Final Essay - Steven Lara

Steven Lara

Dr. Drissi

Eng. 105

11 December 2015

The Consequences of Neglect on the Development of Children

            In the novels, ”The Bluest Eye” and “Of Love & Other Demons”, child neglect is a common theme. Both texts display the negative impact that neglect has on the development of children. The characters Pecola and Sierva are the victims of neglect, consequently hindering their social relationships and self-esteem. The results of neglect consist of short-term and long-term effects, which can be both psychological and physical, on the character and mentality of the child that can be difficult to remove. This is a serious form of abuse that needs to be taken seriously and given more attentive care by those within the “home” of the children. In the novels, “The Bluest Eye” and “Of Love & Other Demons”, child neglect from Pecola’s and Sierva’s parents alters the way they perceive themselves and the world around them leading to their individual downfalls, which also sets an counter-example of what the concept of “home” should be for all families.

The character Pecola Breedlove, from Toni Morrison’s novel “The Bluest Eye”, is a black eleven-year-old girl that comes from an unloving, abusive and neglectful family.  In the beginning of the story Pecola was placed to live with the Macteer family because her father had burned down her house and she had nowhere else to go. Claudia Macteer explains, “The county had placed her in our house for a few days, … until the family was reunited”(Morrison 16). Experiencing separation from her family by the force of an external power because of an act caused by her father reveals to the reader the unhealthy condition in which the family exists. Her idea of “home” is now broken and there is now established boundaries for what a family is to her.

Traditionally, a mother is the parent who provides unconditional tender, love and care for her children through sensitivity, understanding and compassion. Although, this nurturer archetype is absent in this sociological context of the “home” for Toni Morrison’s “The Bluest Eye”.

Pecola’s mother Pauline is unaffectionate and abusive towards her and creates distance for their mother-daughter relationship. In a scene in the spring, Pecola spills berry cobbler in the kitchen of the house belonging to the white family that Pauline works for by accident, while also burning herself in the process. According to Claudia Macteer, “Mrs. Breedlove yanked her up by the arm, slapped her again, and in a voice thin with anger, abused Pecola directly”(109). An example of Pauline’s aggression and animosity for her daughter is shown by her abusive nature and lack of consideration for her daughter’s well being, even after have cried out and hopped in pain from the burns. Conversely, Pauline comforts the little white girl who lives there after she begins to cry. Pauline says to her, “Hush, baby, hush. Come here… don’t cry no more”(109). Pecola witnesses first hand her mother attending to another girl’s needs of comfort and security more than her own by her tone, words and demeanor when speaking to her.

Ideally, the father of the family is supposed to be the protector and guardian of their kin. Unfortunately, this role is unfulfilled in the Breedlove home and instead replaced with the infliction of damage.

Cholly Breedlove does not love Pecola the way a father should. One of the reasons he could not be the father he needed to be was due to his alcoholism. It is described that, “Cholly, by his habitual drunkenness” caused him to be violent. (42). Being an alcoholic drove Pecola away from him and limited the bonding time necessary for the two to build a strong relationship. It was during one of his drinking binges that Cholly, “wanted to fuck her-tenderly”(162). The action of a father raping his daughter is so unnatural and immoral that it inevitably creates a psychological wound that a child would never be able to heal from.

The concept of family and “home” for Pecola Breedlove is distorted, fragmented and undesirable. At a young age she experienced living in another family’s household and witnessed their love for each other that she did not have for her own. Even though the Macteer’s treated Pecola with hospitality they would not be able to fill the void of her family loving her the way a child deserves. Her unstable relationships with her family would prohibit her from creating healthy relationships with peers and other people. Her only friends Claudia and Frieda ended up saying they, “avoided Pecola Breedlove”(205). Pecola desired to be white with blue-eyes more than anything else. The Macteers, “knew she was fond of the Shirley Temple cup…to see Shirley’s face” (23). Since her self-esteem was low due to her ugliness and mother loving a white girl more than her. Pecola thought that if she had blue-eyes like Shirley Temple, because she was so popular and praised, she would be loved and wanted. “A little black girl yearns for the blue eyes of a little white girl”(204). Pecola wanted to be someone other than herself because she was not happy and had a low self-esteem. She wanted to be blue-eyed because that was her misconception of beauty. If she was beautiful then her parents could love her. Her parents’ neglect attributed towards her feelings of self-inadequacy because they did not acknowledge or accept her for who she was. Therefore, her continuous pain and suffering, ultimately lead to her insanity.

