Pecola's Imaginary Friend

 In “Summer,” Pecola Breedlove has finally achieved her goal of having the bluest eyes, completing her long quest of becoming “pretty” to the world. However, she had to sacrifice her state of mind to gain them, tragically showing the world that she believes that the one detail in her body that she obsessed over was more important than her sanity. With the “gaining” of her blue eyes, it’s as though she has become blind to the outside world and seen the light inside her own mind.

Pecola’s imaginary friend is most likely a hallucination, brought about by the beginnings of schizophrenia. Her body is in a haywire state due to giving birth at an age where she hadn’t even gone through much puberty yet, which makes the onset of schizophrenia all the more likely. The imaginary friend acts as the voice of reason to Pecola, almost as a last grasp to return her to sanity. Her friend discusses the recent events with her and how they may have affected her, but in a supportive way since she agrees with Pecola that she indeed has the bluest eyes. 

 It seemed to Pecola like the only escape from the terribly unfortunate things happening to her and the people she knew was inside her mind, where she could believe that everything she ever wanted has been achieved, without support or criticism from those in the outside world. Without interference from other people in her life, she could finally finish her quest, even though she embarked on it to impress the same people in the first place.

1. Do you think Pecola is happy with her state of mind? Why or why not? Would you say that it's schizophrenia?

2. If Cholly hadn’t impregnated Pecola, do you think she would have still lost her mind in her quest for the bluest eyes? How far do you think she would have gone Cholly hadn’t been such a detriment in her life?

3. Is Pecola's quest truly complete? What do you think she would do if she saw someone else with actually blue eyes?