Literary Analysis Of Recitatif - 1135 Words

Literary Analysis Paper: â€Å"Recitatif† by Toni Morrison Many authors write fictional novels about historical events. A common topic written about is the racial integration between African Americans and whites during the 1950’s. Although the short story â€Å"Recitatif† explicate many different themes, the central topic of Morrison’s writing is about racism. Throughout the story, the author expresses examples of hatred between black and white races at the shelter, the different encounters they have, and the remarks to Maggie’s race in conversations between Twyla and Roberta. The short story titled â€Å"Recifatif† is written by Toni Morrison. Morrison was born in 1931 in Ohio, and is known for writing novels with African American history involved. She†¦show more content†¦When the mothers of Twyla and Roberta visit on Easter Sunday, the two friends are happy for them to meet each other. As they are introduced to each other, Twyla’s mother stuck her hand out to shake hands, Roberta’s mother looked at her, grabbed Roberta and walked away. Roberta’s mother presented a snobbish attitude, and the generation of prejudice still existed. Throughout the short story, Twyla and Roberta have multiple encounters after they are old enough to leave the shelter. In the first scene, Twyla is a cashier at a restaurant as Roberta visits with a few friends. As Twyla approaches Roberta, she attempts to have a conversation to catchup with each other. Roberta presents herself as snobby as her mother was, and laughs at her when mentioning a famous singer Twyla does not know. As years pass by, they run into one another in line at a grocery store. This time, Roberta greets Twyla to engage the conversation. As they talk, the event of Roberta acting snobby at the restaurant is brought up by Twyla. Roberta’s response was â€Å"you know how it was in those days: black-white†. As Roberta seems much friendlier, â€Å"those days† appear to be over, as they exchange phone numbers before departing. Another event displaying racism was when Roberta was spotted at a high school. Her and other mothers were outside â€Å"picketing† about their children attending a racial integrating school. Twyla was driving by, andShow MoreRelatedRecitatif: Toni Morrison Essay935 Words   |  4 Pageslife. This story takes place during the time period of the Civil Rights Movement. The idea of civil rights was encouraged by the government but not enforced by the states, leaving many black Americans suffering every day. In Morrison’s short story Recitatif, Morrison manipulates the story’s diction to describe the two women’s races interchangeably resulting in the confusion of the reader. Because Morrison never establishes the â€Å"black character† or the â€Å"white character†, the reader is left guessing theRead MoreMetaphors from Slavery to Post Emancipation: An Exploration of The Loophole of Retreat and The Veil1613 Words   |  7 Pagesslaveholders. A uthors had to reach southern and northern audiences and have an appearance of humbleness to attract some and action to attract others. One of the methods that was used to make their writings attractive across audiences was metaphor. This literary device allowed them to code meaning to present information in the dosage that each type of audience needed. This paper will explore â€Å"the loophole of retreat† in Harriet Jacobs’ Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl and â€Å"the Veil† in W.E.B. Dubois’