Child neglect is common and can be seen across different nations and cultures. Families with children of all social classes can be subjected to neglect. Hence, Gabriel Garcia Marquez’s “Of Love and Other Demons” takes on another perspective.

            Sierva Maria is a twelve-year-old girl from the South American seaport in “Of Love and Other Demons” that comes from a noble family that does not possess the proper standards of love and affection that a “home” requires for a child. Her father the Marquis and her mother Bernarda do not focus on their daughter as a priority but as an obligation they are forced to deal with. Sierva gets bitten by a rabid dog in the beginning of the novel, which leads to the unveiling of the empty relationships of the family. Her father, the Marquis, “thought of Sierva Maria not as his daughter but as hers alone”(Marquez 23). Her mother, Bernarda, “knew very well she did not love the girl and the girl did not love her”(16). Both parents did not want to affiliate themselves with their daughter even at her tender age of twelve.

            Sierva Maria had a stronger connection with the black slaves that lived in the shack of her household than her own biological parents. When it was her birthday she was with the slaves and believed that is when she is, “in her true home and with her true family”(12). The Marquis had one of the slaves trained to watch over and take care of Sierva on a daily basis. He delegated upon a slave the task to, “not to let the girl out of her sight, … treat her with affection and understanding (27).  When the Marquis tried to take Sierva out of the shack, “the girl resisted when he tried to carry her in his arms (25).  Sierva adapted to the black culture since she was around them the majority of the time and became able to, “sing in voices … in the various languages in Africa (12).

            The idea of the “home” is one that consists of love, companionship and belonging within the family. In “Of Love and Other Demons’ these elements of the “home” are not found within Sierva’s biological family but with the slaves, abandoning the typical concept itself.

            Sierva is part of a family that is considered royalty, which in term has reached the highest status within social class. Being of upper class coincides with financial stability and certain privileges normal people do not have for themselves. Ironically, the family lacks stability for the marriage of the Marquis and Bernarda as well as their relationship with their daughter Sierva. It would be understandable if Sierva’s parents were busy with other obligations but the neglect actually starts from her them not liking her. Marquis does not consider Sierva his daughter and Bernarda claims to not love her. Parents cannot provide the proper “home” for a child if they do not provide love for them. Hence, the Marquis assigns the most trustworthy slave to take their place as caregiver for Sierva and tend to her everyday needs. A child is being neglected by their parents, if their responsibility is being passed on to someone else. This grants the opportunity for Sierva to form a connection with people that are not her real family.

            Sierva assimilates the culture of the black slaves over the time being neglected by her own parents. Subsequently, developing resentment for her personal culture and family. Resisting to her father if logical since he had not fulfilled the role required to have obtained Sierva’s desire to be with him.

            Due to the rabid dog bite, Sierva is finally given attention and receives care from the doctor. It was believed that she had obtained rabies herself, which in reality was not the case. In the Marquis, Sierva sold the part to the doctor after barking in retaliation of her refusal to travel with her him in order to make her happy. She reacted this way because she did not want to leave her family amongst the black slaves where she felt belonging instead of her father whom she despised.  The neglect she received from her parents created the uncooperativeness that eventually lead to the doctor created problems that were never even there. If she never acted out by barking, the doctor would have reopened the wound and caused the infection that ended up killing her.

