Award. She is also appointed
as the National Council on the art. She publishes her fourth novel, Tar Baby
(1981). Morrison’s fifth novel Beloved, published in 1987 wins the 1988
Pulitzer Prize for fiction and also rewarded the 1993 Nobel Prize for
Literature. Her novel, Jazz, joins with other novels by two other
Afro-American women novelist, Alicia Walker and Terry Macmillan in the New York
Times “Best Sellers” list of 1992. (http://www.notablebiographies.com/Mo-Ni/Morrison-Toni.html#ixzzlyndgqsKQ).
Morrison is
also the recipient of Robert F. Kennedy Award (1987-1988), the Anisfield-Wolf
Book Award (1988), the Modern Language Association of America Commonwealth
Award in Literature (1989), the National Book Foundation Medal for
Distinguished Contribution to American letters (1996), and the National
Humanities Medal in 2000 (kitwana, 2004).
Furthermore,
according to Claudia Tate in her book Black Women Writers at Work(1983:126),
Morrison has a difference in her writings as it is explained in Tate’s
interview with her. Morrison says that she uses ordinary words carefully in
writing her fiction. In relation to that, Tate also states that in describing
emotional feelings, Morrison does not write much about it. She gives the
readers emotional feelings as if it was reflected from a painting and a person
who sees it feels from what they see. For the most prominent example, in
Morrison’s first novel The Bluest Eye, the reader will understand how
Pecola’s feeling when one day her parents fight brutally. Pecola feels guilty
and very sad. Here, Morrison does not use many words to explain about Pecola’s
feeling, she just describes the event well, so that the readers can experience
and they can feel Pecola’s feeling at that time.
Otherwise,
Nellie Y. McKay stated that, The Bluest Eye makes people realize that
the white standard of beauty is different from the black. In fact, Pecola’s
feeling that her blackness forces her to stay in ugliness and therefore being
rejected by the white and also exist in black women adults, including her
mother. She lives in poverty, powerlessness and loss of positive self-concept
(1983:3). In The Bluest Eye novel, Morrison shows what can happen to a
person who is separated from positive black traditions. Pecola’s mother has
lost her inner self, and the beauty of her own people.
Furthermore,
Pecola’s obsession to become beautiful and happy by having the blue eyes shows
the tragic effect of race prejudice on children. In this thesis, the
thesis writer is interested in choosing the topic of suffering, because through
the novel story she sees that the main character Pecola has strong feeling that
she is not loved by her society. Since the writer in this thesis is talks about
suffering, it is also necessary to know more about suffering. According to
Narramore (1977), suffering is mean feeling discomfort, great sorrow and
unhappiness.
Based on the
statement of the problem, the thesis writer has purposes follow:
1) To find and explain the reasons of Pecola’s
suffering as the main character in The Bluest Eye novel. 2)To explain the impact of Pecola’s
suffering as the main character in The Bluest Eye novel.
RESEARCH METODOLOGY
Approach
In
analyzing this research, the writer employs qualitative approach. Because the
data are in the form of words. As Biklen state that:
Qualitative
approach research is descriptive; the data collected are in the form of words
or pictures rather than number. The written results of the research contain
quotations from the data to illustrate and substantiate the presentation. The
data include interview transcript, field notes, photographs, videotapes,
personal documents, memos, and other official records. They often contain
quotation and try to describe what particular situation or view of the world is
like narrative form. ( Biklen, 1992:32)
Then, to analyze the data, the
writer uses content analysis. According to Brog and Gall in Artanti (2003:16)
says that content analysis is kind of research technique to the
object systematic and qualitative description of the manifest content of
communication from especially written composition, novel news, newspaper,
magazines, advertise, etc.
In
this study, the thesis writer uses Toni Morrison’s novel The Bluest Eye.
