Dysfunctional Family

As I read Toni Morrison's The Bluest Eye, I could only think about how horrible living was for the narrator's family. I felt sorry for the children. Claudia and Frieda lived with scary parents, especially Mama. When Claudia said that she can't get sick because her parents "shake their heads in disgust at [her] lack of consideration. How, they ask us, do you expect anybody to get anything done if you all are sick?" (10). What kind of cold and heartless parents blame their children for getting sick? Claudia says that "illness is treated with contempt" (10). I do not believe her when she says this; however, when Claudia does fall ill, her mom treats her rather coldly. Claudia is so scared of her mother that she sweats promptly when Mama orders her to. At this point, I too thought Mama was disinterested selfish parent who was angry at Claudia for getting sick and being inconvenient, but I soon realized that was not the case. Mama complains and appears to be angry at Claudia while tending her sickness. Nevertheless, she cleans Claudia's puke, keeps her warm, and tries to make her better. Sometimes, action speaks more clearly than the words themselves. In fact, Mama "is not angry at me, but at [Claudia's] sickness" (11). Just like this, even though Mama appears to be indifferent towards her children, she loves and cares for them deep inside; she just does not know how to express it.

How can you get angry at a child for getting sick?

Many white people who read this novel believe that this book supports the idea that black families are dysfunctional, but that is not true. White families believe that the narrator's family is an example of a dysfunctional family because McTeers do not fit the image of an "ideal" family. Who decides what's "ideal" anyway? This is exactly like the blue-eyed dolls that Claudia destroyed. According to Claudia, "all the world had agreed that a blue-eyed, yellow-haired, pink-skinned doll was what every girl child treasured" (20). But why? Why were blue eyes more "beautiful"? Similarly, why are white families any more "functional" than Black families? Why? I do not understand. Yes, I agree that McTeers are not the ideal happy family, but they are perfectly functional. McTeers have the essential thing every functional family has: love. Claudia remembers the time she fell ill and says, "... when I think of autumn, I think of somebody with hands who does not want me to die" (12). Prof. Bump agrees, "the better label for the McTeers might be 'competent but pained' family" (Bump 351).

How did this image come to define "beauty"?

In my Illness and Meaning class, we watched "Out of the Shadow," a documentary filmed by Ms. Smiley about her mom who suffers from paranoid schizophrenia. Ms. Smiley had a dysfunctional family. She had to constantly fear for her life and pleasing her mother was her priority to stay alive. Ms. Smiley was constantly beat as a child and eventually ran away. After Ms. Smiley ran away, her little sister attempted to commit suicide. Now THIS is a dysfunctional family where "children may suffer 'severe neuroses or reactive psychotic episodes'" (Bump 351).

I looked up "dysfunctional family" and the family from "Little Miss Sunshine" came up first!

I guess they are a great example of a dysfunctional family

I could actually relate to Claudia and her family. Disregarding the financial situation and such, the way her family is run is similar to many Korean families. Her mom reminded me of my dad. Koreans have this phenomenon called "silent love," Koreans are not very expressive and tries to speak through actions. This is especially true for Korean dads. They always show hard and strict side to children and always are the ones belittling, yet they still care for the children. Just like Mrs. McTeer, my dad used to always say mean things to me while helping me out. I would always think he might as well not do it if he's going to be mean about it, but now I realize that's just the way he is. I guess, in a way, Korean fathers are embarrassed(?) or shy about openly being nice, so they try to show their love through actions just like Claudia's mother.

Underneath this deceiving appearance is a dad saying, "I love you"