Todora 1

Celena Todora
ENGL 271
Dr. Theile
9 May 2013
When an Isolationist Paradise Becomes a Paradox
The novel, Paradise, by Toni Morrison, depicts the society of Ruby as having strong
allegiance to their community identity. Accounts from the 8-rock descendents reveal that this
communal bond resulted from white racism towards them, referred to in the novel as the
Disallowing, which drove them away from the white community surrounding them, forcing
them to establish their own society. This apparent devotion to their newborn city, however, leads
to complete separation from the rest of American society. Moreover, this creates an intolerance
of mixed raced people and distrust towards outsiders and outside ideals amongst community
members. Experiencing the hardships of being a marginalized group in oppressive white society
leads the 8-rock men to become oppressors in their own community of the multiracial citizens
and the unwelcome outsiders. Therefore, as a result of white oppression, Rubys 8-rockers have
developed an extreme rejection of white society and the outside world, resembling a black
nationalist perspective, which is defined as an alternative to being assimilated by the American
nation that promote[s] [a] separate [black] identity (Black Nationalism). Rubys similar
isolationist attitude is the direct cause of societal conflict within the town of Ruby, invoking the
disharmony between the community members in their society and the unnecessary assault on the
Convent women. Because each of these conflicts in the novel are caused by the upholding of a
racial hierarchy through their sheltered community, it is clear that the novel uses these conflicts

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to depict the negative effects of both black nationalist isolationism and determining the value of
others based on race.
Rubys isolation from the rest of American society is primarily racially-based, as it is a
direct response to the racial oppression of the Disallowing; therefore, the negative effects of this
separation form a distinct critique of the racial binary that the 8-rocks maintain. Rubys founders
constructed the town so that there were no whites (moral or malevolent) around to agitate or
incense them, make them ugly-up the Oven and defy the adults (102). Ruby was established as
a paradise away from white people, but this reveals that the Disallowing, ironically, established a
distrust of the white race in their community, preserving the racial binary but refocusing it to
light-skinned versus darker-skinned, rather than simply white versus black, as there are not any
white residents of Ruby. Patricia explicitly notes Rubys new separation: light-skinned against
black in her chapter when she is discussing the outcome of the Disallowing (Morrison 194).
Evidently, the Disallowing created a racially-focused mindset amongst the 8-rock founders of
Ruby that placed a value on darker, 8-rock skin, maintaining the racial bias towards people
with lighter skin, a new binary that literary critic Ana Mara Fraile-Marcos calls the pure
(themselves) and the impure (12). Another critic, Richard Schur, similarly discusses the irony
in this racially-prejudiced foundation of Ruby:
The Disallowing specifically relates how black towns had excluded the founding
families of Haven because they were too black and too poor. This border between
light and dark-skinned black constituted an internalization of the system of racial
hierarchy established by whites. (288)
This racial hierarchy is an apparent construct nested deep in Rubys foundations, and the irony of
this groundwork is that the escape from racism resulted in a new form of racism within Ruby.

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The Disallowing clearly influenced the 8-rocks racial isolationist mindset in their establishment
of Ruby; however, Paradise is a clear condemnation of such a societal foundation.
The atrocity of such a racially-based ideological foundation is revealed in outcomes of
this racist mindset that the town upholds. Fraile-Marcos agrees that the novel warns about the
dangers of essentializing black identity and the African American community (22). The true
destructive nature of valuing black identity is represented when Roger Best breaks the 8-rock
rule and marries Delia, a wife of sunlight skin, a wife of racial tampering (Morrison 197). It is
clear that the descendants of the 8-rocks, those who endorse the racially biased perceptions in
Ruby, disapprove of this choice to marry a multiracial woman when Steward Morgan, an original
8-rock descendent, comments, He's bringing along the dung we leaving behind (201). This
clearly ingrained disgust for lighter-skinned people, evidence of the black nationalist foundation
of Ruby, takes a deadly turn when their racial bias leads to the Delias death, which Patricia
speculates is because those 8-rock men didnt want to go and bring a white into town; or else
didnt want to drive out to a whites house begging for help; or else just despised [Delias] pale
skin so much they thought of reasons why they could not go (198). Literary critic Candice
Jenkins agrees that Delia is permitted to die, in part, because she reminds them that the purity
they so cherish is maintained in deliberate response to the anguish of the Disallowing (278).
This tragic consequence of their racial prejudice is a clear condemnation of their racial attitude,
symbolic of the overall black purist perspective that Ruby was founded on.
Although it is the Disallowing that provokes their negative attitude towards people of
lighter skin, Morrison is not placing blame on white racism for being the cause, but for the
citizens of Ruby perpetuating this racism, which is clear from the ironic parallel of Delia and
Rubys deaths. Much like Delia, Rubys death was a result of racism because no colored people