Data
Analysis
The
Reasons of Pecola’s Suffering
In
the novel entitled The Bluest Eye, the story happens in Ohio in 1940s. The
Bluest Eye is full of pain, and depicts the tragic life of Pecola
Breedlove, the main character of the novel and also as the
protagonist. But, despite this central role she is passive and remains a
mysterious character. Morrison’s explains
in her novel’s afterword that she purposely tells Pecola’s story
from other point of view to keep Pecola’s dignity and, to some extent, her
mystery intact. Pecola is fragile and delicate child when the novel begins, and
by the novel end, she has been almost completely destroyed by violence. At the beginning of the novel, two
desires form the basis of her emotional life: first, she wants to learn how to
get people to love her; second, when forced to witness her parents’ brutal
fights, she simply wants to disappear. Neither wish is granted, and Pecola is
forced further and further into her fantasy world, which is her only defense
against the pain of her existence. She believes that being granted the blue eyes that she
wishes for would change
both how others
see her and
what she is forced to see. At the novel’s end,
she delusively believes that her wish has been granted, but only at the cost of
her sanity.
Pecola is also a symbol of the black community’s self-hatred and belief in its
own ugliness. Others in the community, including her mother, father, and
Geraldine, act out their own self-hatred by expressing hatred toward her. At
the end of the novel, we are told that Pecola has been a scapegoat for the
entire community. Her ugliness has made them feel beautiful, her suffering has
made them feel comparatively lucky, and her silence has given them the
opportunity for speaking. But because she continues to live after she has lost
her mind, Pecola’s aimless wandering at the edge of town haunts the community,
reminding them of the ugliness and hatred that they have tried to repress. She
becomes a reminder of human cruelty and an emblem of human suffering. Based
on that, the writer conclude there are four
reasons of Pecola is suffering: the first reason
is Pecola is ugly, the second reason is because Pecola is black, Pecola is
poor, and the last reason is Pecola is unloved. All the reasons
of her suffering are caused by her physical condition.
1. Pecola is Ugly
One of Pecola physical
condition which makes her suffer is because of her ugliness. Here, the writer
can conclude that Pecola is ugly in her appearance as explained by Claudia, the other character as the companion of Pecola and
also as the narrator in the novel:
“The eyes, the small eyes set closely together under
narrow foreheads. The low, irregular hairlines, which seemed even more
irregular in contrast to the straight, heavy eyebrows, which nearly met. Keen but
crooked noses, with insolent nostrils. She had high cheekbones, and her ears
turned forward. Shapely lips which called attention not to her but to the rest
of the face” (Morrison, 1970:34).
From the quotation above, we learn that there
is nothing from her face which can be considered to be attractive. Pecola’s
eyes are small, her hair is messed up, and the type of her nose is really
weird. In other words, everything on her face is imperfect. Beside that, she is
also slovenly.
It can be seen from the quotation below:
“Saw
the dirty torn dress, the plaits had come undone, the muddy shoes with the wad
of gum peeping out from between the cheap soles, the soiled socks, one of which
had been walked down into the heel of the shoe,”(Morrison, 1970:75)
From
the quotation above, it is known that Pecola’s appearance is not clean enough.
There is a buble gum that sticks on her shoes, her socks are dirty. In other
words, she is rumpled. In this case, the poverty is not the main reason for
someone not to have neat appearances.
Pecola’s ugliness becomes a trouble
for her, because some people in her society do not respect her, even some of
them often ignore and insult her. One of the examples, which are shown that she
is ignored, can be represented by her teachers’ treatment toward her as
Claudia’s explanation: “Her teacher had always treated her this way. They tried
never to glance at her, and called on her only when everyone was required to
respond” (P: 40). From that quotation, the writer can conclude that Pecola’s teachers
do not pay attention to her; even they are reluctant to have any communication
with her.
The other example which shown that
Pecola is rejected by her society because she is ugly can be seen from the
society treatment toward her which is represented by Junior, one of Pecola’s
schoolmates. One day he sees Pecola walks to the yard and suddenly just comes
up in his mind to bully her, and makes her as his prisoner. Then, he invites
Pecola to come to his house by saying that he wants shows his cat. In fact, he
bullied Pecola as seen through his action:
“Here!”
is your kitten!” He screeched. And he threw a big black cat right in her face.
