“Intersectionality” is a term coined by academic scholar Kimberle Crenshaw to recognize dimensions of identity when classifying an individual by gender, race, class, or sexuality. Each group holds a space of distinctive experiences that allows them to identify with unique struggles. Two written works that are examples of intersectionality are Zami: A New Spelling of My Name by Audre Lorde and The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison. Both works offer unique experiences that intersect identities of race, gender, and sexuality through the journey of Black women in America. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay Identifying the unique experiences of the main characters in both works presents a common theme of the effect of identity discovery in the aspect of intersecting categories while living in a fundamentally racist and sexist environment. Understanding women and their identities is important to recognize the unique experiences that occur due to intersectionality. This article will explore the experience of Black women in America by identifying the intersectionality of significant characters in the works of Audre Lorde and Toni Morrison and determining how having multiple identities impacts their daily lives. It will also support the proposition that individuals with intersecting identities experience unique and different struggles. The first written work analyzed through intersectionality is the novel Zami: A New Spelling of My Name, a biomythology or a form of biographical narrative with the unification of fact and fiction. In the novel Zami: A New Spelling of My Name, author Audre Lorde uses this opportunity to give a thoughtful account of her journey growing up as a black, lesbian woman in 1960s America, a time of Jim Crow, sexism, and homophobia. . A Critical Perspective of Zami: A New Spelling of My Name shows the journey of a young woman navigating her way through issues such as identifying her sexuality and confronting racial oppression and poverty. Through Lorde's figurative journey to find herself, her multiple oppressed identities are not separated. All in all, she is influenced by the effect of discovering her identity within aspects of the intersecting categories of race, gender, and sexuality. In Zami: A New Spelling of My Name, Lorde addresses the system of racial oppression otherwise known as the Jim Crow era. At a young age, she finds it difficult to understand the “rules of racism” as her mother was a light-skinned woman who could pass for white, while her father was undeniably black. He got his characteristics from his father and experienced racism firsthand while growing up in New York. Lorde shows readers how she experienced racism from a young age. “He had divided the class into two groups, the Fairies and the Brownies. In these times of heightened sensitivity to racism and the use of color, I don't need to tell you who the good students were and who the bad students were…” (Lorde 36). This quote is an example of Lorde's childhood environment. Essentially, during this time period, light was seen as a positive thing while darkness was seen as a negative thing. This is also a point early in the novel and in his life where he is confronted with racism. As Lorde grows up, she begins to identify the racism affecting her life. He realizes the racial oppression of society. “But in high school… my teachers were racist; and my friends were the color I should never have trusted. (Lord 81). When he is in high school, he experienced racism through his teachers and peers and recognizes itwhat her struggle will be as an African American. Part of the reason for Lorde's struggle to understand the "rules of racism" while growing up is because her mother often tried to keep her ignorant of the oppression of racism. The impact of Lorde's relationship with her mother, consequently, closed her to the difficulties she might later face as an African American. “They [Lorde's parents]… believed they could better protect their children from the reality of race in America and the fact of American racism by never naming them, much less discussing their nature.” (Lord 85). Lorde had to discover through her own experiences with racism the effect and oppressive nature of racial discrimination. These examples of racism in the novel help the reader identify racism as a factor in the author's unique experience. Racism affected how she grew up and how she reacted to her environment. After realizing that the effects of racism are more complex for her and other African Americans than society believes, it begins to influence her opinions about what makes her journey different from other women she encounters. Overall, racism also affects how one experiences and encounters the environment and surroundings. Lorde's experiences with racism from the ignorant eye of those who express a racist ideology against her shows that society has overlooked the plight of racism and discrimination against African-Americans. Understanding the plight of racism on African Americans can guide identification of the unique experiences people face while living in America. In “Invisibility Syndrome: A Clinical Model of the Effects of Racism on African American Males” the author states that “…the adaptive behavior and psychological well-being of African Americans may be influenced by personal experiences of perceived prejudice and discrimination. Encountering repeated racial slurs can create an individual's sense of not being seen as a person of value. This subjective sense of psychological invisibility takes the form of a struggle with