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were allowed in the wards. No regular doctor would attend them; therefore, her dark skin
destined her to die on the waiting room bench (Morrison 113). This event was a contributing
factor to the establishment of Ruby as a paradise from white racism, as indicated by Rubys
continued legacy manifested in the towns name; however, the strong resemblance between these
two instances reveals the horrific consequences of the 8-rock principles brought on by this
pursuit of paradise, a mindset that Jenkins calls the black nationalist desire for a pure, and
purely authentic, form of African-American identity (287). The people of Ruby, once the
oppressed, transformed into the oppressors, as they became the direct cause of the death of a
woman due to their racial prejudices, a role they had once considered malevolent when one of
their own people, Ruby, was a victim. The hypocritical and catastrophic results of maintaining
such a racially-isolated community is an apparent condemnation of the black nationalist
philosophy.
Not only does the separatist adherence to a pure black identity lead to an unjustified
hatred of others, but physical detriment to their community. For instance, as Patricia notes
through an examination of family relations within Ruby, the problem with blood rules is that
incest is eventually necessary to maintain true racial purity (196). Additionally, Fraile-Marcos
points out that:
What the rulers of Ruby refuse to see is that their emphasis on saving Ruby
through isolation and exclusion is damning to it in the most literal sense. They
are enforcing endogamy, which is resulting in potential incestuous relations, like
that of K.D. and Arnette and deformed children who die soon, like Save Marie.
(16)

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In addition to the racism that the traditional 8-rock ideology promotes, it is also a significant
danger to their community to uphold these values. This indisputable flaw to Rubys insistence
on maintaining racial purism reveals Morrisons apparent criticism of this mindset. This
illustration of the ultimate danger of isolationism functions as a clear condemnation of this
societal foundation.
Although Rubys isolation was originally derived on a racial basis, it incites aversion
towards every aspect of the outside world, not solely the white race, and the implications of this
further strengthen the criticism of Rubys separatist foundation. This holistic isolationist attitude
that emerged as a result of the Disallowing is clearly depicted in the following quotation:
The twins stared at their dwindling postwar future and it was hard not to persuade
other home boys to repeat what the Old Fathers had done in 1890. Ten
generations had known what lay Out There where your children were sport,
your women quarry, and where your very person could be annulled where
every cluster of whitemen looked like a posse, being alone was being dead. But
lessons had been learned and relearned in the last three generations about how to
protect a town. (16)
This exhibits the fear of the outside world that white racism brought upon them, which inspires
the creation of Ruby and remains instilled into its very structure. This isolationism that Ruby is
founded on leads to a complete distrust of newcomers to their community, as represented by
Reverend Misner. This is apparent when Misner pleas with Patricia, Well help me figure this
place out. I know Im an outsider, but Im not an enemy, and she responds with, No, youre
not, but in this town those two words mean the same thing (212). Not only does Misner signify
Rubys natural fear of outsiders, but also the opposing ideals that contradict the original 8-rock

