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1、The Bluest Eye(Excerpts)by Toni MorrisonGuide to ReadingWhen we discuss contemporary American literature, it is impossible not to mention the name and works of Toni Morrison. A Nobel Prize winner for literature, she has written up to now seven novels, making significant contributions to the depictio
2、n of African American experience. Unlike some African American writers who expose white racism against the blacks in a direct way, Morrisons exploration tends to be introverted个性内向的：人的特征为兴趣或是盘据脑海的只有自己或是自己的想法；害羞或是排斥; 含蓄的; 内倾的；不爱交际的; introvert vt.使(思想)内向; 使内省extroverted外倾的：对其他的人或环境如与自身相反的或之外的事物感兴趣的；喜群
3、居的或外出的：, focusing on the relationships within the black community. Her novels often reveal how the dominant white culture has deprived the black people of their own cultural values and the destructive impact this cultural mutilation毁损；残缺；切断; mutilate毁伤；使残废Her arm was mutilated in the accident.她的胳膊在车
4、祸中受了重伤。The pilot was mutilated in the plane crash and now has only one leg.飞行员在飞机失事事故中残废了,现在只剩下了一条腿。 破坏；把删改得支离破碎Youve mutilated the story by making such big changes.你作了这么大的改变，把故事弄得支离破碎了。has brought about among the black people. Although most of her novels are apparently set in her home town in Ohio,
5、 they not only depict the black experience in that region, but tell about shared human conditions with universal themes of love, death, betrayal, and the individuals responsibility for his or her own fate. Morrisons first novel The Bluest Eye, from which the following text is taken, tells the heartb
6、reaking story of Pecola Breedlove, a vulnerable black girl, living in Lorain, Ohio, in the early 1940s. In a society where blue eyes and whiteness are equated with beauty, and therefore, goodness Goodness is the quality of being kind, helpful, and honest. 善良and happiness while blackness is perceived
7、察觉；理解；发觉; 把看作；认为ugliness, Pecolas greatest desire is to have blue eyes. Each night, without fail一定，必定I will give you a present on your birthday without fail. 你生日时我一定送你一份礼物。, she prays for pretty blue eyes. She believes that having blue eyes is the key to wiping out all the unbearable miseries for he
8、r familytheir hopeless poverty, the constant fighting between the parents, the contempt of other children, etc. She imagines that with blue eyes, she will become a beautiful girl loved by everyone. In her wild 疯狂的；胡乱的; 非常激动的; 狂妄的；不切实际的；异想天开的；不合常理的imagination Pecola feels that the color of her eyes h
9、as been finally transformed. Ironically, instead of love, what she gets in the end is the violence of her fathers rape. Rather than happiness, she sinks deeper into the abyss of misery. Her dream of finding shelter in her fantasy of whiteness mercilessly destroyed, the girl is thrown into使（突然）陷入某一状态
10、 madness. Following is one of the most vivid scenes in the novel. In this part the author describes a particular type of blacksbrown-skinned people. They hold themselves high above the other blacks. These sugar-brown or milk-brown girls are from better families, “go to land-grant colleges 接受政府赠地的学院(
11、或大学); land grant政府赠予地：政府准予把公共用地用来建铁路、公路或州立大学, learn how to do the white mans work with refinement (感情、趣味、举止、言谈等的)优雅，高尚，文雅,” marry successfully, living in their own inviolable worlds in quiet, black neighborhoods. With a certain proportion of white blood in them, they feel superior to other black peo
12、ple. Like the whites, they detest blackness黑人的特征(或特性、气质), and project 把(自己的感情、思想等)投射给他人Dont project your guilt feelings onto me!别把你自己内疚的感情往我身上搬。their hatred and contempt for it onto Negroes with darker skins. They blindly believe in the mainstream white cultural values and imitate the white middle c
13、lass in every possible way. They are unable to establish healthy relationships with their own people. Geraldine is such a woman, and her son Junior is on the way of becoming one like her. Incapable of human love, Geraldine finds comfort in her cat. So when her cat is killed (by her son), she pours a
14、ll her anger onto Pecola and cruelly drives the poor girl from her home. Once again, Pecola is made a victim. Yet, Geraldine, who has victimized使作牺牲；使受害，使受苦this helpless black girl, is also a victim herselfa victim of racial prejudice that has penetrated into 进入；(思想、感情等)深入于These new ideas are penetr
15、ating into the minds of the younger generation.这些新思想正在渗透到年轻一代人的头脑里。 the minds of black people like her and warped使(性格等)不正常；使乖戾；使有偏见Years of living alone may warp ones personality.长期的孤身生活会使人的性格变得乖戾。their true identity. This scene is vivid and disturbingSomething that is disturbing makes you feel worr
16、ied or upset令人不安的，使内心不平静的. After reading the story the reader finds it hard to forget the characters and their fate. Realistic You say that a painting, story, or movie is realistic when the people and things in it are like people and things in real life. 逼真的details, metaphorical language and the freshest and most strikingSomething that is striking is very noticeable or unusual. 显著的; 不同寻常的; 突出的, 鲜明的, 引人注目的; 给人深刻印象的prose all contribut
