Abstract

This novel is full of images of beauty icons for the whiteness, physical and psychological violences, desire to be a whole person as a black, and so on. With Pecola's pursuing her own dream, this paper aims to examine the meaning of her phantom self through the soul-destroying process based on her black surroundings. She is destined to lead a life of humiliation due to her blackness, so she is constantly victimized and humiliated in the family and the community. It means that the caste hierarchy of the black society can be atrocious because it stems from the White standard that makes the blacks invisible and urges them to such extremes. As the whiteness functions as the yardstick of personal worth in the work, it pushes Pecola into not only anxiety and disorder, but also distorted desire. For the reason, she is psychologically deserted by her parents and the community, and further her earnest desire for the blue eye makes her insane after all. However, while showing these severe processes in the racist society, the study consequently emphasizes Toni Morrison's messages of understanding and love that make readers look into our severe society.

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