Post-colonialism is concerned with the effects of colonization on the colonized. In fact, Richard Schur argues “it is not possible to easily escape the effects of race, racism, gender, and sexism without some kind of decolonization” (277). One effect concerns how language is used to form racial categories. Contemporary ideas about race include the belief that everyone fits into their appropriate category. A black person must look a certain way and act a certain way, because that is the Western assumption. This goes for any race. By refusing to racially identify any of its characters, Toni Morrison's "Recitative" makes this Western way of thinking difficult. Readers find themselves concerned with the racialization of each character, drawing on their mannerisms, appearance, experiences, speech, and so on. Readers look for anything that signals “blackness” or “whiteness” to them in order to correctly categorize Twyla and Roberta. In fact, the racial ambiguity of “Recitatif” confronts readers with their own stereotypical ways of thinking, demonstrating the extent to which racial categories are Western constructs. Additionally, Morrison takes care to work against the structure of racial categories to further confuse readers, demonstrating the power that writers hold when it comes to appropriate representation. The Western obsession with being able to categorize people along racial lines excludes those who do not fit easily into that category; people like Maggie. Maggie embodies racial hybridity, illustrating that racial categories are not accurate representations of race. Toni Morrison's "Recitative" complicates Western ideas about race in order to expose stereotypes and the restrictions inherent in racial categories. In doing so, “Récitatif” demonstrates how respect for racial categories leads to false representations of races. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get an original essay By maintaining racial ambiguity, “Recitatif” challenges the role of the reader. By not explicitly stating which character is black and which character is white, readers attempt to determine where Twyla and Roberta fit in the two categories. Readers rely on their own perceptions of what it means to be “black” and what it means to be “white.” Stanley argues that "[w]omen and people of color have long struggled against a dominant culture that places them in subordinate positions, defined by being outside of white, masculinist forms" (73). “Recitatif” confronts readers with their dependence on this type of representation. Without knowing the characters' race, readers analyze the text, looking for clues that might place one of the girls in this "outside white" position, reinforcing this oppressive way of thinking. Elizabeth Abel writes that as a white woman, she describes Twyla as white while a "black feminist critic, Lula Fragd… [is] certain that Twyla [is] black" (471). The difference between these interpretations comes from the difference in each woman's readership. While Abel focuses on “racial iconography,” she notes that Fragd emphasizes “more historically nuanced cultural practices” (474). In this case, each reader has its own set of characteristics that mean "darkness" and a set of characteristics that mean "darkness". “whiteness” for Fragd and Abel. For Fragd, Roberta falls into the “white” category;for Abel, Roberta falls into the "black" category, according to the signifiers that help readers racialize one or the other girl based on her position. “outside white.” I argue that these signifiers are the stereotypes that “Récitatif” challenges. Abel describes Roberta as being different from herself, especially during the Howard Johnson scene. In this sense, Abel “others” Roberta and places her in this position “outside the white”. .” Roberta is described as having hair "so big and wild" that it covers her face, and "earrings the size of bracelets" (6). At that point, "the feeling of Twyla's inadequacy vis-à-vis Roberta, like her representation of her mother's inferiority compared to Roberta's, signals Twyla's whiteness to [her] by articulating the fantasy of a white woman...on the power of black women” (474). This is Roberta's reading and I argue that it is representative of the challenges of the readership of the “Récitatif”. Abel draws on her own ideas about what it means for her to be “black” and “white,” projecting her own racial categories onto Twyla and Roberta. Abel cannot see himself in Roberta and therefore concludes that she must be racially different. What this story highlights though is that relying on stereotypes like Abel and Fragd do is dangerous in the sense that it's about "others." Abel decides that Roberta is black simply because her appearance makes her stand out. Roberta's hair is wild, unlike what she imagines white women's hair to be. Due to the fact that Roberta does not appear to be recognizably white, Abel concludes that Roberta must be black because a white girl cannot have "wild hair" or "big earrings". Abel argues that Roberta's characteristics do not signify whiteness, they signify otherness and therefore blackness. In this sense, Abel creates racial categories based on stereotypes and what she considers not to be whiteness. This is important because it puts white in a superior position to black. If Roberta does not exhibit any signs corresponding to “whiteness” – or rather what the racial category implies – then, by default, she is black. It is not said that she shows signs of "blackness", but rather that she shows signs of what white is not. This way of thinking makes “otherness” synonymous with “blackness,” a view that “Récitatif” rightly challenges in its racial ambiguity. Relying on these signifiers is dangerous because they reinforce oppressive stereotypes. Although what causes Abel to view Roberta as black are signifiers, I argue that these signifiers resemble stereotypes in the sense that readers like Abel hold images and ideas of what “black” looks like. and what “white” looks like. Shanna Greene Benjamin explains that "the impulse to 'solve' the racial conundrum that permeates 'Recitatif' reveals an underlying theme at the heart of Morrison's short story." Readers want to be able to categorize characters in some way, to "know" their race, and they will go to great lengths to assign racial categories if the writer cannot do it for them" (88 ). The story then revolves around racial tropes: who fits into which trope and what makes up those tropes? “Recitatif” wants to challenge the second question. The story forces readers to question their own readings of Twyla and Roberta; which makes readers wonder why they choose to classify Twyla as white and Roberta as black or vice versa. The answer is: their own stereotypes. Racial categories allow for stereotypes, therefore,Readers are forced to question their own stereotypes when they read "Recitatif." When Abel states that Roberta is black because she has "wild hair", she reinforces the stereotype that all black people have "wild hair", even though wild hair is not inherent to any race. What happens to the black girl who doesn't have this type of hair? Racial categories – and the stereotypes they enable – create a space where people who don't fit into the tropes of either category find themselves left out. These stereotypes are oppressive because they are aimed at “others”. Stereotypes reinforce the idea that blackness depends on being different from whiteness. Racial categories create a disconnect between people, allowing no hybridity – no deviation from the accepted norm. By reading Twyla and Roberta as characters who fall into one or another racial category, readers expose their own reliance on these oppressive tropes. Although critics such as Abel attempt to assign race to Roberta and Twyla, it is clear that any attempt is futile since each girl resides in this space between races. Morrison understands the power she has as a writer; how people – how racialized people – are represented is ultimately up to the author. Morrison points out in her own book on literary criticism that she is "a black writer grappling with and through language that can powerfully evoke and impose hidden signs of racial superiority, cultural hegemony and dismissive otherness of people and language” (x). As colonization occurs, marginalized peoples are forced to adopt the language of their oppressors – language that is often used as a tool to further oppress marginalized people. Morrison clearly understands that in her own writing she must be wary of correct representation. In his book The Negro Character in American Literature, Nelson focuses on how the African American presence in America during slavery and abolition is presented as a comical and inferior character. Although I argue that the specific tropes illustrated by Nelson are not as apparent in more recent work, the racial tropes still exist. “Recitatif” challenges the tropes that writers rely on to represent race. As Stanley writes, "Racial studies, in its attempt...to challenge physical and cognitive stereotypes and the material limitations associated with those stereotypes, often identifies accusations that...people of color are disabled as a sign of 'powerlessness, a sign that they must transcend' (73). Stanley illustrates the importance of language in proper representation, with an emphasis on stereotypes. As I have explained, readers are concerned with looking for stereotypes to signal Twyla and Roberta's race; However, by not conforming to these stereotypes, Morrison makes it impossible for any character to be seen as completely empowered or powerless and, therefore, makes it difficult for readers to racialize both girls. The tropes Morrison uses continually contradict each other, confusing readers and further demonstrating the limited way of thinking that racial categories allow. Morrison is aware of racial categories as well as the signifiers that readers rely on. I argue that she uses her knowledge to show how exclusive and limiting this way of thinking is. Morrison writes that, historically, the purpose of the presence of "American Africanism" is to "[establish] a differencehierarchical” (63), which I support in the “Recitative” when Twyla explains that Roberta cannot read (2). “Recitatif” transcends these hierarchical differences by focusing on the similarities between Twyla and Roberta. Due to racism and discrimination, Black people often do not have fair and equal access to quality education. Slavery prevents education, abolition makes it inaccessible, and although education appears to be equally accessible to Roberta and Twyla, I argue that Morrison incorporates the element of illiteracy to illustrate how, even with better access to education for all, writers tend to rely on the trope of an uneducated African American. In this sense, Stanley's argument that people of color are generally associated with disability is evident in "Recitatif." Readers will expect to associate darkness with the helpless character; an uneducated character would perfectly reflect this helplessness. This trope of an uneducated black character helps form a hierarchy where the educated white character is above the illiterate black character. This trope is clearly a misrepresentation and yet it is still widely accepted. Morrison challenges many literary tropes—and with them, racial categories—in “Recitatif,” including this