Quest For Identity in Selected works of Afro - American Writers.

1. Department of English
Maharaja Krishnakumarsinhji Bhavnagar University,
Bhavnagar, Gujarat.
Quest for identity in selected works of Afro -American
writers. (The Color Purple and The Bluest Eye)
Presented By : Himanshi Parmar.
(Student of Department of English,
MKBU)
Presented at : Department of English,
Maharaja Krishnakumarsinhji Bhavnagar
University.

2. Abstract
This research paper aims to emphasise reading of 'Quest for identity' in the selected works of African - American writers.The
paper particularly focuses on 'The Bluest Eye' by Toni Morrison and 'The Color Purple' by Alice Walker through the lens of
'Quest for Identity'.It also includes comparative study of the characters in the light of their personal growth and quest for
identity in the novels.The "quest for identity" is a common theme in literature, especially in coming-of-age stories. It refers to
a character's journey to discover who they truly are and to understand their place in the world. The Bluest Eye and The Color
Purple are both written by female writers, and it also focuses on female characters (Pecola and Celie) and their struggle to
find their identity in white society. The novels are written by different writers though they are quite similar especially the
condition of its female characters are the same.Through the characters of Pecola Breedlove, Claudia MacTeer, and Pauline
Breedlove, Morrison illuminates the devastating effects of racism and self-hatred on the black community's search for
identity. Through the experiences of Celie, Sofia, Shug, and other characters, we are reminded of the importance of self-love,
self-expression, and community support in the journey towards self-discovery and liberation. The research paper aims to
study all these points.

3. Points to Ponder
● What is Quest For Identity?
● Quest for identity in 'The Bluest Eye’
● Quest for identity in 'The Color Purple’
● Comparative study of 'The Bluest Eye' and 'The Color Purple'
1 - Story line
2 - Identity quest of Protagonists.
3 - How minor characters influence protagonists?
4 -Minor Character's 'Quest for identity' .

4. What is ‘Quest for Identity’?
~ Quest for identity: character's journey to discover who they truly are and understand their place in the world.
~ Psychological process: involves exploration, self-reflection, and development of personal values and beliefs.
~ Begins in adolescence: but can continue throughout life.
~Strong identity: associated with positive outcomes, including psychological well-being, resilience, and social
connections.
~ Challenges: societal pressure, personal insecurities, and internal conflicts.
~ Strategies: self-reflection, experimentation, seeking advice from mentors and loved ones.
~ Metaphor for self-discovery: the quest for identity is a broader human experience.
~ Universal theme: fundamental human desire to understand oneself and find one's place in the world.

5. Quest for identity in 'The Bluest Eye’
~ The Bluest Eye explores the quest for identity in a society that values external appearance and societal standards of beauty.
~ The protagonist, Pecola Breedlove, believes she is ugly because she does not have blue eyes, blonde hair, and fair skin.
~ Pecola's desire for blue eyes becomes an obsession that consumes her, and her quest for identity is linked to this desire.
~ Pecola's quest for identity is constantly thwarted by the racism and self-hatred that permeates her community.
~ Claudia MacTeer provides a contrast to Pecola's quest for identity by rejecting societal standards of beauty and internalized
self-hatred.
~ Claudia's quest for identity is based on her rejection of societal norms that limit her sense of self-worth.

6. Quest for identity in 'The Bluest Eye’
~ The Bluest Eye explores the quest for identity in a society that values external appearance and societal norms of beauty.
~ Pecola Breedlove embodies this quest as a young black girl who desires blue eyes to be seen as valuable and worthy in a society that devalues
blackness.
~ Symbols such as blue eyes, Dick and Jane, Shirley Temple, Mary Jane candies, and marigolds represent societal pressures and power dynamics
of race and class in the novel.
~ Other characters, such as Claudia and Frieda, also struggle to define themselves in a world that tells them they are inferior.
~ The novel critiques societal pressures that limit individuals' sense of self-worth and calls for systemic change to resist these pressures.
~ Morrison's use of language and imagery highlights the complexity of the characters' quest for identity and the ways in which their experiences
are shaped by their race, gender, and class.
~ The Bluest Eye offers a searing critique of a society that values external appearance over inner worth and perpetuates systems of oppression
that limit individuals' sense of self.