            In conclusion, support of the thesis through empirical evidence, insight and awareness has been provided through the characters Pecola Breedlove and Sierva Maria on the consequences of development in response to child neglect. In the case of Pecola Breedlove, physical abuse, segregation and lack of acceptance eliminated her sense of self and distorted her reality. Pecola suffered from neglect, therefore her needs were not being met in her “home” causing her to become self-loathing and mentally insane. For Sierva Maria, she was unloved by her parents and nurtured by outsiders of her family creating a barrier between them. When it came to communicating with her parents it was almost always unsuccessful and dissimulating. There was not any chemistry between Sierva and her parents thus she could not explain the situation of her bite properly without the Marquis taking extreme measures. As a result of child neglect, Pecola ended up mentally insane and Sierva ended up dead. Although these are both extreme cases of result in regards to neglect they are causes. For both characters the concept and ideology of the “home” was broken and unattained. A resolution for child neglect in general is to give children more than just the necessities for survival. Their development depends on the intangibles of providing a loving and accepting environment for the child to be raised in. If Pecola were shown acceptance from her parents perhaps she would not have desired to have blue eyes so passionately. If Sierva felt as close to her biological parents as she did her slave family maybe she would not have resisted her father by barking and have lived a long fulfilling life. These are the possible outcomes if neglect was never to occur for them. Ultimately, child neglect during the developmental stages can lead to serious psychological and sociological impairments that can affect that person’s future in a negative way.

            

Veiling

After reading this article, I obtained a better understanding of why women veil their hair. The cloth women wear on their head is called a hijab or a scarf. They wear it to show that they dress and behave humbly. The majority of Muslim women wear the hijab, to obey God, and to be known as respectable women. The Hijab liberates women from being thought of as sexual objects of desire or being valued for their looks, or body shape rather then their intelligence. In Islamic culture women are almost forced to wear the hijab and if they do not wear it the women are not thought of as modest women. 

Veiling

This article about the freedom of veiling in eastern and western areas was a little difficult to understand at first, but after having finished reading the article, it made the reading more explainable. I do believe that women should have the freedom to veil their hair and if these women choose not to want to veil their hair, it should not affect what others think. Everyone has the freedom to make their own choices. Therefore, the public should not be threatened by the choices women make.

The Veiling

This article gives us insight on how people view veiling. Some believe it restricts the freedom of women. However in certain places, women do have the choice. It is interesting to compare other practices with ours. In our society, women are allowed to wear almost any type of clothing and expose their body as they please. In theirs, everything needs to be covered. This can be a reason why sometimes it is viewed as limiting freedom of women. It is just a practice that is different but doesn't always restrict freedom.

Eastern Veiling

Its interesting reading this article because I've actually discussed this topic before in my ethnic studies class last quarter.  We discussed exactly what the article is talking about, how western society views veiling as a means of segregating and separating women.  But women who wear these veils do not view it as this.  This veiling technique is used as an expression of religion and this article made me realize just how fast we judge others at first glance.

Veiling

I find this article very interesting and very empathizing, for I have lived in Shanghai, where since 1970s have been the first city to open up to the Western world, and one of the most modernized and westernized big city in China. This article discussed the topic of Westerners imposing their point of view and opinion onto other cultures, and in this case, the Middle Eastern countries. The action of veiling, to the Middle Eastern people, is seen as a sense of culture, and a method of increasing morality, compared to the “westerners” who are more revealing. What interested me the most is the idea that feminism, a movement started in 19^th century, is viewed as the main cause of the “backwardness” of the Middle Eastern Islamic countries. The argument presented is that the continuous notion of the westerners, believing that veiling is a form of oppression of religion on women in Middle East, is an impediment on Islamic countries’ advancement. This belief is argued as a notion created by the west to dominate over east. 

Veiling

I found the article very insightful because it opens up a whole new understanding of veiling. While we are used to viewing veiling as a barrier between men and women caused by religion, this article talks about how women use veiling voluntarily as an expression of freedom. This completely changed my perspective of the Islamic religion and has made me become more open minded about other stereotypes of religion I see on a daily basis.

Different Perspectives and Meaning of Veiling

After reading this article, it made me realize that I was overall very limited to the amount of information I knew about veiling in Islamic cultures. Before reading this article my perspective of the veiling was due to religion and culture purposes. I knew before that women tend to cover up outside of the household because their body could not be revealed to others-especially if they are married. After reading this article the author went in dept about the fact that the veiling had more of a symbolic overall meaning for a women. It makes them feel that they belong to a certain group. However she also embraces the term-freedom. She embraces on the term freedom and the overall meaning. After reading the whole article it made me realize and connect to the reality show on Bravo- Shahs of Sunset. The overall show is about a group of friends who are Persian that juggle their social life with new and old traditions. In the clip below Asa talks about how women should have the choice to either veil or unveil, which connects to freedom that women. The author also elaborates on the freedom that these women have. Here is the small clip of the show....Asa's Veiled Performance Art

