A Feminist Reading of `The Bluest Eye` by Toni Morrison
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Date
2015-06
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Addis Ababa University
Abstract
The main aim of this study, A Feminist Reading of The Bluest Eye, is to show the miserable life experiences of black American women. And to demonstrate essentially how black women writers use their literary productions to tell the stories of black women who try to find out the truth about them and the world they live in through different circumstances and in different cultures by taking Toni Morrison’s The Bluest Eye in focus. Black women writers use their literary productions to tell the stories of black women who try to find out the truth about their life and the world they live in through different circumstances and in different cultures. The Bluest Eye (1972) is a pillar of black American women’s literary tradition which was ignored and not even recognized as American literature. To achieve the goal of this study, the researcher found it necessary to employ textual analysis of the novel.
Concerning feminist issues, different studies have been conducted, but black American women literary works are rarely treated. So this study might be important for critically analyzing the life experiences of black American women throughout the novel `The Bluest Eye` by Toni Morrison, considering the discrimination and the violence black women experienced due to their gender. Hence, it is expected that studying and analyzing the experiences of black women in the selected text would enable us to create an understanding of the misery and discrimination they experienced in their respective society. It would also help the readers to raise the knowledge of black feminist criticism and awaken the society to take an action of combating gender bias, stereotypes, and discriminations.
MA theses based on feminist perspective have been reviewed to confirm the current study is different from the other studies conducted on feminism previously. In conceptual framework detailed explanations on the central concepts of Feminism and Feminist criticism, waves of feminism (The first, the second and the third wave of feminism), trends of African American literature, Black American literary criticism and black women and feminism were given.
The common features of feminist issues which are dealt with the experiences of black American women like Stereotype, Sexual abuse, Physical violence, Psychological violence, prejudice, Poverty and Discrimination are the themes that have been explored in the feminist reading of the select novel.
Finally the researcher concluded the overall concepts that were raised in the previous chapters. As it has been seen in the textual analysis; The Bluest Eye not only reflects the issues of race, class and gender, but also presents the cultural, economical and social burdens black American women experienced in American society.
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show the miserable life experiences of black American women.