Morrison 3

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Would any other medium besides writing fully capture Pecola's desire to live the life of Jane?

Many times I have wondered how reading writing affects how we thing and act. How do illiterate people express what they are feeling or properly convey their emotions? Can an uneducated and illiterate person ever be exposed to the same level of abstract thinking as that of someone who is illiterate?
I don't know if The Bluest Eye completely addresses this issue, but the story itself and the writing Toni Morrison employs is a testament to the power of writing. What power am I referring to? I mean to power to change perspectives, to heal, and to bring people together. If this were a completely true story and each of the real life characters read this book, how many do you think would have changed their views on the entire situation? A good majority I am willing to bet.
What makes writing so effective? For one, to me it is the ultimate medium for which someone can understand the thoughts and view of another person. Through writing, one is able to be transported into the mind of another person. Normal barriers such as looks, language, accents disappear through the medium of writing. For instance, would Pecola's insanity be as vivid had we not witnessed her madness from her own eyes? Would it be as depressing if we weren't given all the facets of the story that allow us to understand what drove her to this point? If we did not know the madness that also envoloped Cholly we would be able to sympathize with Pecola or would we cast her aside as did all the other townsfolk?http://www.phantomprojects.com/sitebuilder/images/BluestEyeLMT09MiniPosterWEB2-383x600.jpg

That's what I believe is the silent power of The Bluest Eye. It's ability to weave the personal stories of individuals in the context of society at large creates the ability to feel compassion for individuals in the novel on a scale that is rarely matched in other novels. Had I seen a film version of this novel, I feel much of its impact would have been lost on the transition to the big screen. The acting and the screenwriting would probably dilute the effect of Morrison's writing and make it harder to really connect with the characters. Would we truly understand that Pecola "stepped over into madness, a madness which protected her from us simply because it bored us in the end" (Morrison 206)? Maybe, but I guarantee that it would not leave such a powerful imprint on my mind as reading the novel did.