She sucked in her breathe in fear and surprise and felt fur in her mouth. The
cat clawed her face and chest in an effort to right itself, then leaped nimbly
to the floor”. (P: 73)
From
what Junior has done toward Pecola, it is clear that he does not like her,
because he does not care with Pecola’s condition, whether she will hurt because
of the cat’s scratches or not. Here, the writer can conclude that he bullies
Pecola is because she is ugly. It can be known from this quotation:
“More
and more Junior enjoyed bullying girls. It was easy making them screams and
run. How he laughed when they feel down and their bloomers showed. When they
got up, their faces red and crinkled, it made him feel good. The nigger girls
he did not pick on very much. They usually traveled in packs, and once when he
threw a stone at some of them, they chased, caught, and beat him witless”. (P:
72)
Another example, which is shown that
Pecola is suffering because of her ugliness, is that she often being insulted
by her friends. They often make fun of her name and use it to insult other
friends which is shown in this quotation: “”Bobby loves Pecola Breedlove! Bobby
loves Pecola Breedlove!” and never fail to get peals of laughter from those in
earshot, and mock anger from the accused” (P: 40). In order to tease Bobby
until Bobby become upset, his friends make an accusation that Bobby loves
Pecola. No doubt, this make Bobby really upsets for Pecola is a very ugly girl.
Because of this, Pecola gets the impact. No one in her class is willing to be
her friends, because they will be mocked or ignored by others. Of course from
this condition she will feel lonely, and then this it will change into
discomfort feeling.
Because of her friends’ bad
treatment toward Pecola, she becomes lonely in her class. The thesis writer’s
conclusion can be proved by this quotation as follow:
“She
was the only member of her class who sat alone at a double desk. The first
letter of her last named forced her to sit in the front of the room always. But
what about Marie Appolonaire? Marie was in front of her, but she shared a desk
with Luke Angelino”. (P: 39)
From
the above quotation, it is proved that Pecola feels lonely for no one in her
class is willing to sit beside her. In Pecola’s class, there is a sitting
system that the students in the class have to sit according to the alphabet
order. Pecola has initial “B”, but she sits alone. Marie Appolonaire, with the
initial “A”, sits with Luke Angelino who is also has the same initial with
Marie. Marie and Luke sit in front of Pecola. So they must be sited in front of
the classroom for they have initial “A”. While Pecola is sitting after them, so
it should be many others that sit after Pecola. The case is why Pecola sits
alone while others are not. It should be the one who sits with Pecola that has
the same initial with her, or the one whose initial name comes after Pecola.
Even though the students in Pecola’s class is odd, the one who sit alone is the
one who has the last initial according to the alphabet order, such as the one
who has initial “ Z”. From the fact that is shown in the quotation, it is known that Pecola sits alone, no one in the
class is sitting beside her.
The society treatment toward Pecola,
in this case when she is ignored by the tacher, and also insulted by her
friends, actually is hurting her heart. It can be seen from Claudia’s
explanation: “Long hours she sat looking in the mirror, trying to discover the
secret of the ugliness, the ugliness that made her ignored or despised at school,
by teachers and classmate alike” (Morrison, 1970:39). From the quotation above,
it can be known that Pecola has inner conflict, because it is clear that
actually she feels unhappy with her condition, for she is looking in the mirror
and trying to find what is actually the lack of her face, but she cannot do
anything to remove her sadness for she feels that her condition as the ugliest
person in the class, is undeniable. Here, Pecola’s condition is suitable with
Narramore statement in chapter two, that the feeling of discomfort, great
sorrow, or unhappiness can be categories as suffering (1977:70).
2. Pecola
is Black
The other thing that makes Pecola
suffer is because of her blackness. Pecola’s condition is different from
society’s opinion at that time. Most of them have an opinion that white is
“right”. It can be proved through the quotation below:
“The
big, the special, the loving gift was always a big, blue-eyed Baby Doll.
Adults, older girls, shops, magazines, newspapers, window signs-all the world
had agreed that a blue-eyed, yellow-haired, pink-skinned doll was what every
girl child treasured”. (P: 20)
In
this case, the doll is represented what the society think about, so through the
quotation above it can be seen that the most people in America at that time,
including the Blacks themselves really adore the whites. As it has already
stated in chapter one that this novel comes out of the critical moment in
American history. Black people in America claim for the equal right, and they
also claim for a new recognition of black-American beauty. From those
statements, the writer can conclude that before that turbulence, black people
have low position in American society. Moreover, they are underestimated by the
Whites, so it is not surprising if Pecola is also being underestimated by her
society.
