A Paradise for Men or Women? The Paradox of Power in Toni Morrison’s Paradise

Farid Parvaneh

Abstract


Toni Morrison’s Paradise is a novel of women massacre, and the reader is informed from the very beginning that one white woman is murdered by a group of men. The immediate concept formed in the mind of the reader is a patriarchal system that is working in the novel. It seems that the black men, imitating the white system of domination, rule over the black women and thus making life a “hell out of heaven.” However, this study examines how black women in Paradise struggle to revert the hellish situation of their lives, and to study the moments of their consciousness that help them to resist.
Key words: Patriarchal; White Ideology; Black Women Subjects; Subaltern

Résumé: Le “Paradis” de Toni Morrison est un roman sur le massacre des femmes, et le lecteur est informé dès le début qu'une femme blanche est assassiné par un groupe d'hommes. Le concept immédiatement formé dans l'esprit du lecteur est un système patriarcal qui fonctionne dans le roman. Il semble que les hommes noirs, en imitant le système de domination des blancs, dominent sur les femmes noires et rendant ainsi de la vie un "enfer hors du paradis". Toutefois, cette étude examine la façon dont les femmes noires dans le Paradis luttent pour renverser la situation infernale de leur vie , et étudier les moments de leur conscience qui les aident à résister.
Mots-clés: Patriarchal; Idéologie des Blancs; Sujets de Femmes noires; Subalterne

Keywords


Patriarchal; White Ideology; Black Women Subjects; Subaltern;Patriarchal; Idéologie des Blancs; Sujets de Femmes noires; Subalterne

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References


Beaulieu, Elizabeth Ann (ed.). (2003). The Toni Morrison Encyclopedia. New York: Greenwood press.

David, Ron. (2000). Paradise:Toni Morrison Explained: a Reader’s Road Map to Novels (153-192). New York: Random.

Italie, Hillel. (1998). Toni Morrison’s ‘Paradise’. The Standard-Times, NewStandard. Feb. 1. http://www.s-t.com/daily/02-98/02-01-98/e07ae211.htm

Jaffrey, Zia. (1998, Feb.). The Salon Interview: Toni Morrison. Salon.com.

Merleau-Ponty, Maurice. (2002). Phenomenology of Perception (Trans. Colin Smith). New York: Routledge.

Morrison, Toni. (1999). Paradise. New York: Plume Press.

Spivak , G. C. (1985, Winter/Spring). Can the Subaltern Speak? Speculations on Widow-Sacrific (pp. 120-130). Wedge.

Wisker, Gina. (2000). Post-colonial and African American Women’s Writing: a Critical Introduction. New York: Mackmillan Press Ltd.




DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.3968/j.css.1923669720110703.003

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