She even goes as far as to describe the pedophilia, rape, and incest 'friendly,' 'innocent,' and 'tender.' It's no wonder that this book is in the top 10 list of most contested books in the country."
She took pains to make sure she never portrayed the actions as wrong in order to show how everyone has their own problems. "Morrison, says that she wanted the reader to feel as though they are a 'co-conspirator' with the rapist. In her research on the The Bluest Eye, Macey France exposes some shocking discussion by the author. It is however, understandable that parents take issue with the author herself. To deny them intellectual and challenging literature because the traditional community is too uncomfortable with taboo subjects like pedophilia and incest only deprives that student of understanding the deeper emotional and psychological complexities behind the taboo.
Undoubtedly, these students should have the opportunity to understand the countless poetic books discussing sex in a real-life and visceral way, especially in a historic context for their understanding of bygone perspectives. In reality, many of them are beginning to have their own sexual experience right around ages 16-18. That being said, the actual demographic of students reading this book, right around age 16 and 17, are no strangers to the public world of sex.
Rather than say that the novel is inappropriate, it's more accurate to say that it's not appropriate for the younger generation. The book that has parents particularly fired up is Nobel Prize-winning author Toni Morrison's The Bluest Eye, a popular selection of Oprah's Book Club. The curriculum describes the novel as: An Eleven-Year-Old African-American Girl In Ohio, In The Early 1940s, Prays For Her Eyes To Turn Blue So That She Will Be Beautiful, and in response, one town in Colorado has had parents petition to have the book removed from public schools suggested reading lists.Īlthough the book has extremely explicit sex scenes describing incest, rape, and pedophilia, it is a key thought-provoking literary work that students should have the opportunity to properly analyze and digest. Results of Incident: The book has not been banned in Indiana or Alabama, and it has been restricted in the 11th grade AP curriculum in Colorado.The Department of Education's controversial set of education standards being mandated by the state, also known as Common Core, is taking harsh criticism for its 11th grade suggested reading list. Others still think it should be left on the reading list though because it exposes students to people and lives that they have nothing in common with. Parents concerned about the book's explicit description of racism, incest, and child molestation, has caused some parents to write a letter as a way to take action to have it removed. The novel is on the reading list of the AP curriculum in Broomfield, Colorado.
It was published by Holt, Rinehart, and Winston in 1970.īecause of the controversial nature of the book, which deals with racism, incest, and child molestation, there have been numerous attempts to ban it from schools and libraries.ĭue to inappropriate and controversial sexual content and graphic language that is in the novel, the State School Board has challenged The Bluest Eye and tried removing it from the curriculum.Īlso concerned about the sexual content in the novel, a legislator in Alabama has challenged The Bluest Eye to be removed from an Alabama school's curriculum.
WHY WAS THE BLUEST EYE BANNED SKIN
It is about a year in the life of a young black girl, named Pecola, who develops an inferiority complex due to her eye color and skin appearance in Lorain, Ohio, against the backdrop of America's Midwest as well as in the years following the Great Depression. Location: Indiana Arizona Broomfield, ColoradoĬonfronting Bodies: Indiana library, Arizona school, School in Colorado The Bluest Eyeĭescription of Artwork: The Bluest Eye is a 1970 novel by American author Toni Morrison.
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