The example which shown that Pecola
is treated “differently” because of her being black is through Mr. Yacobowski
treatment toward her. Mr. Yacobowski is a white male who works as the
shopkeeper in a small grocery store near Pecola’s house. One day, Pecola goes
there to buy some penny candy, and she decides to buy Mary Jane, a candy with
peanut butter inside. At the first time when she comes into the store, Mr.
Yacobowski does not give any respond to her. It seems that he does not want
wasting his time to look at Pecola. Then, when Pecola pays those candies, Mr.
Yacobowski treats her harshly. It can be known from his saying and action
toward Pecola:
“Christ. Kantcha Talk?”
His fingers brush the Mary Janes.
She nods.
“Well, why’nt you say so? One? How
many?”
She
holds the money toward him. He hesitates, not wanting to touch her hand…Finally
he reaches over and takes the pennies from her hand. His nails graze her damp
palm. (P: 42-43)
From
his saying and action, the writer concludes that Mr. Yacobowski has a race
prejudice on Pecola, because it seems that he feels disgusting with her for
unwilling to touch Pecola’s hands unintentionally. From this vent, over and
over Pecola has to face inner conflict, because as the theory of conflict that
the writer uses in chapter two stated that inner conflict is the condition when
a man is facing complicated situation in his life. Here, the writer can
conclude that Pecola also has complicated situation when she is grumble: “She
thinks, “They are ugly. They are weeds.” Preoccupied with that revelation, she
trips on the sidewalk crack…what to do before the tears come”. (P: 43). From
the quotation, it is one side Pecola cannot accept Mr. Yacobowski’s treatment,
she feels annoyed with him. She scolds their heart. However, in the other side
she cannot resist him. So, the thing that she does is only scolding him in the
heart. Yet, she feels helpless what she can do is just crying. This condition
can be said as suffering, because in the chapter two it is stated that
suffering means the feeling of discomfort, great sorrow, or unhappiness. Here,
Pecola also has some kind of those feeling.
The other example of Pecola’s
suffering which is caused by her black skin is Mrs. Geraldine’s treatment toward
her. Mrs. Geraldine is Junior’s mother. From quotation below, the writer of the
thesis can conclude that she is a racist person: “White kids; his mother did
not like him to play with niggers. She had explained to him the difference
between colored people and niggers. They were easily identifiable. Colored
people were neat and quite; niggers were dirty and loud.” (P: 71). From the
quotation, it seems that Mrs. Geraldine underestimates black people, and
considers that blacks are dirty and annoying. So, when Junior tells her that
Pecola is the one who has killed the cat, Mrs. Geraldine becomes very angry and
chases Pecola away with some words which shown that she really hates Pecola,
because she is black: “Get out,” she said, her voice quite. “You nasty little
black bitch. Get out of my house” (P: 75). From that quotation, it can be
proved that Mrs. Geraldine is not only angry, but from her saying, she also
underestimates and furthermore insults Pecola for her blackness. In this case,
Pecola also has an inner conflict. She feels sad after Mrs. Geraldine scolds
her, but as usual, she can do nothing. Her inner conflict can be represented by
her imagination: “Pecola turned to find the front door, and saw Jesus looking
down at her with sad and unsurprised eyes, his long brown hair parted in the
middle, the gay paper flowers twisted around his face” (P: 76). From that
quotation, is shown that her imagination above turn up because of her sadness
for often facing same kind of situation. Here, the writer also concludes that
Pecola’s heart is suffered. She is disappointed with the fact that Mrs.
Geraldine is a Christian. There are a big Bible and a picture of Jesus Christ
as a symbol of her Christianity, but her speech is not reflecting it.
Pecola really has a tragic life. She
is not only being discriminated by the society who has imprinted mind that
white people is the superior and the black is the inferior ones, but the
worst thing is her mother, Pauline, also
has imprinted mind like the common society. It seems that her perception that
the White is the right has deeply rooted in her mind, even though she is
herself also black.
