response to the bluest eye

8/12/2019 Response to The Bluest Eye

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Kathleen Snyder

Dr. Wendland

February 14, 2013

Foreshadowing As Used n !wo "ourse #o$els% !he &eward o' the (bser$ant

For so)e readers, there is a *ertain delight to be ta+en in drawing *onne*tions

between one ortion o' a no$el -or any story, whate$er the )ediu) and another.

Foreshadowing is one tool used by authors that, when used well, *reates su*h

*onne*tions. !he te/t that 'oreshadows what to *o)e does not in des*riti$e way tell the

reader what it is re'erring to, but when you rea*h the assage that is its *ounterart, the

art that was being 'oreshadowed, the reader *an instantly re)e)ber the assage that

hinted that this e$ent would ta+e la*e.

When it *o)es to writing style, all authors ha$e a toolbo/ o' sorts that with whi*h

they wor+, and 'oreshadowing is a *o))only used tool )any boo+ *ontain it, whate$er

its uality or how o'ten it is used. When it *o)es to the no$els that were read in this

*ourse, two in arti*ular see)ed to u) out in the )ind o' this aers author. !hose

two no$els were The Bluest Eyeby !oni orrison and Train Dreamsby Denis 5ohnson.

While other boo+s that were read *ertainly *ontained 'oreshadowing, these two authors

e/*elled in how they used this arti*ular writing tool to enhan*e the uality o' their

wor+s.

6oth no$els will be addressed, e/a)les o' 'oreshadowing being well used drawn

'ro) 'irst one no$el, then the other. Train Dreams will be addressed 'irst. Dennis

5ohnson e/*els at alying 'oreshadowing all throughout this rather short no$el, but two

in arti*ular stand out both in uality and in how they are *onne*ted to ea*h other, 'urther


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)a+ing the) aroriate 'or the uroses o' this aer.

!he 'irst o' the two e/a)les o' 'oreshadowing has to do with one, and ossibly

the, )ost ain'ul and )ost de'ining )o)ents o' the rotagonists, &obert 7rainiers, li'e.

!hough )arried -to a wo)an na)ed 7ladys, with who) he has had one s)all *hild, a

daughter na)ed Kate he tra$els se$eral states away to wor+ on *utting down trees 'or

ti)ber. !his allows hi) to )a+e an e/*ellent a)ount o' )oney -8400, whi*h went )u*h

'arther than the sa)e a)ount does today to bring ho)e to his 'a)ily -5ohnson, 39.

While away he )isses his wi'e and *hild, but he does not )iss the) in the way one

would e/e*t a husband and 'ather to )iss his 'a)ily that he is sending an entire

su))er away 'ro). ndeed, it reads as i' he )isses the) with the sa)e uality he would

)iss the 'a)ily dog, i' they had one. :e is )arried, but li$ing as a ba*helor, ha$ing

;easily slied ba*+ into a steadying loneliness< -5ohnson, 14 that he e/erien*ed as a

trueba*helor -5ohnson, 13, 14.

As )entioned, this arti*ular ie*e o' 'oreshadowing hints at an in*redibly ain'ul

e$ent. 7rainier has not roerly *herished his wi'e and daughter while away 'ro) the),

has not gi$en the) roer $alue in his heart, and has li$ed as i' he werea ba*helor. A

ba*helor he then be*o)es again in truth, returning to the area in whi*h they had li$ed as a

'a)ily only to 'ind that a 'ire has swet a huge a)ount o' the region, in*luding where he

and his 'a)ily had their ho)estead. 7rainier sear*hes deserately 'or his wi'e and *hild,

tra$elling into "anada, e$en, as he slowly sees )ore and )ore signs o' how i)ossible it

would ha$e been 'or the) to es*ae their ho)e. When he 'inally 'or*es hi)sel' to a**et

the )ostly li+ely ossibility=that his wi'e and daughter are both dead=he sin+s into a

dee deression. While in this state, he stays at the ho)e o' one o' his *ousins, 'eeling


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*on'used and weeing, while e/erien*ing terrible night)ares when he tries to slee

-5ohnson, 39>43.

!he se*ond ie*e o' 'oreshadowing *onne*ts to the 'irst by ha$ing to do with the

'ate o' his daughter, Kate. 7rainier has as+ed his wi'e 7ladys how )u*h she thin+s Kate

-who is still an in'ant understands that that oint. Kate says that she +nows )any things,

but not nearly as )u*h as a dog>u would at a si)ilar age. -And a dog, it is i)ortant to

re)e)ber, is ulti)ately a des*endant o' a do)esti*ated wol'. A'ter 7ladys says that,

7rainier ;'elt his daughters eyes turned on hi) li+e a *ornered brutes ?@ All o' his li'e

&obert 7rainier was able to re*all this $ery )o)ent on this $ery night< -5ohnson, 9.

