Black Female Disillusionism: African American Modernism and Reformation in Toni Morrison’s The Bluest Eye

Abstract

This research has examined black female disillusionism as a dominant idea in Toni Morrison’s The Bluest Eye. Through the concept of modernism and reformation, this research has interrogated dimensions of oppressive representations in The Bluest Eye—a female perspective that articulates the disillusionment between dream and its realization. The study has explored the psychosocial effects of racial discrimination and stereotype. The research has also provided useful insight into the variegated portrait of African American females as symbols of oppression and manipulation—an attempt that has articulated Sigmund Freud’s concept of neurosis through disillusionism. This study has projected ‘mental aberration’ as a trend deeply connected to Peocola’s neurosis leading to her constant struggle to change her identity—an elusive quest borne out of racial inferiority leading to traumatic experiences. This sociological interpretation of Pecola’s experiences is geared towards conscientization. Significantly, Morrison has creatively made a symbolic projection that total acceptance of identity and culture is the only way to African Americans’ peace and freedom—both physical and emotional.