The example of this explanation is
described when Pauline, Pecola’s mother, work for Mr. Fisher family. She likes
everything in Mr. Fisher’s house which she would never has, because here she
finds beauty, order, cleanliness, and praise. She likes all the furniture,
which is so classy and clean, and the important point is it includes Mr.
Fisher’s family. This reality starts making her to compare Mr. Fisher’s house
toward hers. It can be seen from the quotation:
“Soon
she stopped trying to keep her own house. The things she could afford to buy
did not last, had no beauty or style, and were absorbed by the dingy
storefront. More and more she neglected her house, her children, her man” (P:
101).
From
that quotation it is clear that Pauline does not care anymore about her own
family. She feels that the condition of her family is bad compare with Mr.
Fisher’s family, so she starts to discriminate her own. No doubt that Pecola is
discriminate by her own mother, because her mother more attracted to Mr.
Fisher’s family, including his daughter. It can be seen from the quotation
below:
“When
she bathed the little Fisher girl, it was in the porcelain tub with silvery
taps running infinite quantities of hot clear water. She dried her in fluffy
white towels and put her in cuddly night clothes. Then she brushed the yellow
hair, enjoying the roll and slip of it between her fingers” (P: 101).
Pauline
treatment toward Mr. Fisher’s daughter is really different with her treatment
toward Pecola. Along this story, she never has some kind like the treatment
above. In the contrary, she has ever slapped by her mother. This condition
makes Pecola suffer in her heart, but over and over she does not understand
what to do to resist this condition.
3. Pecola
is Poor
Pecola suffer not only because she
is black, but also because she is poor. It can be seen from the condition of
her house that is explained by Claudia:
“In
the center of the bedroom, for the even distribution of heat, stood a coal
stove. Trunks, chairs, a small end table, and a cardboard “wardrobe” closet
were placed around the walls. The kitchen was in the back of this apartment, a
separate room. There were no bath facilities. Only a toilet bowl, inaccessible
to the eye, if not the ear, of the tenants” (P: 31).
That
is show Pecola‘s family do not have enough money to live properly, for example:
they cannot afford to have a proper heater and this condition makes the house
becomes not warm enough, moreover, they do not have a bathroom.
Actually having black skin at that
time can make someone feels underestimated and not accepted by the society, but
sometimes there are special cases which shown that black can be accepted, because
their blackness are covered by their richness as it happens to Maureen Peal,
one of Pecola’s classmates. Although Maureen is a black girl but she comes from
a rich family.
“The
quality of her clothes threatened to derange Frieda and me. Patent-leather
shoes with buckles, a cheaper version of which we got only at easter and which
had disintegrated by the end of May. Fluffy sweater the color of lemon drops
tucked into skirt with pleats so orderly they astounded us. Brightly colored
knee socks with white borders, a brown velvet coat trimmed in white rabbit fur
and a matching muff” (P: 52-53).
From
this quotation, we know that Maureen is rich. She has high economic standard
compare with most student in the class. She has some good stuffs which are not
easily got by the other students. By her condition, Maureen will easily attract
other people, and to get respond from them.
In contrast with Pecola’s condition that is poor and always ignored by
people.
4. Pecola
is Unloved
Another thing that makes Pecola
suffer is because she is unloved by her parents and her society. Besides she is
poor, she also has inharmonious family. Her parents often fight each other,
even they fight brutally. It can be seen from this quotation below:
“She
ran into the bedroom with a dishpan full of cold water and threw it in Cholly’s
face. He sat up, choking and spitting. Cholly picked her up and knocked her
down with the back of his hand. She had not let go of the dishpan, and began to
hit at Cholly’s tighs and groin with it. He put his foot in her chest, she
dropped the pan” (P: 38)
From
the quotation above, the writer can conclude that the atmosphere of Pecola’s
family is very inconvenience for raising a child. The condition of the family
makes her suffer, as it stated by Narramore in Encyclopedia of Psychological
Problem that suffering means feeling of discomfort, great sorrow, and
unhappiness. Here, it is clear that Pecola’s parents ignore their children, because
they just focus on their emotional feeling through their couple, without mull
over their children’s feeling. Moreover, Pecola’s mother does not like her as
daughter. It seems that Pecola’s physical appearance is the cause of it as she
thinks when she gives birth of Pecola: “You know they [visitors] make them
greedy sounds. Eye all soft and wet. A cross between a puppy and a dying man.