The veil

After reading this passage, it gives me a lot of information about the standard beauty that people make up with. There are one inportant fact that who makes up the standard of beauty, i think is the film of Hollywood. Their point of view change a lot through out the time. First, they think blonde with blue eyes is a standard of beauty. For now, they can make anyone to be pretty. They photoshop every secen which can make most ugliest person to become the most beautiful person.

eastern veiling western freedom

After reading this article, I really thought about how people in our country thinks about the veiling and women that practice this. I remember the first time seeing a friend of mine, having her hair, her entire body covered with a black cloth, at that time i still did not know why she did this. But later on i learned that it is part of a culture. This article helps explain a lot. A lot of people in our country see it as a 'threat' and look at them like muslims are all bad people and only cover their face because if they do something wrong people can't see their faces. But maybe we should try to accept this culture. We have our own, a lot of young teens wear fewer and fewer clothes than the generation before us did, and they don't comment on any of this, then why should we not accept it and see it as a beauty, too.

Eastern Veiling Western Freedom

One part of the passage that sparked my interest was the part that said the western feminists make the standard of beauty and westerners say that wearing a veil is not considered pretty, and since the eastern women wear the veils they are not considered beautiful. I think this subject has a lot to do with today's society in the United States, I feel like Hollywood makes up the rules on what is pretty and and what is accepted and everyone is supposed to follow that standard or they are not pretty. I see this daily people trying to copy movie stars all of the time and I think it is sad because we all need to be individuals because we are all special in our own ways and we need to embrace who we are. We also need to need to be more confident in ourselves and be able to stray away from the norm and really not worry what others think. Although the article is called Eastern Veiling Western Freedom I think that it should be Eastern Veiling Western Creating because the western civilization is making the standard that is to be followed.

How "The Veil" is Viewed

     After reading this article, I was able to enhance my limited perspective on veiling. I always saw it as a part of religion  and culture, but never thought much about the concept. Veiling by many has been seen as a form of oppression and domestic violence. Eastern veiling, Western freedom? talked about Westerners focusing on veiling as a form of assault from men to women when one of the first people to use veiling as a symbol were Egyptian university women. The meaning of veiling seems to have shifted over the years. I found interesting that the article states that European women are "more" virtuous because of their freedom, but they're also indecent because of it. It gives the example that men don't want to feel threaten by women and so deny them freedom to anything including education. I don't particularly agree with either of these statements because European women can have freedom and not be virtuous at all by not acting upon that freedom they hold. The fairness with the second statement is self explanatory. Women shouldn't be denied freedom simply because men feel threatened by it. A statement that was new to me was that which was on page 476. I've never heard of using the seclusion from the veil as a way to "avoid" men's attention as well as avoid unwanted attention of other women seen by them. It's an interesting perspective from women using this to their convenience. Overall, I enjoyed reading this article. It gave great insight on opposite views on veiling from a Western and Eastern view in topics relating to freedom, feminism, politics, power, religion, culture, oppression, and convenience.

'Eastern Veling, Western Freedom"

After reading the article "Eastern Veling, Western Freedom" I gained a unique perspective on understanding Middle Eastern Religions. Before reading this article I never really understood why women wore veils in  Middle East cultures. I always thought it was part of Religion but never understood why. I was always quick to judge woman who wore them because of the many stereotypes that are associated with them and how its not common in American culture. However now after reading this article I can now have a basic understanding to why they wear the vails and tis significance make an impact a girl life.

Another day

Not many Americans, like myself, are not educated or aware when it comes to other religions, especially Middle Eastern religions. After reading the article it has came to my attention that us Westerns do see veiling as a symbol to the Eastern women and are not aware that it could be voluntarily due to religion practice or the true meaning. My good friend I had met here in college is Syrian and actually came to the United States about 8 years ago. Out of the 4 years I have known her I have never seen her with a veil and I never had thought about it till now, why doesn't she wear one. Funny thing is when I asked her what she thought about veils, she said they were pretty and suddenly changed the subject. Maybe I'll ask her another day about this article and get her feedback.

