The reflection of racism on black identity formation: an comparative analysis between The Bluest Eye and I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings

Abstract

This paper will explore the struggle of the protagonists from The Bluest Eye and I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings against racism, focusing on how a racially biased society harms their development. Both protagonists, Pecola and Maya, are the young Black women whose lives revolve around internalized racism. A child’s development is significantly influenced by their psyche, yet in a racially prejudiced society, the intense discrimination faced by Black children can severely damage their psyche, leading them to lose their sense of self. Hence, they suffer from an identity crisis. However, there is a way to reclaim identity, and that is decolonization. Therefore, the paper will examine the views of Frantz Fanon on Black identity formation, specifically in relation to The Bluest Eye and I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings. In The Bluest Eye, the devastating nature of racism results in the downfall of Pecola and her Breedlove family, but Maya from I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings frees herself from the cage created by the White mainstream society. Once she knows how the racial entrapment works, she does not allow herself to be in the cage. She flies away like a free bird. She liberates herself from all oppression. By juxtaposing these two protagonists, this paper would like to draw attention to the process of identity formation.