inner feelings and beliefs that personal talents, abilities, and character are not recognized or appreciated by others, nor by society as a whole, due to racial prejudice. (Franklin 33). From this information, racist culture in America ultimately affects African Americans psychologically and socially. This disparity is unique to the identity of being African American. The result of years of racial discrimination and prejudice makes the recognition of racism significant to the identity of being black in America. Using the same context, Lorde experiences gender oppression, or sexism, at a young age. The gender oppression that Lorde faces growing up is another unique quality that society has overlooked. Lorde, a feminist advocate and activist, was also involved in the civil rights movement, which achieved many goals for the African-American community in the 1960s and 1970s. Zami: A New Spelling of My Name, published in 1982, criticizes the lack of recognition of women in the civil rights movement. In “Invisible Southern Black Women Leaders in the Civil Rights Movement: The Triple Constraints of Gender, Race, and Class,” Barnett states that “…women (such as Septima Poinsette Clark, McCree Harris, Shirley Sherrod, Diane Nash, Johnnie Carr, Thelma Glass, Georgia Gilmore, and JoAnn Robinson) remain a class of invisible, unsung heroes and leaders. Using archival data and a subsample of personal interviews conducted with civil rights leaders, this article… offers explanations for the lack of recognition and non-inclusion ofblack women in the recognized leadership of the civil rights movement… very illustrative of how the interlocking systems of gender, race and class structure, leadership and participation in the black women's movement.” (Barnett 162). The media often depicted men at the forefront of the movement and did not recognize the contributions of women. However, women held just as many leadership positions as men. Lorde's identity as a woman gives her a unique position within the movement that is not recognized by society because the movement took place during a time when men still seemed to dominate in every aspect. Zami: A New Spelling of my name is an example of why identifying the different identities in a person's struggle impacts one's understanding of the unique challenges they face. Lorde's critique of the civil rights movement questions the rights afforded to African Americans due to the lack of recognition of women within the movement and the misunderstanding of the plight and struggles of the black woman. In the novel, Lorde states: “The first rude awakening came when she announced that the chosen boy would be president, but the girl would only be vice president. Why not the opposite?” (Lord 77). Lorde faced sexism when she was denied the right to be class president because she was a girl. For the moment he questions this action, but accepts it as things are. This is an example of the way male-dominated patriarchal views have shaped this country in aspects of everyday life. Lorde also links the fight against racism to the feminist movement, which was dedicated to denouncing the inequality between men and women as a result of living in a patriarchal society. By the time Zami: A New Spelling of My Name was published, the feminist movement was at its peak. As stated in “Theorizing Difference from Multiracial Feminism,” “Since the late 1960s, US women of color have contested unitary theories of gender…widespread concern about the exclusion of women of color from feminist scholarship and l “misinterpretation of our experiences…Speaking simultaneously “from within and against” both women's liberation and anti-racist movements…as women whose lives are affected by our position in multiple hierarchies.” (Zinn 321). Lorde was using the impact of racism on her experience to criticize a flaw in the feminist movement that did not identify with African American women or other women of color. In another light, Zami: A New Spelling of My Name portrays sexism through sexuality. assault. Lorde, at a young age, was raped by a boy. “…because a boy from school much older than me had invited me onto the roof on my way home from the library and then threatened to break my glasses if I didn't let him stick his 'thing' between my legs” (Lorde 92 ). She also befriends a girl named Gennie, who Lorde discovers has been molested by her father. These occurrences of sexual assault on women by men in the novel are acts of violence through sexism that Lorde faces throughout her journey. In “Mapping the Margins: Intersectionality, Identity Politics, and Violence Against Women of Color” by Kimberle Crenshaw it is stated that, “…battery and rape, once seen as private and aberrant (wrongful sexual assaults), are now widely recognized as part of a large-scale system of domination that affects women as a class.” (Crenshaw 1241). Recognizing that women as a class face sexual violence as part of a larger system of domination shows that thisform of sexism they face is unique to their experience. Lorde expresses how her identity as a woman makes her journey unique. She used examples of sexism and gender oppression that she experienced growing up to let her audience know that identifying as a woman makes your experiences different from those of a man; and your experience is even more unique if you are a woman of color. Through Lorde's journey, she also grapples with the issue of understanding her sexuality as a lesbian. This is the final piece in understanding Lorde's identity in society. Lorde is trying to criticize society's lack of recognition towards members of