Mr. Knife Miss Fork

 

When reading the first two pages of Toni Morrison's The Bluest Eye I was confident I was up for some neo-surrealistic book with some sort of a mixture of themes of alienation and racism. 

I was wrong. 

A page later I realize I've been punk'd. And a completely new narration began. I am still happy with the book tough, it seems it has the right amount tragedy and innocence. A particular element brought my attention, and that was the images portrayed by Morrrison: striking, somewhat really crude. That is off course, empowered if specially "seen" by the eyes of a child; "So when I think of autumn, I think of somebody with hands who does not want me to die." (p.12) Fulfilling my entertainment, this literary device became more continuous, and accelerated its momentum through each page. Despite giving the false image of being an over dramatic novella, Morrison really took responsibility on placing noticeable components in the narration, and most important of all, at the right timing; "If happiness is anticipation with certainty, we were happy." The fact that the narrator is a child, inevitably alludes to ones own fuc&@'d up childhood, and its countless traumas. The "outdoors" metaphor almost kept me from sleeping on Tuesday:"...like the difference between the concept of death and being, in fact, dead. Dead doesn't change, and outdoors is here to stay." Last but not least, the images assumed by the narrator on the doll can only create an anticipative ambiance in the reader, waiting to finding out how the psychological profiling in the story will develop..."I was physically revolted by and secretly frightened of those round moronic eyes, the pancake face, and the orangeworms hair."

The Sea (Duh!)

 

The Sea (capitalized) is big. Just as the picture above. Beyond any romantic reflection from my part, I consider Conrad a vivid narrator on this theme, the "infinity of the sea" theme; "Between us there was, as I have already said somewhere, the bond of the sea. Besides holding our hearts together through long periods of separation, it had the effect of making us tolerant of each other's yarns-and even convictions." (pag.2) As vividly explained by the novel's narrator, the sea is an omnipotent entity which embodies infinite, diverse, and different identities. From a psychological point of view, the sea is a strong (if not major) focal point for a sailor, considering it encompasses his whole life. As said by Conrad; "...for there is nothing mysterious to a seaman unless the sea itself, which is the mistress of his existence and as inscrutable as Destiny." (pag. 5) In other words, the seaman's life revolves around the sea, the sea being the alpha, the omega. This extended metaphor produces restlessness tough, since in its most simplistic sense it is equally complicated as life itself or as the method for going to the bathroom. The "Sea" is condemned to probability, or to infinity. 

Throughout the novel the "infinity of the sea" theme develops, and Charlie Marlow translates the sea into another body of water, the river: "And the river was there-fascinating-deadly-like a snake."(pag.15) I was personally struck by the overall tone of darkness in the narration, but that is something that will explained further in future entries. But for what it serves us in the present moment, the juxtaposition of the snake, death, and the river holds and underlined, yet undiscovered meaning. It is somewhat clear that this river represents Marlows youth years, but also, by he reiterating the darkness of the this river, and even further expanding on the snake-like characteristics of this river, it is also very clear that he is up to something. It is quite romantic, in a sense, since it portrays the declivity of his younger years, in a somewhat passionate manner. The ephemeral reflections get to me, since they are simple enough to embrace a life long lesson: "Watching a coast as it slips by the ship is like thinking about an enigma. There it is before you-smiling, frowning, inviting, grand, mean, stupid, or savage, and always mute with an air of whispering." (pag.20)