back. She was rich, at least by our standards, as rich as the richest white girl, swaddled in comfort and care. The quality of his clothes threatened to disturb Frieda and me” (98). Frieda and Claudia were recognized as poor black children, not middle class like Geraldine and her family, but not completely lower class like the Breedloves. Frieda and Claudia only had a few school clothes compared to new girl Maureen Peal. Morrison's parallel structure between the schoolgirls amplifies society's social comparison. It is a stigma people have to associate appearance with wealth, education, and economic status. The nicer clothes you had, the greater your chances of being rich. At the time of the novel, African Americans were rarely part of the upper class of society; in fact, they were mostly well-known and classified as lower class. Only recently, in the 21st century, have African Americans become a larger part of the lower middle class. Claudia's detailed critique of Maureen Peal's appearance showed how Americans were divided from one another. White Americans possessed the wealth and power of the nation, their appearance reflected it. African Americans, underprivileged, lacked social power, which was reflected in their presence and how society perceived them. Toni Morrison was able to take her perspective on American society in the 1940s to explore the image of African Americans. It is much more than just the idea of ​​external beauty that Morrison explores; it is the reflection of outward appearance that is believed to miraculously determine character and destiny. As Claudia was able to describe it from a young age: "Being a minority of both caste and class, we moved as life went on anyway,...... middle of paper... ...BlackLivesMatter Movement, African Americans have always been the main target of discrimination and seek full equality. It always starts with how people perceive you. How different you are based on the color of your skin, clothes, and hair, people form preconceived ideas about you. It's bad enough to be judged on how you look compared to who you are, but subjecting yourself to a completely lower standard of living is cruel and unjustifiable. The beauty of life lies in the differences that each person allows, the core values ​​of breaking away from conformity to enable liberation and independence are what America was founded on. America's eyes on its own people must be open, neutralized, and open to color, not blind to the qualities of different people's colors. It is the recognition of different colors that brings beauty, respect and appreciation comes later.