The Psychological Abuse of Louis Junior in the Bluest Eye, a Novel by Toni Morrison

Abuse and the Consequences

Most people refer to child abuse as a broken bone or dark bruises found on one's skin, but abuse can be considered at a much larger range. Child abuse varies from physical abuse to neglect and emotional. Sometimes the kids that show little damage are the ones that are the most damaged within. Louis Junior, a character in Toni Morrison's novel The Bluest Eye, has endured physiological abuse from his mother which builds him into the boy he became to be: mistreated, lonely, and sadistic.

Before Junior was born his mother had a cat whom she loved and showed much affection to. His mother was never truly in love with her husband so when she birthed Junior she made sure to only give him the necessities to survive. Junior "was always brushed, bathed, oiled, and shod. Geraldine [his mother] did not talk to him, coo to him, or indulge him in kissing bouts, but she saw that every other desire was fulfilled." (Morrsion, 84). By only giving him the physical things and no actual love Junior never felt what love is first hand. This sort of child abuse can lead to many consequences such as "lack of trust, relationship difficulties, and trouble regarding emotions" according to HelpGuide.org. This mistreatment led to a Junior who couldn't help but feel all alone in a place where no one showed they cared for him.

The feeling of being alone can be a very distraught feeling. When Junior couldn't find someone at home, he found others at the playground. The playground is where he could be happy and find others to play with. "He hated to see the swings, slides, monkey bars, and seesaws empty and tried to get kids to stick around as long as possible." (Morrison, 86). Geraldine would only let him play with the white kids, she considered the black kids "dirty and loud" (Morrison, 86). Although, the only thing Junior wants is to be one of the black kids, to be able to get dirty, loud, have fun, and be accepted. When he became too lonely "he would call a child passing by to come play on the swings or the seesaw. If the child wouldn't, or did and left too soon, Junior threw gravel at him." (Morrison, 88). With loneliness surrounding him all day and night he had to find a way to feel something new, something he could enjoy. Soon enough, he found something that gave him true happiness, others misery.

While Geraldine was busy giving all her affection to the cat Junior noticed and "As he got older, he learned how to direct his hatred of his mother to the cat, and spent some happy moments watching it suffer." (Morrison, 84). Whenever he got the chance he would abuse the cat to exert the anger inside him. The cat was only the beginning, soon Junior found himself bullying girls and enjoyed doing so. "When they [the girls] got up, their faces red and crinkled, it made him feel good." (Morrison, 87). One day Junior meets Pecola, the protagonist of the novel, at the playground and invites her over to look at his cat. Once she agrees and goes inside his home he takes the cat and throws him at Pecola leaving her face scratched and eyes crying. "Junior was laughing and running around the room clutching his stomach delightedly." (Morrison, 90). Through that poor little girl's misery the sadistic Junior gained laughter and happiness.

Abuse isn't limited to something you can see, but can also be found deep within one's mind. Louis Junior never felt the love one should by his mother and felt lonely because of it. When he directed his hatred of his mother, he not only directed it to the cat but also to all girls in general. Junior is a mistreated, lonely, and sadistic little boy who only wanted the love of his mother.

Works Cited

"Child Abuse and Neglect." Child Abuse & Neglect: Recognizing, Preventing, & Reporting Child Abuse. N.p., n.d. Web. 08 Nov. 2014.

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