Symbols Bluest Eye

Abby Sawyer

Mr. Obadiah

Period F AP English

22 August 2013

Symbols in The Bluest Eye

Symbols play an important role throughout all literature. A symbol is something concrete that stands for something else not concrete. In Toni Morrison’s novel The Bluest Eye this is no different. Her choices as an author for certain aspects of the book are on purpose. She uses certain symbols and archetypes to convey a deeper meaning. Some of these that are key to the story are the seasons, the marigolds, and the blue eyes.

Morrison divided The Bluest Eye into four sections. Each one was titled with a season. It started with autumn, then went winter, spring and summer. Every season is archetypal known for something. Autumn is the season of harvest. Winter is the season of death and sadness. Spring is a new beginning and life. Lastly, summer is a time of life and happiness. What each season is typically meant to stand for, Morrison’s storyline offers the opposite. This allows the reader to stay guessing. In autumn the time of harvest the marigolds do not grow at the beginning of the novel. During the winter there is no time of real sadness or death. Claudia and Frieda instead meet a new friend. When the spring comes instead of new beginnings and oppurtunities Pecola is raped by her father, Cholly. This is the ultimate low of thte book that chamges Pecola’a life forever. Finally, when the summer comes instead of the happiness and life there is sadness.. Instead it is a time of sorrow and heartbreak. That summer is filled with storms .The novel then concludes with extreme sadness for Pecola as she had gone crazy over her need for the bluest eyes. The actual plot juxtaposed with what each season generally stands for helps to draw attention to the important events.

The marigolds are an important symbol in The Bluest Eye. In one of the first pages Morrison writes, “there were no marigolds in the fall of 1941” (Morrison 5). When Claudia and Frieda hear about how everyone wants...