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antoniafang's review against another edition
3.0
Graphic: Animal death, Child abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, and Sexual violence
alicyagrace's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Animal death, Child abuse, Death, Incest, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Racism, Rape, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Pregnancy, and Alcohol
blessi's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
It is because of these venereal topics that the novel has been the subject of censorship, but within the pages, the X-rated scenes are just a scant wrinkle in the grand scheme of things. Given that the entire text has less than three hundred pages, four short chapters, and prose split into several piecemeal paragraphs, it can even feel fleeting most times. From the premise’s standpoint, it seems a lot since nothing good ever happens, and things just get worse by numerous transgressions—but it is more emotionally-concentrated narration than that. Morrison tackles them in a manner wherein the overt parts do not overshadow the emotional context behind them. When there is a graphic incident, it lasts for as little as five paragraphs on a single page—and then the rest becomes a long series of characters’ backstories and thought processes, complete with raw feelings and flashbacks, that by the time the narration returns to its present turmoil, the shockwave loses its effects as if they neutralize each other out.
Despite the book’s attempt to steer its egregious topics into emotional contexts, it is for this same reason that the novel still feels upsetting to read. Morrison’s prose is graceful, magnificent, unpretentious, and well-versed, with a subdued tone and admiringly calming disposition—but when it gets into the headspace of characters, it does get into it with so much passion and conviction. As it gets to the perpetrators’ side of the story, the narration begins to read as though it is a case study, where it alternates the point of view between an omniscient third-person and the malefactors’ very own personal reflections, as though it is an interviewer-interviewee set up. It is in these parts that are most violent and obscene because their thoughts are raw and unfiltered; for instance, the pedophile character’s perverted thoughts on little girls and even Claudia’s savage muses of dismembering blue-eyed baby dolls or beating up people she hates.
One of the things that helps the novel to feel less like a victim story, even if it is, is having Claudia narrate it, as her character is strong-willed, and thus, she makes up for the courage that her friend, Pecola, lacks. Her chain of thoughts on the matter is on point, so spot on for what witnesses might feel and think in her friend’s situation, e.g., how she wants to straighten Pecola’s sad body posture and “spit the misery out of her.” As Claudia grapples with the concepts of and correlation between beauty, love, and intercourse, in terms of general perception versus the science behind them, it begins to make sense that her entire point of view acts as one big metaphor and a foreshadowing of Pecola’s fate, which is brilliant. The unadulterated ignorance of nine-year-old Claudia and her ten-year-old sister, Frieda, on the ways of the world—is comical that the novel might have been sidesplitting if it was not so depressing. Nevertheless, it is an absolute enlightenment, akin to the irony of Mrs. MacTeer’s singing tragic songs when she is in a good mood, which leaves Claudia with the conviction that “pain was not only endurable, it was sweet.”
Moderate: Bullying, Incest, Pedophilia, Racism, and Sexual violence
Minor: Domestic abuse
elysev's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Death, Incest, Pedophilia, Sexual assault, Sexual content, and Sexual violence
laurianeisreading's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.75
Graphic: Child abuse, Incest, Mental illness, Pedophilia, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, and Pregnancy
Moderate: Death, Racism, Violence, Abandonment, and Sexual harassment
Minor: Bullying
rach94's review against another edition
4.0
Graphic: Pedophilia, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexual violence, and Violence
Minor: War
rsagarin's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body shaming, Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Incest, Infidelity, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Violence, Grief, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Abandonment, and Classism
mdrosend's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.75
Graphic: Child abuse, Incest, Rape, and Sexual violence
emerentina's review against another edition
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Bullying, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Incest, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, and Sexual violence
Moderate: Addiction, Alcoholism, Mental illness, Racial slurs, Violence, Grief, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury, Abandonment, Alcohol, and Classism
dannymonty's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, Hate crime, Incest, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, and Violence
Moderate: Alcoholism, Bullying, Chronic illness, Cursing, Blood, Grief, and Death of parent
Minor: Addiction, Body shaming, Excrement, Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury, Abandonment, and Alcohol