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values. His opposition to the towns isolation is a primary example, which he makes clear in his
conversation with Patricia when he states, We live in the world, Pat. The whole world.
Separating us, isolating us thats always been their weapon. Isolation kills generations. It has
no future (210). In addition to his apparent disagreement with the Rubys isolationist
foundation, he teaches his students about Africa and current events outside of the town, which
Patricia does not support (207). Patricias distrust of these ideas represents the towns view of
Misners role in their society because his outside values counteract with what they are used to.
Schur describes Rubys opposition to Misners character as a distrust of his solutions to racial
and social conflict, which, according to Schur, signifies that the very core of Rubys
community, the rhetoric and rules of eight-rock, comes to symbolize what haunts their
community (289). Rubys elders opposition to Misners character establishes their inability to
accept values and people other than their own, which is upheld by their isolationist stance. This
resulting closed-mindedness is an apparent critique of isolationism and the maintenance of
traditional 8-rock philosophy as a whole.
The 8-rock ideology is not solely limited to its isolationism; that is just one aspect of an
entire array of values that emerged at the start of Ruby, and any change in perspective within
Ruby, whether resulting from contact with the outside world or simply the natural loss of
tradition amongst the younger generations, proves to be impossible for the older generations for
Ruby to accept, which leads to the societal conflict in Ruby. This rigid mindset, a perspective
the elders fight to sustain amongst the entire Ruby community, is harmful to the structure of their
society. A similar reading by Viva de Voss interprets this pattern as follows: Whereas the
citizens of Ruby lived in an isolated world, Morrison shows the impossibility and dangers of
assumed self-identical identity (12). The negative impact of this self-identical identity, as

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de Voss labels the strict 8-rock ideology, causes suspicion of differing values, which is further
revealed in the heated Beware the Furrow argument, demonstrating the anger the 8-rocks have
toward change in their community (86). The town elders efforts to restore what they see is the
original message on the Oven symbolizes their desire to preserve the 8-rock principles Ruby was
founded on; however, younger Destrys desire to compromise with the alternative message, Be
the Furrow, signifies that the youth of the town is straying away from the original 8-rock
mindset the elders are working so hard to preserve (87). This traditional mindset, of course,
resulted from their sense of communal pride after the Disallowing, which Ruby was established
upon, but it is the protest of the older Ruby generations towards divergence from this perspective
that creates friction within the community.
In addition to the debate regarding the message on the Oven, the older generations
protest to the youths congregation around the Oven further illustrates their frustration regarding
change within Ruby. Stewards aggravation with the young people wanting to change the
message on the Oven is that they have no notion of what it took to build Ruby, indicating that
the Oven symbolizes the values of the 8-rock families that initially founded Ruby (93). It is clear
from this why so many of the 8-rock descendents are angered by the youths casual attendance
around the Oven they are changing the true symbolism of the Oven since they do not
appreciate it for its true value to their community. However, it is not the youth who create the
uproar in Ruby surrounding these events, but the elders. The arguments about the Oven are
started by the 8-rocks, not the younger generations. Therefore, it is not the outside ideas entering
into Ruby that is creating societal conflict, but the 8-rock traditionalists efforts to preserve their
mindset that they believe should be the foundation of Ruby. Their inability to accept change in
their society, influenced by their purely isolationist attitude, is the primary cause of the

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disharmony in Ruby. Fraile-Marcos agrees that Morrison shuns religious as well as
nationalistic essentialisms by means of the open ending of the novel which implies that paradise
as well as ethnic construction is neither closed nor fixed, but a condition that has to be
continuously worked on (30), which means that the closed-mindedness of their rigid mindset
does not allow for fluctuation and adaptation within the community, which is inevitable in a
search for paradise. Rubys refusal to accept change within the community, a symptom of their
isolationism, is a hindrance to their ultimate purpose becoming a paradise. Fraile-Marcos
agrees that Rubys refusal to acknowledge difference within their community poses the major
threat to their idea of paradise (14). This significant flaw to the structure of their society reveals
the impossibility of truly achieving paradise within an isolationist community.
Moreover, the true breaking point ultimate negative result of Rubys preservation of
traditional values is the men of Rubys view of the women of the Convent, a result of their
isolationist way of thinking, and the eventual attack that results from this perspective. The
elders frustration with the change in the town of Ruby results in their decision to find a
scapegoat, which happens to be the women of the Convent. It is clear that the men blame the
Convent women for their societal problems because when the men spoke of the ruination that
was upon them how Ruby was changing in intolerable ways they did not think to fix it by
extending a hand in fellowship or love. They mapped out defense instead and honed evidence
for its need, till teach piece fit an already polished groove, which refers to the blame they place
on the Convent women and the resulting attack (275). Their strict adherence to the 8-rock
mindset and incapacity to cope with the loss of traditional values in the community leads to a
horrific act of violence. As Katrine Dalsgard describes:

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As things now are in Ruby, unwanted children are conceived and aborted, wished-for
children are born broken, and the young have begun to react against the conservative
lifestyle and the authoritarian politics of the communitys leading elders. Though at first
the communitys patriarchs react to this development by launching a series of angry
accusations against its young male lions of failing their ancestral responsibility, the novel
culminates in a horrific massacre conducted by these two groups of men on a group of
unconventional women. (233)
They illogically blame the Convent women for outrages that had been accumulating within
Ruby, though they have no definite proof besides rumors that the women were even involved
in these events (Morrison 11). These hasty, unsupported assumptions further indicate their
distrust of people outside community, which leads to the extreme act of murder. This apparent
tragedy, resulting from the elders strict view of how the people of Ruby are supposed to think
and their inability to accept differing perspectives, is a clear condemnation of adhering to such a
strict communal, isolationist mindset. Additionally, Doveys comment about her husbands
choice to pursue this attack, Did he think that because they lived away from white law they
were beyond it? reveals the true impact of isolationism on the 8-rock descendents (287). After
years of separation from the rest of society, legal implications of their actions do not affect them
as much, even if they commit a crime as heinous as murder. This extreme result of isolationism
is a clear admonition of the ideology as a whole. Furthermore, Fraile-Marcos sees this murder of
the Convent women as the result of defending an idea of paradise based on exclusion enforced
by violence. Violence, and more specifically murder, not only contradicts the very idea of
paradise stated by the title, but implies the loss of innocence and subsequent expulsion from
paradise (20). This brings up another very true point: the violence that derives from Rubys

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isolationist exclusion policy, which the backbone of their quest for paradise, ironically makes it
impossible for them to ever truly create paradise. The ultimate failure of Rubys attempt at
paradise, as well as the immorality that results during this pursuit, that is revealed through the
attack on the Convent finalizes Morrisons disparagement of isolationism.
Morrisons depiction of the futility, violence, and closed-mindedness associated with
Rubys isolationist stance is a clear criticism of such a communal foundation. As mentioned
earlier, Rubys isolation was undoubtedly influenced by racial oppression during the
Disallowing, which spurred their adherence to a pure black identity as a community, displaying
similarities to the black nationalist perspective. The deeply-rooted racism within Rubys
community that resulted from this extreme racial isolation from the rest of the country is a
negative illustration of the 8-rock dogma. It is clear that the placement of value on black identity
provoked Rubys isolation and that the negative impacts of this isolation from people and values
that are different from the citizens of Ruby, both racially and ideologically, clearly emphasize the
danger of this mindset. The elders blame their societal conflict on both Misner and the women
of the Convent, who are symbols of values that oppose the 8-rock philosophy; however, it is this
rigid philosophy Ruby was founded on that is truly to blame. The elders refusal to accept
difference in their community is what ultimately leads to disharmony within Ruby. The
appalling murder of the Convent women at the end of the novel is the final piece to Morrisons
criticism of their isolationist mindset, revealing its true implications. The irony of Ruby is that it
was established as an attempt at paradise, but their methods of attaining this paradise (i.e.
ascribing to a purely black identity and isolating themselves from the world around them) are
what prevent them from truly ever arriving at such a utopia.

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Works Cited
Black Nationalism. Britannica. Encyclopaedia Britannica, 2013. Web. 6 May 2013.
Dalsgard, Katrine. The One all-Black Town Worth the Pain: (African) American
Exceptionalism, Historical Narration, and the Critique of Nationhood in Toni
Morrison's Paradise. African American Review 35.2 (2001): 233-48. Print.
De Voss, Vida. The Identity Challenge in Toni Morrison's Paradise. Graduate Theses and
Dissertations. Paper 11613. Iowa State University. Iowa State, 2010. Web. 5 May 2013.
Fraile-Marcos, Ana Mara. Hybridizing the City upon a Hill in Toni Morrison's
Paradise. MELUS 28.4 (2003): 3-33. Print.
Jenkins, Candace. Pure Black: Class, