Abstract

Toni Morrison is the first female African-American writer who has won Nobel Prize for Literature in 1993. The theme of most her works are about race and female. In her short story Recitatif, Toni Morrison expresses her concern towards the black women’s identity by the portraying of a few female characters. This paper is a detailed study of main female characters and minor female characters in this short story, with the focus on how female characterization helps Morrison to voice out her feminist and racial ideas.

Key words: Recitatif; feminist ideas; racial ideas; female characters

Contents

1.    Introduction    1
2.    Demonstration    2
2.1 Characterization of major female characters in Recitatif    2
2.1.1 Twyla: an embodiment of new white women    2
2.1.2 Roberta: an embodiment of new black women    5
2.2 Characterization of minor female characters in Recitatif    8
2.2.1 Maggie: an embodiment of oppressed black women    8
2.2.2 Big girls: an embodiment of white oppressors    9
3.  Conclusion    10

Works Cited    12
Bibliography    13