the LGBTQ community. People in the LGBTQ community have a unique identity and face oppression in America, but this identity is often unacknowledged as it is a taboo topic to society's conservative thinking and mindset. An excerpt from “Identity Formation for Lesbian, Bisexual, and Gay People: Beyond a 'Minority' Vision” by Michele J. Eliason states that: “The very concept of homosexuality is social and one cannot understand the homosexual experience without fully recognizing at what point have we developed a certain identity and behavior derived from social norms”. (Eliason 36). Lorde, in her novel, explains how discovering and developing her sexuality as part of her identity made her struggles and experiences growing up different from those of an African-American heterosexual woman. In the novel's prologue, Lorde states: "I have always wanted to be both man and woman, to incorporate within myself the strongest and richest part of my mother and father... I would like to enter into a woman as any man can, and be inserted…” (Lorde 15). Prologue gives the reader insight into the sexuality with which Lorde identifies. The beginning of Lorde's desire for female companionship came when she met a little white girl while waiting on the steps for her mother to get dressed. She and the girl agree to play and Lorde begins to undress her out of curiosity her mother interferes without finding out her true intentions. Another instance where Lorde is trying to come to terms with her sexuality is when she finds her first boyfriend and doesn't like sex. he'll get used to it," she never does. Lorde, later in her journey, drops out of college and essentially begins to label herself as a lesbian. “That summer I decided that I would definitely have a relationship with a woman…” (Lorde 140). He then shares his experiences with women as sexual partners and companions. Even in 1982, LGBTQ identity was a taboo topic to discuss. However, Zami: A New Spelling of My Name criticizes society's failure to recognize the struggle of those who identify as LGBTQ. Lorde's experiences discovering her sexuality, identifying it as part of her identity, and living in an environment of homophobia, which refuses to acknowledge this part of her identity, have impacted her life as an African American woman. Understanding that this is a unique experience in his journey will help expose homophobia and society's unshakeable opinion of what is deemed morally correct. These examples of race, gender, and sexuality present themselves within the novel Zami: A New Spelling of My Name to Identify with the struggles of the narrator, Audre Lorde. Although these examples are presented in categories, her oppressed identities as a black lesbian woman are all synonymous. Recognizing his multiple oppressed identities helps him better understand his challenges growing up and living in a societywhite patriarchal. Lorde experiences life's challenges in all dimensions of her identity and not in each dimension separately. Therefore, it faces and reacts to these challenges in its own unique way. Later in the novel, Lorde discovers this intersectionality between her identities. “It was hard enough being black, being black and a woman, being black, a woman and gay in a white environment…” (Lorde 260). She begins to identify with her experiences as distinct and different as they differ from those of her white lesbian friends, and she realizes that her white lesbian friends cannot identify with some of her struggles as a black lesbian woman due to the specific dimensions of race that separates their experiences. The quote: “Those who embrace the multiplicity of dimensions of social identity and explore how they intersect also assume that an unequal distribution of power in a society complicates situated identities by rooting some people more firmly at the center and others at the margins.” . (Pompper 45), as stated in the article International Perspectives on Equality, Diversity and Inclusion, refers to the failure to recognize that one can have multiple identities. Zami: A New Spelling of My Name is a written illustration that exemplifies the effects of discovering one's intersectionality. Recognizing one's intersectionality criticizes society and the norms adopted towards social justice and equality. Discovering how multiple identities intersect will essentially further our understanding of the inequality and injustice that many people face in America. Identifying the dimensions of intersectionality can help society recognize what needs to be done to achieve equality and justice for all. “The author's dream of a community of women free from sexism, racism and classism collapses as soon as she begins hanging out in New York's lesbian circles. Lorde criticizes the homophobia of black women and the racism of white lesbians. She is aware that women's inability to address their differences and the response of silence produce a simplification of women's oppressions, which is a mistake because the variety of differences requires different responses." (Sanchez Calle 165). These “diverse responses” are steps toward achieving social justice for those with intersecting identities. Lorde, writing Zami: A New Spelling of My Name, wanted to express why understanding intersecting identities is necessary to achieve social justice. She used her life as an example of why identifying all parts of her struggle and experiences made her journey unique. Therefore, the idea of ​​intersectionality is present in the novel to emphasize change or social justice in society. Likewise, to encourage change and social justice, particularly