But I knowed she was ugly. Head full of
pretty hair, but lord she was ugly” (P: 100). That is show that she is really disappointed
with Pecola’s physical appearance. In many cases, parents, especially a mother
who usually has bound usually proud of her child and she will think that her
child is the most beautiful girl, but not to Pecola’s mother. Another example
which shows that Pecola is not loved by her mother is when her father, Cholly,
is in jail, because he has burned his house, and then her mother, Pauline,
works for the white family, she neglect her child and given to McTeer family.
It can be seen from this quotation below when the first time Pecola comes to
McTeer’s house:
“Mama
had told us two days earlier that “case” way coming-a girl who had no place to
go. The country had placed her in our house for a few days until they could
decide what to do, or more precisely, until the family was reunited (P: 17)…She
came with nothing. No little paper bag with the other dress, or a nightgown, or
two pair of whitish cotton bloomers” (Morrison, 1970:19).
It is
true that Pauline must be working, but if she really loves Pecola as her
daughter, she can entrust Pecola to somebody else or at least look for someone
who is willing to take care of Pecola when she is not around or able to watch
her closely. However, from the two quotations above, the writer concludes that
Pauline, does not really love her daughter, thus she does not care whether
Pecola is being taken care or not.
In one occasion, Pecola’s mother
slaps her when Pecola by accident drops a hot blueberries pie in Mr. Fisher’s
house. There, Pecola sees the pie in the kitchen and she touches it.
Unfortunately the pie is hot, so she drops it on the floor and makes the floor
dirty. Most of the blueberries splash on Pecola’s legs and she cries, because
the burn is painful. Yet, her mother does not help her, or pay attention to her,
on the contrary her mother treats her harshly. This can be seen through her
action and her saying toward pecola:
“Mrs.
Breedlove yanked her up by the arm, slapped her again, and in a voice thin with
anger, abuse Pecola directly and Frieda and me by implication. “Crazy fool…my
floor, mess…look what you…work…get on out…now that…crazy…my floor, my floor…my
floor”” (P: 87).
It is
true that Pecola drops the hot blueberries pie and makes the floor dirty, but
it does not mean that she is naughty. Actually, Pauline, her mother slaps her
because she is afraid with her master. However, Pecola’s mind is not mature
enough to understand this kind of situation, and this event makes her suffer.
Not only her mother who does not
love her, but also her father. In this case, it can be seen that in the whole
story of the novel, Pecola’s father never does something for her, even he
hardly ever talks to her. Most of his times spent by get drunk. It can be
proved from this quotation: “Cholly had come drunk, he always drunk…” (P: 81).
Furthermore, the worst thing happens to her when she raped by her father as
seen from the quotation below:
“Pecola
lost her balance and was about to careen the floor. Cholly raised his other
hand to her hips to save her from falling. He put his head down and nibbled at
the back of her leg. His mouth trembled at the firm sweetness of the flesh. He
closed his eyes, letting his fingers dig into her waist.” (Morrison, 1970:128)
It is
shown that Cholly rapes Pecola in consciousness, because he can keep her body
from falling. From what he has done toward his daughter shows that he really
has bad behavior, because if he really loves his daughter, he will never do the
forbidden thing. Cholly’s treatment makes her feel miserable, but of course she
cannot do anything, because in fact nobody cares about her, moreover this thing
happens because of her own father.
Pecola really has a tragic life
because neither her parents nor the society love her. In this case, the society
means her friends, and her neighbors. One day, Pecola, Maureen, Frieda and
Claudia want to go home, suddenly Pecola is intercepted by some male friends,
and she is being bullied by them. As seen in this quotation below:
“A
group of boys was circling and holding at bay a victim, Pecola Breedlove. Bay
Boy, Woodrow Cain, Buddy Wilson, Junie –Bug-like a necklace of semiprecious
stones they surrounded her. Heady with the smell of their own musk, thrilled by
the easy power of a majority, the gaily harassed her. “Black e mo. Black e mo.
