n the novel, when Pecola is on her way to buyher Mary Janes, the reader is able to realize the extentof the impact this idealization had (and still has) onAfrican-American as well as many other cultures. Morrison makes a point to emphasize the fact that thisaffected everyone in the novel, whether the characteradmired or despised this ideal. Mrs. Breedlove “passedon” to Pecola the insecurity she had “acquired”throughout her life. Her insecurity and self-hate hadbeen in her since her childhood but it was made worse byher emulating the movie actresses. The reader first sees Pecola encountered withracism from a white man with Mr. Yacobowski. She goes tothe store to buy Mary Janes and “He does not see her,because for him there is nothing to see.” The narratoremphasizes the fact that “their ugliness was unique.” She does not state this because it is her opinion, oranyone else’s for that matter, but because “No one couldhave convinced them that they were not relentlessly andaggressively ugly.” The narrator states that they(except for Cholly) “wore their ugliness---although itdid not belong to them.” This ugliness had everythingto do with the fact that they were black, especially forMrs. Breedlove and Pecola. Mrs. Breedlove wanted tolook like a movie star and Pecola wanted blue eyes, bothcases were unrealistic and since they could not be the“ideal” beauty, they assumed they were ugly. Rejection is a by-product of racism. Rejection isdeveloped in the metaphors that Morrison uses throughoutthe novel. The theme of nature recurs in the novel andit parallels Pecola’s rejection. In the beginning ofthe book, Claudia tells the reader that “there were nomarigolds in the fall of 1941.” She does not know whythe marigolds did not bloom, but she can explain whatand how it happened. At this point, the reader gets anidea that there is going...