7. Quest for identity in 'The Color Purple’
~ The Color Purple is a Pulitzer Prize-winning novel by Alice Walker.
~ It tells the story of Celie, a young black woman living in the American South in the early 20th century.
~ Celie struggles to find her own sense of self-worth and embarks on a journey of self-discovery and self-
acceptance.
~ Her sister Nettie provides her with a glimpse of a life outside of her oppressive environment.
~ Her relationship with Shug Avery, a blues singer and her lover, helps Celie to see herself in a new light and
discover her own sexuality.
Celie's work as a seamstress gives her a sense of pride and accomplishment that builds her self-worth and
confidence.

8. Quest for identity in 'The Color Purple'
~ Celie's writing becomes a way for her to assert her own identity and resist oppressive forces.
~ Other characters, such as Sofia and Shug, also struggle to assert their identities in the face of societal
norms and expectations.
~ The Color Purple explores the complexities of identity formation in a world that seeks to strip
individuals of their power and agency.
~ The novel emphasizes the importance of self-love, self-expression, and community support in the
journey towards self-discovery and liberation.

9. Comparative study of 'The Bluest Eye' and 'The Color Purple'
1 - Story line :
~ ‘The Color Purple’ and ‘The Bluest Eye’ explore the theme of identity in young African American women.
~ ‘The Color Purple’ follows Celie's journey from abuse and hardship to self-discovery and empowerment, shaped by experiences of violence,
racism, and sexism.
~ Celie's relationships with other women help her to recognize her own worth and potential.
~ "The Bluest Eye" follows Pecola's quest for identity, shaped by experiences of racism, poverty, and abuse, and complicated by internalized
racism and societal beauty standards.
~ Pecola's desire for blue eyes becomes an obsession, and she believes that if she were to have them, she would finally be accepted by society.
~ The damaging effects of societal beauty standards on young women of color are highlighted in the novel.
~ Claudia's quote at the end of "The Bluest Eye" reflects on the ways in which Pecola was forced to internalize societal messages that devalued
her and stripped her of her sense of self-worth.
~ Both novels emphasize the importance of self-discovery, self-love, and community support in the quest for identity.

10. Comparative study of 'The Bluest Eye' and 'The Color Purple'
2 - Identity quest of Protagonists :
~ Both Celie and Pecola in "The Color Purple" and "The Bluest Eye," respectively, embark on a quest for identity, albeit in different
ways.
~ Celie's journey towards self-acceptance and empowerment is facilitated by her relationships with other women, while Pecola's
relationships with other women are characterized by jealousy and resentment.
~ Celie's abusive husband represents a patriarchal society that seeks to control and oppress women, while Pecola's identity is shaped by
trauma and abuse, including sexual abuse by her father.
~Celie's transformation culminates in her decision to leave her abusive husband and pursue her own dreams and desires, while Pecola's
quest for blue eyes ultimately proves to be futile and destructive, driving her further into madness and despair.
~ In summary, while both protagonists' quests for identity involve relationships with men and experiences of trauma and abuse, their
journeys towards self-acceptance and empowerment are vastly different.

11. Comparative study of 'The Bluest Eye' and 'The Color Purple'
3 - How minor characters influence protagonists?
~ The Color Purple and The Bluest Eye explore the quest for identity of their female protagonists in the face of racism, sexism, and
abuse.
~ Minor characters play an important role in shaping the identity of the main characters.
~ Shug Avery in The Color Purple is a minor character who significantly impacts Celie's identity by encouraging her to question
oppressive gender roles and see herself in a positive light.
~ Claudia and Frieda in The Bluest Eye are minor characters who serve as a source of strength and support for Pecola by rejecting
white standards of beauty and embracing their own self-worth.
~ Not all minor characters are supportive or helpful; some reinforce oppressive systems, such as Harpo in The Color Purple and
Pauline in The Bluest Eye.
~ Through the minor characters, these novels offer alternative paths to identity formation that resist dominant cultural norms and offer
a vision of possibility for the main characters.

