Impermeable Boundary A Reflection

Published Date: 02 Nov 2017

Matthias Smith

Professor Aida Hussen

English 173

Impermeable Boundary: A Reflection on the Color Line through the Lens of Twentieth Century Interracial Literature

The color line is a term used to describe the organizing apparatus for racial segregation. It emerged in a specific historical context as an after-effect of Emancipation, when the nation was struggling with how to incorporate and represent its black constituency. As a dominant theme of twentieth century interracial literature, an understanding of the color line is critical for navigating though twentieth century literature. In 1903, W.E.B. du Bois famously prophesied, "the problem of the twentieth century is the problem of the color line." As seen through the eyes of Pecola Breedlove in Toni Morrison’s novel, The Bluest Eye, the color line persists as a fundamental structure of social and psychic life; it reinforces racial expectations of what constitutes appropriate racial behavior.

The color line historically affected African Americans disproportionately. Working its way into society as a barrier, it prevented blacks from participating in activities within the confines of white society. During the first half of the twentieth century, Jim Crow laws worked to exclude many African Americans from participating in white society, demarcating their place as social outcasts. Color line literature delineates the troublesome lives of African Americans. Prior to the Supreme Court decision Brown v. Board of Education in 1954, color line literature was at the forefront of the interracial literature genre because of the perceived benefits of crossing the color line; African Americans were also prohibited from participating in white educational systems across the United States. In The Bluest Eye, the color line persists as an instrument for excluding the characters from the parameters of white society.

Within The Bluest Eye, the color line functions as a mechanism for racial differentiation. Claudia, the narrator of the novel, recalls receiving white dolls for Christmas and rejecting them: "I was physically revolted by and secretly frightened of those found moronic eyes, the pancake face, and orangeworms hair" (20). Her reaction happens because of her resistance to racial devaluation. Through her dolls, Claudia learns inferiority. According to Dr. Hussen, Claudia receives the message that the white dolls have been approved: "all the world agreed that a blue-eyed, yellow-haired, pink-skinned doll was what every little girl treasured" (20). Claudia displays her aggression through the destruction of the dolls: "I destroyed the white baby dolls" (22). This angry reaction is a reflection of suggests her retaliatory reaction is caused by an inferiority complex. Furthermore, it can be understood that African American children like Claudia learn their cultural values through the framework of a white dominated society.

The psychic impact of the color line develops through the narratives within The Bluest Eye. The color line negatively affects Pecola Breedlove, causing her to develop an inferiority complex in response to her experiences. This takes place through her interactions with various members of society, both white and black. As she internalizes societal racial hatred, feelings of inferiority seep into her self-consciousness and take on the form of ugliness. Her ugliness, like that of her family’s: "Concealed, veiled, eclipsed—peeping out from behind the shroud very seldom, and then only to return to her mask" (39). She internally accepts her inferiority, and her identity as an ugly individual without consideration: "some mysterious all-knowing master had given each one [including Pecola] a cloak of ugliness to wear, and they had accepted it without question" (39). Pecola’s inferiority complex negatively affects her self-perception and understanding. Through her internalization of the inferiority complex, the color line negatively affects Pecola’s self-perception, causing her to see herself as a lesser person. As works its way into her consciousness, convincing her that her thought of inferiority are true, the color like cognitively separate Pecola from reality.

The color line continues to harm the social and psychic lives of African Americans through the misperceptions of their identity. Soaphead Church, a minor character within the novel understands Pecola as "An ugly little black girl…[wanting]…to rise up out of the pit of blackness and see the world with blue eyes" (174). Being seen as white is synonymous as being seen as both beautiful and superior; the image of black as ugly exists through the presence of the color line. This same racial attitude is demonstrated in Pecola’s encounter with Mr. Yacobowski, the storeowner. She sees his dislike of her: "[Pecola] has seen it lurking in the eyes of all white people…The distaste must be for her, her blackness" (49). This self-revelation of an African American child is profound. Pecola realizes that she is not an accepted member of society because she is an African American. In this instance, the color line fully reveals itself in her psychic life. The color line affects Pecola as a student at school. She comprehends the differential treatment of students with respect to their skin color. In reference to Maureen Peal, she notes: "She enchanted the entire school…White teachers called on her…Black boys didn’t trip her in the halls; white boys didn’t stone her" (62). Her recognition of differential treatment has a lasting impact on her self-perception as an African American girl. Her negative encounters with various members of white society lead her to seek out blue eyes. Rather than interpreting this action as one of insanity, Pecola’s narrative is understood within the context of the divisive color line. She, like other African Americans, finds herself excluded from the privileges of white society because of her race.