one. Twyla also admits that she herself doesn't excel in school because she doesn't remember anything (2). Instead of making one girl smarter than the other, Morrison creates similarities between the two. There is no more intelligent character; there is no superior character. Roberta and Twyla are too similar for readers to categorize them by race. This is important because Morrison presents both a black character and a white character in the same way instead of writing them to put them into completely separate categories. Readers expect Morrison to use education to represent either girl's race; however, in this case, Morrison is calling out the tropes that writers have come to rely on by not conforming to them. By not conforming to racial categories, “Recitatif” confuses its readers. In his book, Middleton writes that "[t]he task before us...is to take the black self out of [language] and assert these meanings in a medium that can truly be called a black text, a text whose margins are governed by black logos” (47). While this argument attempts to separate whites and blacks in literature, I argue that the “Recitatif” undermines this idea. Middleton reinforces the idea that a “black text” must incorporate elements of “black logos,” which I argue still relies on the use of racial categories. The “Recitative” does not attempt to express that whites and blacks are the same – any American history textbook shows that this type of statement is incorrect – but rather to articulate racial constructs. I use education as an example of tropes in my previous paragraph; however, there are many other instances where the tropes of the “Recitative” serve to further confuse readers. Readers are meant to be confused. “Recitatif” makes it very difficult to racialize the two girls by making them seem similar. Morrison does not keep Twyla in one racial category and Roberta in the other. Instead, every girl can easily fit into either category. “Recitative” does not conform to traditional ways of writing about race. Neither Twyla nor Roberta can fit neatly into either racial category, illustrating that these categories are not accurate representations; they are constructions in the same waythat feminist theory holds that femininity and masculinity are social constructs. These categories make no sense when analyzed and contribute to further oppressing marginalized peoples. Racial categories are restrictive in that racial identity is not a fixed concept. Racial identity is different for everyone, including Roberta and Twyla, as evidenced by their confused racialization of Maggie. Every girl has a connection to Maggie. Not only does Maggie work at St. Bonny's, but she also reminds Roberta and Twyla of their mothers. When Roberta explains her reasoning for thinking Maggie is black, Roberta tells Twyla that "[she] remembers her as old, so old." And because [Maggie can't talk]… [Roberta thinks Maggie] is crazy. Maggie [is] raised in an institution like [Roberta’s] mother [is]” (19). As Abel argues, “[t]he two girls' readings of Maggie in turn become clues for our readings of them” (472). If Roberta thinks Maggie is black because of the similarities between her and Roberta's mother, then it is logical to conclude that Roberta is black. I argue that we need to focus more on the “why”; why does Roberta consider Maggie to be a black woman? If Roberta is black, then she has her own idea of ​​what it means to be black. Creating her own racing category, Roberta decides that Maggie is black simply because she sees her mother – and herself – in Maggie. On the other hand, if Roberta is white, then perhaps her fear of being similar to Maggie – a woman who becomes a representation of her absent and ill mother – drives her to separate from Maggie. Roberta maintains this separation by categorizing her as black, which she can never be. If this is true, then Roberta differentiates Maggie, calling her black because she wants Maggie to be different from her white self. Whether Roberta considers Maggie black because she herself is black or because she is different from Maggie, Roberta is still creating her own racial category and determining Maggie's race based on her membership in the race. one or the other category. It is important, however, that Roberta creates these racial categories – they are not fixed – and therefore Roberta's view of Maggie's categorization is questionable. Twyla, like Roberta, also sees her mother in Maggie, referring to Maggie as her "dancing mother" (17). Unlike Roberta, however, Twyla is not convinced that Maggie is black. In fact, Twyla is “perplexed when [Roberta] says Maggie [is] black” (17). Again, Twyla might see Maggie as white because Twyla's own mother is white, in the same way that Roberta concludes that Maggie is black. What is important is that Twyla has different racial categories than Roberta, further demonstrating that racial tropes, stereotypes, and categories are not fixed; they are indefinite constructions which distort the presence of black and white in literature. Both Roberta and Twyla present contradictory ideas about race, proving that racial categories are not fixed, they are constructs. Conversely, Twyla's negative feelings associated with her mother may motivate her to distance herself from her. Twyla "pushes away" her mother when she draws attention to her clothing during the church scene, much like when Abel alters Roberta for her hair and earrings (4). In this sense, Twyla's “othering” of her mother could translate into her “othering” of Maggie, in the same way that Roberta could other than Maggie in order to distance herself from Maggie. It can be argued that Twyla considers Maggie white because/23035281.