Of Love and Other Demons Ending

After reading the conclusion of the novel, Of Love and Other Demons, it ended with Sierva the little girl with the copper hair dying to a broken heart. Sierva's death although saddening was not surprising since at the start of the book there was a reference to a little girl's remains inside the catacombs. Her untimely demise was to be blamed because of the church. The church finding that Sierva was different from the rest would use her as a target in the name of the church. Because they targeted her they would torture her through inhumane housing, "exorcisms", and reopening of her wounds. The way the church was able to escape from any logic used to counter what they were doing was by saying that Sierva was possessed or that Sierva needed to be treated due to her contraction from a bite of a dog that was said to have rabies. I believe that the only reason why the church targeted Sierva was because she would have been able to make a difference and alter the influence of the church. And so with the church being "all-mighty" as it is, would impose it's self-righteousness upon a girl who was just social and associated herself with the slaves because she was placed there.

of love and other demons

of the over all of the novel Of Love and Other Demons, Sierva was dead by the end of the novel. It did not surprise me with this ending because in the beginning of the book, it does talk about the rabies that people get and she might get. also there is one thing that i found interesting of the book, which is the the death body they found from the beginning of the book. which the girl got rabies and die. however the hair will still be growing after people died. From the beginning i do not know about people's hair will still growing after live.

Of Love and Other Demons

With the conclusion of the novel Of Love and Other Demons, we see the death of the little girl Sierva. This did not come as a very big surprise as it was foreshadowed at the beginning of the book. It was strange throughout the book as just because Sierva seemed a little bit different, the people around her used a simple thing such as the rabid dog bite as an excuse to shun her and call her diseased even though she never showed the signs of rabies. It is surprising that DeLaura turned onto Sierva and ended up calling her a demon even though it was just their lust for each other. It is important here to see how far the church was willing to go just for the girl, which represents the importance that it had in that time period.

Of Love and Other Demons

With the conclusion of the book, I conceived of one main thing that carries through out the whole entire story. This reoccurring thing was that the feeling of love was often repressed and not acted upon. For instance, the marquis did not begin to love Sierva Maria until she believed to be at risk of dying. The marquis grew to love her but at the end, gave into solidarity and left her alone at the convent. After that, he did not do much to show that he loved her in ways where he could have visited her or wrote her letters. He felt guilty as a sign of the guilt he felt but he did nothing for her after he left her at the convent. Another time in the story where love was repressed was when Delaura began to see Sierva in the cell at the convent. When he began to realize that he was in love with her, he repressed his feelings and blamed her for it in the way that he told the bishop that she is truly possessed. The reason why he told the bishop that is because he thought that lust to be a demon although it was actually his own inner demon. Once he began to see her every night and they both became lovers, there were times where Sierva wanted Delaura to act upon his love. One time was when he was leaving for the night but Sierva told him to stay with her or take her with him. He evaded the whole situation and blatantly left her in the cell. Delaura did not think of a plan to get her out other than of dissuading the bishop that she was not possessed. He could have planned an escape to run away through the tunnels he took late at night. Love through the characters eyes was something that they did not know how to deal with. I believe that it was ultimately what led to Sierva's death of a broken heart from Delaura not coming back to visit in addition to the pain and torment from exorcisms.

Of Love and Other Demons

Throughout the book I knew that Sierva was not possessed by demons; that is just the nature of magic realism.  Events might appear supernatural but have a worldly explanation.  Obviously she was just a scared maturing girl who did not have caring parents or much company the moment she entered the convent. However, I thought it was pretty freaky that she had the same dream as Father Cayento for which there seems to be no real explanation. And like Samson, or any character whose 'power' is tied to their hair, I knew even before reading the ending that the it would involve cutting her hair.  It was very sad that Sierva Maria was tortured and died at the hands of superstitious people who masquerade as religious.

Of Love and Other Demons

This book was a little difficult to read because of how much Sierva was suffering. She is just a young girl who grew up with the slaves her parents owned. Sierva's mother admitted to being frightened by the child, leading to hatred, while her father was indifferent towards her until she got bit by the rabid dog. He immediately gets his act together and becomes more of a father to Sierva, but her mom still doesn't care about her. This was saddening because of the childhood Sierva had, ultimately leading to her death alone.