7i$en 7rainiers )e)ory roble)s, whi*h are )entioned all throughout the boo+, the

'a*t that he always re)e)bers this )o)ent is alone signi'i*ant. !he *o)arison o' Kate

to a dog, though, is what 'oreshadows her true 'ate, one $ery di''erent 'ro) the death

7rainier had 'or*ed hi)sel' to a**et as her lot.

So)e years a'ter 7rainier loses his 'a)ily, a ru)or begins to sread about the

area in whi*h he li$es that there e/ists so)e sort o' wol'>girl. Se$eral )en who are

udged to be sensible say that they$e seen her, and the ru)or )ill sins away as it

always does, e$entually )a+ing her into so)e sort o' $enge'ul sirit and one that )ates

with wol$es -5ohnson, B9>C3. As with all ru)ors, the wol'>girl is all that anyone tal+s

about 'or a ti)e, and then she is 'orgotten.

7rainier does not ay )u*h attention to the ru)ors, though he does hear about the

wol'>girl. :e, li+e his neighbors, then ro*eeds to 'orget about her a'ter a ti)e. Unli+e

the rest o' town, howe$er, he is re)inded o' her by a )ost unusual e$ent one e$ening in

#o$e)ber, wol$es and *oyotes begin to howl. !he nu)ber o' those who are howling


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haen to e*ola in the end, as ea*h e/a)le o' 'oreshadowing is an e/a)le o' her

being abused, with the abuse be*o)ing worse and worse o$er ti)e. nterestingly, it also

is art o' what e/lains how no one in her *o))unity saw that e*ola was in true and

e/tre)e danger al)ost e$erything that haens to her haens to "laudia, the no$els

narrator, and her'a)ily, but at a )u*h lower le$el, to a )u*h lesser e/tent. !his is

*o))on within the bla*+ *o))unity that e*ola and "laudia both li$ed in, and so it was

easy 'or neighbors to not noti*e that one little girls *ase was )u*h )ore se$ere than

anyone elses. "laudias )other, when irritated, goes about ranting to no one in

arti*ular about the things that ha$e uset her and how the erson=unna)ed, but resent

to hear the oinion being gi$en about hi) or her=who uset her is in*onsiderate, laHy,

et*. -orrison, 24. rs. 6reedlo$e tal+s +indly to the unborn e*ola, telling her how

they will be wonder'ul 'riends, but then e*ola is born and 'ound to be ugly by her

)other. A'ter that, the +ind words are gone and hate'ul ones 'ill the absen*e -orrison,

124>12B.

"laudias )other ta+es a swit*h to e*ola and "laudias sister, Frieda, when she

belie$es the) to be beha$ing in so)e sort o' inaroriate, se/ual )anner together, due

to the taunting *alls o' the girl who li$ed ne/t door to "laudias 'a)ily. n reality,

e*olas eriod had *o)e and Frieda was trying to hel sto the bleeding uon realiHing

this, "laudias )other suddenly aologiHes and gentles. -And we see in this )o)ents

and the ones a'ter it, while she hels e*ola, one o' the )any e/a)les o' how "laudias

)other truly does lo$e her *hildren and her 'a)ily, the di''eren*es between her and rs.

6reedlo$e. -orrison, 29>32 e*olas own )other, on the other hand, uon dis*o$ering

e*ola on the +it*hen rug a'ter being raed by her 'ather, re'uses to belie$e her


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daughters story. nstead o' +indness, rs. 6reedlo$e begins to beat e*ola to the oint

that the gossiing neighbors *o))ent on how e*ola is ;lu*+y to be ali$e hersel'101.

!he reader who has noti*ed the attern +nows that so)ething o' this nature but worse

will haen to e*ola, and as stated re$iously, the 'oreshadowing and the attern both

ro$e true% her own 'ather raes her, her own )other does not belie$e her and beats her

instead, and e*ola *ontinues in her su''ering, not e$en re*ei$ing sy)athy, as "laudia

and Frieda noti*e when they listen to the *on$ersations, o' the gossiing neighbors

-orrison, 190.

:oe'ully, this aer has shown how both orrison and 5ohnson are )asters

when it *o)es to using the tool o' 'oreshadowing. a*h uses it 'or his or her own

uroses within the wor+ being written, but both use it in su*h talented ways that when

the 'oreshadowed e$ent o**urs, the reader *annot hel but re)e)ber the re$ious art o'

the wor+ whisering about what would *o)e. !here are )any tools in a writers toolbo/,

and so)e writers are better than others with i)agery, while others e/*el at setting.

Foreshadowing is a di''i*ult tool, in so)e ways, to use roerly it *annot be so subtle it

is )issed, nor *an it utterly gi$e away what it re'ers to. !he balan*e between the two is

di''i*ult, but both the authors )entioned in this aer ha$e )anaged to 'ind it er'e*tly,


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and 'or that they should be *o))ended and ad)ired.

Wor+s "ited


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5ohnson, Denis. Train Dreams. 1st ed. #ew Eor+% Farrar, Straus and 7irou/, 2011. rint.

orrison, !oni. The Bluest Eye. #ew Eor+% Iintage, 200C. rint.

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