12. Comparative study of 'The Bluest Eye' and 'The Color Purple'
4 -Minor Character's 'Quest for identity' .
Sofia and Claudia MacTeer :
~ Sofia from The Color Purple and Claudia from The Bluest Eye offer striking parallels in their struggles for self-
determination and resistance to oppression.
~ Sofia exemplifies the challenges and costs of resistance to oppressive systems by refusing to be controlled by the
men in her life and standing up for herself.
~ Claudia resists the pressures to conform to dominant cultural norms of beauty and recognizes the ways in which
internalized oppression harms black girls like herself and her friend Pecola.
~Both Sofia and Claudia face significant challenges in their struggles for self-determination, with Sofia being broken
by the system of mass incarceration and forced to work as a maid, and Claudia failing to save Pecola from her tragic
fate.

13. Comparative study of 'The Bluest Eye' and 'The Color Purple'
Shug Avery and Pecola
~ Shug Avery from The Color Purple and Pecola Breedlove from The Bluest Eye can be compared in terms of their
struggles with identity crisis and quest for identity.
~ Shug defies the expectations placed on black women in the early 20th century South and struggles with a sense of
internalized oppression and shame.
~ Pecola internalizes the white beauty standards and the colorism prevalent in her community and desires blue eyes
as a way to escape oppression and abuse.
~ Both Shug and Pecola share a sense of alienation from their communities and a desire for self-discovery, finding
some measure of self-discovery and identity through their relationships with other characters.

14. Comparative study of 'The Bluest Eye' and 'The Color Purple'
Tashi and Claudia :
~ Tashi and Claudia both struggle with issues of identity and cultural tension.
~ Tashi is engaged to Nettie's son Adam and undergoes female circumcision, a tradition in her African tribe.
~Tashi experiences conflict as she navigates cultural expectations and Western influences.
~ Claudia resists the pressures to conform to white beauty standards and grapples with the influences of white culture on her family.
~ Both Tashi and Claudia strive to assert their own identities and resist cultural pressures.
~ Tashi speaks out against the painful ritual of female circumcision and stands up for her cultural traditions.
~ Claudia ultimately rejects white beauty standards and recognizes the beauty in her own racial identity.
~ Their struggles highlight the challenges faced by marginalized individuals in asserting their identities in society..

15. Thank You.
Work Cited
Bump, Jerome. “Racism and Appearance in The Bluest Eye: A Template for an Ethical Emotive Criticism.” College
Literature, vol. 37, no. 2, 2010, pp. 147–70. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/20749587.
Hamilton, Cynthia. “Alice Walker’s Politics or the Politics of the Color Purple.” Journal of Black Studies, vol. 18, no. 3,
1988, pp. 379–91. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/2784513.
Morrison, Toni. The Bluest Eye. Vintage, 1999.
Musanga, Terrence, and Theophilus Mukhuba. “Toward the Survival and Wholeness of the African American Community: A
Womanist Reading of Alice Walker’s The Color Purple (1982).” Journal of Black Studies, vol. 50, no. 4, 2019, pp. 388–400.
JSTOR, https://www.jstor.org/stable/26641537.

16. Work Cited
Ross, Daniel W. “CELIE IN THE LOOKING GLASS: THE DESIRE FOR SELFHOOD IN ‘THE COLOR
PURPLE.’” Modern Fiction Studies, vol. 34, no. 1, 1988, pp. 69–84. JSTOR,
http://www.jstor.org/stable/26282404.
Roye, Susmita. “TONI MORRISON’S DISRUPTED GIRLS AND THEIR DISTURBED GIRLHOODS:
‘The Bluest Eye’ and ‘A Mercy.’” Callaloo, vol. 35, no. 1, 2012, pp. 212–27. JSTOR,
http://www.jstor.org/stable/41412505.
Walker, Alice. Color Purple. Wadsworth Publishing, 2006.
Wallowitz, Laraine. “Chapter 9: Resisting the White Gaze: Critical Literacy and Toni Morrison’s ‘The Bluest
Eye.’” Counterpoints, vol. 326, 2008, pp. 151–64. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/42980110.