The color line persists as a fundamental structure of social and psychic life through society’s expectations of African Americans. Pecola’s self-understanding is shaped through the prejudices of others, a byproduct of the color line. In her negative experience with Junior, Pecola learns that she is treated not as an individual, but as a part of black society. In reference to Pecola, Junior’s mother mentally notes: "They were everywhere…They slept six in a bed…They sat in little rows on street curbs…taking space from the nice, neat, colored children" (92). Pecola is negatively impacted by the perceptions of African Americans created by the color line. The incongruence of societal expectations for African Americans perpetuates the importance of the color line in the psychic life of African Americans.

Cholly Breedlove, Pecola’s father, develops into an aggressive character through the presence of the color line. Within his individual narrative, the color line works to place him outside of accepted white society. Like Pecola, Cholly remains outside the confines of white society because of the color line. In a scene from his narrative, Cholly is forced into having sexual intercourse with Darline while in the presence of white onlookers. This experience has a scarring impact on his life. It reveals to him the power of the color line: "The flashlight wormed its way into his guts and turned the sweet taste of muscadine into rotten fetid bile" (148). The impact of the white society's witness of Cholly’s impotence leaves him with a lasting impression of the color line. He internalizes the scorn of white society through the symbolic flashlight, which acts to witness his deed. The metaphor of the flashlight as an object "worming into his guts" shows his bitter distaste for white society. The color line displays its presence in psychic life through double consciousness. The harmful cognitive nature of the color line is illustrated through Cholly’s experience.

The color line pushes itself to the forefront of African American psychic life through the internalization of racism. Double consciousness refers to the tensions and divisions within African American identity: the "two-ness" of being an American…[and] a Negro". African American self-perception is constructed according to how whites perceive them. As explained by Dr. Hussen, Double consciousness pertains to at least two features of African American identity and experience: the internal conflict of culture (the African and American), and the dissonance of self-identification against pervasive stereotypes. Within the narratives in the novel, individual characters experience double consciousness, and react in different ways. Pecola experiences double consciousness during her encounter with Mr. Yacobowski: "She has seen interest, disgust, even anger in grown male eyes…The distaste must be for her, for her blackness" (49). In this instance, Pecola experiences the dissonance of self-identification (as an African American) and pervasive stereotypes. She comes to realize that she is an unwanted member of society. Pecola’s experience with double consciousness demonstrates the color line’s lasting impact on the psychic lives of African Americans.

Morrison presents the color line as one of the causes of the inferiority complex in her African American characters. The color line presents itself in African American psychic life through the creation of an inferiority complex. The inferiority complex is "an unrealistic feeling of general inadequacy caused by actual or supposed inferiority in one sphere, sometimes marked by aggressive behavior in compensation" (Oxford Dictionary). The concept of the inferiority complex presents itself in both Pecola and Cholly Breedlove’s narratives. These characters develop inferiority complexes because of their negative life experiences as African Americans in a white dominated society. Pecola develops an inferiority complex through her experiences in school. She learns that her teachers consider she is a poor student, and choose to call on her only when necessary: "Insert quotation" (Page Number). This has a lasting impact on the way that she views herself as an individual. Cholly’s inferiority complex is shaped through his experiences with members of white society. One of the major events shaping his inferiority complex is his sexual experience with Darlene. Through this, he learns of his inadequacy and incapability of meeting societal expectations. Most importantly, from his encounter in the woods with Darlene, Cholly learns that he is impotent. The inferiority complex presents itself within group contexts in The Bluest Eye. When Pecola is bullied by other African American children on the school playground, Morrison reveals the horror of the inferiority complex when taken to a new level: "That they themselves were black…was irrelevant…it was their contempt for their own blackness that gave the first insult its teeth" (65). Morrison shows the full force of the psychic damage created because of the inferiority complex. The scene is also symbolic because Pecola becomes the metaphoric scapegoat for black retaliation. The presence of the inferiority complex exists through the persistence of the color line as a fundamental structure within the psychic lives of African Americans. The inferiority complex acts to bring about the worst within an individual, both personal devaluation and shame.

The color line persists as a fundamental structure of social and psychic life by impressing racial expectations within the minds of African Americans through the creation of societal expectations for racial behavior, and perpetuating misconceptions about African American identity. The color line continues to remain relevant within society, as African Americans experience the inferiority complex and racial stereotyped. W.E.B. du Bois’ claim that "the problem of the twentieth century is the problem of the color-line" continues to be true in today’s society. The differential racial expectations within society create permanent psychic damage and social confusion. Within the context of The Bluest Eye, the color line segments individuals as either black or white, beautiful or ugly. The lasting impact of this differentiation, based solely on race, remains to be see. The color line remains an enduring mechanism for racial differentiation in society.