Abstract: The Bluest Eye is the first novel written by Toni Morrison ,who is the first African American female writer to win the Noble Prize for Literature. It tells a story about a 11-year-old girl Pecola who is eager to have a pair of blue eyes like the white girls. However, she is raped by her father and gets pregnant, which drives her mad and makes her have an illusion that she has the bluest eyes in the world. This thesis is to analyze the three kinds of aesthetic standards respectively embodied by four main female characters in this novel in terms of the performances and causes of the above aesthetic standards. We may form a more thorough understanding of the social status of black females at a greater depth.

Key word: Toni Morrison;  The Bluest Eye;  Female Characters;   aesthetic standards;

CONTENTS

Abstract

摘要

1. Introduction 

  1.1 An Introduction to Toni Morrison1

  1.2 A Literature Review of  The Bluest Eye.2

2．The Aesthetic Standards of Main Female Characters in The Bluest Eye  

  2.1 The Aesthetic Standards of Pecola and Pauline3

     2.1.1 The Performance of Pecola and Pauline’s Aesthetic Standards: Following the White Aesthetic Standards Blindly..3

     2.1.2 The Cause of Pecola and Pauline’s Aesthetic Standards.4

  2.2 The Aesthetic Standards of Claudia..6

     2.2.1 The Performance of Claudia’s Aesthetic: Objecting to the White Superiority6

     2.2.2 The Cause of Claudia’s Aesthetic Standards 7    

 2.3 The Aesthetic Standards of Geraldine.8

    2.3.1 The Performance of Geraldine’s Aesthetic: Detesting the Black .8

    2.3.2 The Cause of Geraldine’s Aesthetic Standards..8

3. Conclusion..9

References 11

Acknowledgement 12