Bride's Identity Construction In God Help The Child

Toni Morrison(1931-),Nobel Literature Prize winner,is a leading figure among contemporary African-American female writers,best known for The Bluest Eye,Song of Solomon,Beloved and so on.In her eleven vivid novels,she has revealed the identity dilemma of black people in different historical periods in order to arouse people's concern on their living status.She is a landmark in African American literature.God Help the Child,Morrison's latest work published in 2015,has received public attention and continues her reflect on skin color,race and love.The novel mainly depicts a black girl Bride from a self-denial girl under racial discrimination to a confident and brave black female through her constant efforts.This thesis attempts to analyze the process of the heroine Bride's identity construction-loss of identity,pursuit of identity and regain of identity from the three levels of individual,family and race,combined with the three dimensions of history,culture and society.This thesis points out that Bride's loss of identity is mainly reflected in her denial and aversion to herself under the white racial discrimination and the alienation within the black community,which results in the rejection by her family and society.By awakening of selfconsciousness,self-confession,confronting trauma,rebuilding family relations,and rationally examining the black-white relationship and so on,Bride reconstructs her selfidentity,family identity and ethnic identity in the end.This thesis expects to induce readers' contemplation about African American's living circumstance and draws a conclusion that black people can survive and develop in the contemporary multicultural society only if they face up to the trauma,establish culture confidence,learn self-respect and reconcile with white people.