Yadaddsleepsnecked. Black e mo black e mo ya dadd sleeps nekked. Black e mo…”
They danced a macabre ballet around the victim, whom, for their own sake, they
were prepared to sacrifice to the flaming pit. Black e mo Black e mo Ya daddy
sleeps nekked. Stch ta ta stch tat a stach ta ta tat a” (P: 55).
From
the quotation above, it is clearly seen that Pecola’s friends do not like her,
because at that time Pecola is walking with Frieda and Claudia. In fact, they
just bully Pecola. It also can be proved from this quotation: “Pecola edged
around the circle crying. She had dropped her notebook, and covered her eyes
with her hands” (Morrison, 1970:55). From that quotation, it is also proved
that actually Pecola has inner conflict. As it is stated in chapter two, inner
conflict is a condition where a man faces a kind of complicated situation. Here
Pecola also has a complicated situation, in one side; she cannot accept her
friends’ treatment. She feels discomfort and unhappy; but in another side she
does not have any powers to restrain it. So, she fells helpless.
The
Result of Pecola’s suffering
After
analyzing the reasons that caused Pecola Breedlove’s suffering, in this part
the thesis writer study about the result of Pecola’s suffering as follows:
Pecola
is Insane
Throughout
her life Pecola suffers due to a lot of problems as the writer mentions above,
and she feels oppressed because of those. She even does not know what to do
except crying. She keeps all her problems in her heart thus create internal
conflicts within herself. As it is stated in chapter two that internal conflict
can happen when someone faces a kind of complicated situation. As mentioned in
chapter two, Dietrich (1974:56) stated that internal conflict is the conflict
of character against himself. As faced by Pecola, in her young mind, the only
thing to end her suffering is by having blue eyes, because only by having it
she thinks she will look beautiful, and then she will be loved by others
includes her parent and her society. What Pecola’s thought is can be seen from this
quotation below:
“…If
those eyes of hers were different, that is to say beautiful, she herself would
be different. Her teeth were good, and at least her nose was not big and flat
like some of those who were thought so cute. If she looked different beautiful,
maybe Cholly would be different, and Mrs. Breedlove too. Maybe they’d say,
“Why, look at pretty-eyed Pecola. We mustn’t do bad things in front of those
pretty eyes” (Morrison, 1970:40).
From
what Pecola’s thought, the thesis writer concludes that the way of Pecola’s
thought is influenced by most people in the society. She thinks that someone
will be considered as beautiful if she has a sharp well formed nose, good
teeth, and especially has blue eyes. All of her definition about beauty shows
that she is the same with other people at that time who adore white, and they
consider that white is the “right” one. This can be seen from the way they
adore the white dolls:
“Adults,
older girl, shops, magazines, newspapers, window signs-all the world had agreed
that a blue-eyed, yellow-haired, pink-skinned doll was what every girl child
treasured. “Here they said. “This is beautiful, and if you are on this day
worthy you may have it” (Morrison, 1970:20).
Finally,
Pecola desires to have blue eyes, so she tries in every way to have it. In
chapter two, it is stated that one of the external conflicts is a conflict of a
character against fate. It might happen when character fights against the
reality of life. This theory is suitable with Pecola’s condition that she is
persistent in getting blue eyes. It can be seen from Claudia’s explanation:
“Each night, without fail, she prayed for blue eyes. Fervently, for a year she
had prayed” (Morrison, 1970:40). However, this effort fails.
After she realizes that her praying
does not bring any result, she goes to super naturalist who is often called as
Soaphead Church to get help from him. This second effort comes up in her mind
in a sudden when one day she finds an advertising card which advertises
Soaphead Church, someone who can solve some problems related to supernatural.