within the black community, Toni Morrison wrote The Bluest Eye in the 1960s during the “Black is beautiful” era. With her novel she wanted to reclaim African-American beauty by exposing how internalized racism and social norms can negatively impact young black girls. Her inspiration to write the novel came from a memory of a time when a black girl she knew told her how desperately she wanted blue eyes is also set in her hometown of Lorain, Ohio, during the Great Depression in which she herself grew up. This coming of age tragedy places the reader on a journey that depicts the specific struggles of young black girls as they encounter experiences of racism ., gender expectations, and sexual exploitation. These aspects of the struggle place importance on understanding the unique identity of Black women in America. The novelprovides insight into the impact of a society that places importance on beauty standards for women, particularly Black women, and how this impacts young Black girls. In The Bluest Eye the impact of racism and racial disparities is powerful in everyone's life. of the characters. The characters in the novel experience a system of internalized racism encouraged by the concept of white supremacy. “Whiteness” is essentially the standard of beauty. This in itself has a great impact on the lives of young Black girls and adult women. The characters are somehow obsessed with the ideas of acceptance, beauty and purity that “white” represents for them. For example, "Frieda and she had a long conversation about how pretty Shirley Temple was. I couldn't join them in their admiration because I hated Shirley. Not because she was pretty, but because she was dancing with Bojangles...dancing adorable with a of those little white girls whose socks never slipped under their heels (Morrison 17). This quote from the novel expresses how the idealization of white women and European standards of beauty affect young black girls lighter skin was positively related to higher levels of racial identity attitudes (immersion/emergence); the more dark-skinned individuals were satisfied with the color of their skin, the lower their self-esteem and there were gender differences in the perception of others' preferences for skin color. Implications of this study for providing therapeutic clinical services and promoting the healthy psychological development of men, women, and African American children..." (Coard 2256). Internalized racism or colorism within the Black community led people to favor those with lighter complexions because they more closely resembled European beauty standards than those with darker complexions. Adult women play a huge role in this internalized racism and idealization of white standards of beauty towards their black daughters. In essence, adult women build a hatred of their blackness and take it out on their daughters. In the novel, Mrs. Breedlove tells her daughter, Pecola, that she is unattractive because of her blackness, which Mrs. Breedlove also believes for herself. There is also a moment where Mrs. Breedlove prefers the little white girl she works for over her own daughter. “The Breedloves did not live in a store because they were temporarily having difficulty adjusting to cutbacks at the plant. They lived there because they were poor and black, and they stayed there because they thought they were ugly. (Morrison 31). The surname "Breedlove" is ironic for this family because it essentially represents self-hatred and does not actually "breed love". This is significant because Pecola is one of the characters who suffers the most from the impacts of internalized racism. She begins to believe that if she had blue eyes she would have been loved and that the tragic experiences she faced would never have happened. The novel at this point says that this desire to meet white standards of beauty can lead to madness. This is seen at the end of the novel when Pecola is labeled crazy because of her obsession with getting blue eyes. “She spent her days, her sap-green days, walking up and down, up and down, her head bobbing to the beat of a drum so distant that only she could hear. With his elbows bent and his hands on his shoulders, he flapped his arms like a bird in an eternal, grotesquely futile effort to fly. Beating the air, a winged but rooted bird, intent on the blue void that it couldn't reach – couldn't even see – but that filled the valleys ofmind. (Morrison 204). The obsessive need to meet white beauty standards caused an intense case of racial self-loathing. Knowing the aspects of internalized racism in the novel, these experiences can be linked to the uniqueness of the identity of Black women in America. Black women are influenced by a social standard that idealizes “whiteness.” Black girls grow up learning that European standards of beauty are fair, which can ultimately lead to racial self-loathing. Understanding this unique experience that Black women face can allow for understanding racial self-loathing and other aspects of internalized racism. Recognizing these challenges and struggles that specifically impact Black women can have a positive effect on Black communities as a whole. Understanding the plight that falls on the shoulders of Black women can stop the degradation of Black women in the media and lead to respect for Black women as people in society. The context of Bluest Eye surrounds the experience of Black women during this time period. The general life course for black women was to work for white families or become prostitutes. Women's culture throughout the novel appears as Morrison describes the