How Do People Identify Twyla And Roberta?

A social issue Toni Morrison emphasizes in Recitatif is that people should not judge others on their racial basis because life experiences are not limited by race. Morrison makes it vague for readers to identify Twyla’s and Roberta’s races by not revealing information their races. First, Morrison’s use of names that are often used for both races shows ambiguity in their ethnicity. Second, their mother’s feeling of superiority over each other does not disclose their races. Finally, Morison hides their racial differences by showing their friendship regardless of their separate races and how they unite against other older girls. Toni Morrison blurs the race line by using names, mother’s sense of superiority, and friendship regardless of

color.
Morrison does not reveal the races of Twyla and Roberta by using multicultural names.

The names of Twyla and Roberta do not give a hint about their racial backgrounds because both names can be used for black or white race. According to David Goldstein-Shirley, Roberta derived from Robert which is an old European name but there is an African-American singer named Roberta Flack. Also, Twyla is an uncommon name so readers can think her as African but “Twyla Tharp, the dancer and choreographer, however, is white” (“Race and Response: Toni Morrison's Recitatif'”). This represents that Roberta and Twyla can be black or white, therefore, people cannot differentiate others on the basis of names. Morrison makes it difficult for readers to classify the characters by using their names. Morrison’s is trying to explain to the readers that people should stop using stereotypes to judge anyone. Morrison explains, "The only short story I have ever written, Recitatif, was an experiment in the removal of all racial codes from a narrative about two characters of different races for whom racial identity is crucial" (qtd. in “Maggie in Toni Morrison's Recitatif”). In her short story Morrison is leaving space for readers to fill what they think about their backgrounds and Morrison also discloses the fact that how people categorize others by few

descriptions.
Morrison shows that Twyla’s and Roberta’s moms have a sense of superiority over each other.

Twyla’s mother puts in Twyla’s mind that “they never washed their hair and they smelled funny” (Morrison). Twyla’s mom, Mary taught her that they are superior from the race which Roberta belongs to. But it does not reveal their races because any one from any race, who does not was his/her hair, can have dirty hair. On the other side, Roberta’s mother's shows superiority when Twyla and Roberta introduce their mothers and Roberta’s mother refuses to shake hands with Twyla’s mother: “Roberta’s mother looked down at me and then looked down at Mary too. She didn’t say anything, just grabbed Roberta’s hand with her Bible free hand and stepped out of line” (Morrison). Roberta’s mother’s behavior shows that she dislikes Twyla’s race and has preeminence over her race. This does not disclose their races because during segregation whites used to think that they were superior to the blacks but in this story both mothers’ think that they are superior to each

others.
Unlike their mothers, Twyla and Roberta do not show a sense of superiority, and Morrison uses this along with their camaraderie to emphasize their friendship is not dependent on race. Morrison shows Twyla and Roberta unite regardless of their differences against older girls. In Recitatif, Twyla mentioned, “We did not like each other all that much at first, but nobody else wanted to play with us because we weren’t real orphans with beautiful dead parents in the sky” (Morrison). Roberta and Twyla forget their differences and find similarities. They both are not orphans and both mothers left them. Other children do not like them, so they unify against them. Twyla and Roberta do not feel privileged over each other. They meet many times, but they do not feel that they are different from each other. Morrison shows a close relationship between Twyla and Roberta when they meet after a long time which hides their racial differences. Terry Otten observes that “In Recitatif the mixed sisterhood assumes a new dimension beyond conventional racial or gender considerations” (“Toni Morrison's Recitatif of Race, Gender, and Myth”). Twyla and Roberta meet each other warmly after their marriage and Twyla mentions that they behave like sisters. Their friendship shows that race does not matter for sisterhood. Morison shows understanding and love in their relation just like real sisters. This makes it harder to distinguish their races because Morison does not show tension in between their different racial backgrounds.
Toni Morrison makes it difficult to identify Twyla’s and Roberta’s race because her use of names that are used for both races does not show differences in their races. In addition, both mothers’ sense of superiority and Twyla’s and Roberta’s sister like behavior does not reveal differences about their racial backgrounds. Morrison blurs their identity to show how people use stereotyping without even realizing that they are doing it. People can assume that Twyla is white because her mother is racist when Twyla describes what her mother told her about Roberta’s race. On the other hand, Roberta’s mother refusal to shake hands with Twyla’s mother shows that she is racist. During segregation, whites felt superior. But, in this story, both women have sense of superiority. Morrison blurs the color line to show readers that life struggles are not specified for any particular race. Anyone from any race can have the same experiences.