Pecola is really interested in seeing him and has a big hope to solve her
problem. But the problem becomes worse because the Soaphead Church misleads to
Pecola. He gives Pecola a small pack of meat, and then he tells her to give it
to the dog. If the dog behaves strangely, it means Pecola’s wish will come
true. The Soaphead’s suggestion can be seen in the quotation below:
“Take
this food and give it to the creature sleeping on the porch. Make sure he eats
it. And mark well how he behaves. If nothing happens, you will know that god
has refused you. If the animal behave strangely, your wish will be granted on
the day following this one” (Morrison, 1970:138).
Actually,
Pecola is only eleven years old girl, she is not mature enough to understand
that there is something in this life that cannot be changed. She does not think
that it is impossible for her to have blue eyes, because she is born as a
Negro, so when the dog behaves strangely after eating the meat, she believes
that she will have blue eyes.
Therefore, she is trapped in her
fantasy, as if she has already had blue eyes. So, at last in her insanity
Pecola succeeds to end her suffering, and lives happily ever after, although in
a sadden way. It proved in the quotation below:
“Why
don’t you look at me when you say that? You’re looking drop-eyed like Mrs.
Breedloves.
Mrs.
Breedlove look drop-eyed at you?
Yes.
Now she does. Ever since I got my blue eyes, she look away from me all of the
time. Do you suppose she’s jealous too?
Could
be. They are pretty, you know.
I
know. He really did a good job. Everybody’s jealous. Every time I look at
somebody, they look off” (P: 151).
No, I don’t. They’re just prejudiced, that’s
all.
Yes,
they sure are prejudiced.
Just
because I got blue eyes, bluer than theirs, they’re prejudiced.
That’s
right.
They
are bluer, aren’t they?
Oh,
yes. Much bluer.
Bluer
than Joanna’s?
Much
bluer than Joanna’s.
And
bluer than Michelena’s?
Much
bluer than Michelena’s.” (P: 153).
From
the quotation above, it can be seen that in her imagination she has already had
blue eyes, even bluer than the whites, until the whites feel jealous toward,
and now she thinks that everybody wants to talk with her. Furthermore, her
mother gives more attention to her. Moreover, she also has an imaginary friend
who has chatted with her.
As the conclusion, Pecola suffers
physically and psychologically that result in her insanity.
CONCLUSION
AND SUGGESTION
Conclusion
After
analyzing one of Morrison’s novels entitled The Bluest Eye, the thesis
writer finds that Pecola, the main character has suffered a lot in her whole
life, physically and psychologically. Some physical reasons that make her
suffer such as because she is ugly, black, poor, that finally makes her unloved
by her parent and society. Those reasons at last make her psychologically
suffer.
In fact, all the reasons of Pecola’s
suffering that has already mentioned in chapter four bring some results in her
life. She feels lonely, miserable, and uncomfortable. That kind of feeling
makes her depressed and starts thinking to end the suffering. Then, the only
thing that comes up in her mind is having blue eyes. She prays every night for
it but she fails. So, she takes a short cut way by meeting the super naturalist
who is often called as Soaphead Church. Unfortunately, the Soaphead Church
misleads to Pecola until finally she becomes insane.
From
the story, the thesis writer concludes that actually there are positive and
negative ways to overcome suffering. It depends on how people face it. If
people want to face the suffering in a
positive way, they will entrust God to
help them and try to do something right. Here
the writer uses Helen Keller as an example of someone who faces lots of
suffering in positive way. She struggles a lot in order to be able to learn, to
read and to communicate with other people. She succeeds to do so even she
receives her B.A degree
in law
from New York University in 1904; while Pecola is an
example of someone who tries to overcome her suffering in negative way. She
takes a short cut way to end her suffering by meeting super naturalist.
Suggestion
Based on
the story in The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison which has been described in
this thesis, the thesis writer gives some suggestion to all who reads this
thesis generally and especially for student in the University of Gresik.
The writer hopes this thesis can
inspire all the people who suffering and especially for women who suffering
because of their physic condition. They have to struggle to face the suffering
with positive way and positive thinking and finally could overcome and find the
solution to end the suffering. So, the suffering that happens in life did not
bring negative impact in life. Moreover on the contrary, it could bring
positive impact as an experience and a lesson to run the life more beautifully
in the future.
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