idealization and obsession with beauty magazines and celebrities. Throughout the novel, Black women are constantly placed in boxes of expectations. Overall, the narrator, Claudia, has a negative attitude toward gender restrictions and often responds to other women's expectations of her with disdain. When she received a little white doll, “Holding her was no more rewarding. The starched gauze or the lace of the cotton dress irritated every hug. I had only one desire: to dismember him... but apparently only me... the whole world agreed that a doll with blue eyes, yellow hair and pink skin was what every little girl held dear . (Morrison 18). The other girls didn't understand Claudia's feelings towards the doll because they believed the doll was beautiful. Her parents thought it was something all little black girls wanted. This was just one example of the anti-feminist tone within the "female culture" present in the novel. Women were expected to idolize celebrities, gossip, and correlate their acceptance in society to beauty standards. In this specific context, Black women were expected to idolize White celebrities, gossip, and relate their acceptance in society to White beauty standards. This is anti-feminist because women just have to have a restrictive lifestyle. As previously stated, Black women were mothers who worked for white families or prostitutes. These restrictive options affected how women saw themselves and influenced self-hatred. This type of culture essentially brought discomfort among women who did not fit into these molds and allowed women to conform to this oppression by objectifying women who live a different lifestyle. Respect for women came from women conforming to society's expectations of what women should look or become. Claudia's experience with the doll led to her being ostracized for being different. Recognizing this restrictive culture that women, especially women of color, face helps to understand the unique experiences that black women face in America. Revealing this voice of women of color challenges the restrictions society places on women and critiques the oppressive nature of a patriarchal society. Sexual exploitation of black women is also present inThe Bluest Eye. Female characters very often face violent acts of rape and sexual abuse from the male characters in the novel. Younger black girls who are usually the primary victims of these violent acts of rape and sexual abuse. The sexual exploitation of young black girls causes them to believe they are sexually and socially helpless. The young black girls in the novel are essentially deprived of the opportunity to discover their sexuality because it is used to empower the men who abuse them. An example of this power dynamic between Black males and females would be: “He would rather die than take his things from me. Not until he lets go of everything he has and gives it to me…when he does that I feel a power. (Morrison 91).Sex in the novel is associated with the emancipation of men.Morrison presents a controversial view in the novel that this power that men gain from acts of sexual violence against women somehow plays a role in justifying the acts. of violence. Pecola is also raped by her father. “What could he do for her – what could he say to her? What would he say to his eleven-year-old daughter? seen those tormented and loving eyes. The obsession would make him furious. How dare he love him? What was he supposed to do about it? (Morrison 112). This is an attempt to justify her rape due to his (her father's) inability to express his feelings towards her. However, this concept is similar to today's rape and sexual abuse culture. Women are victims of such violence believing that there is some justification for these acts of violence against women. Morrison shows how this concept of justifying and contextualizing sexual abuse can negatively impact the mental health and confidence of Black women. As a result, women and girls in the novel are seen as powerless and embody large amounts of self-hatred. Understanding this power dynamic that Black women encounter through acts of violence, such as rape, can lead to identifying reforms that need to be put in place to prevent them. The experience of the Black woman in The Bluest Eye is unique because women are affected by the negative impacts of their multiple identities. They face specific disparities due to their intersecting identities. The common theme between Audre Lorde's Zami: A New Spelling of My Name and Toni Morrison's The Bluest Eye is the effect of discovering identity in the aspect of intersecting categories while living in a fundamentally racist and sexist environment. . Black women hold a space of distinctive experiences that allows them to identify with unique struggles. Society must recognize these different dimensions of a Black woman's identity in order to create and develop legal practices that help Black women and ultimately encourage American culture to recognize their struggles as human beings. This idea of ​​recognizing dimensions of one's identity for legal or social reform is called Critical Race Theory. Critical Race Theory is a development in the legal studies of many progressive intellectuals of color who believe that “the historical centrality and complicity of the law in upholding white supremacy (and the concomitant hierarchies of gender, class, and sexual orientation)” (Critical Race Theory: The Key Writings that Formed the Movement) exists in American society. The laws and practices central to American society were developed through the eyes of white supremacy and patriarchy. Show how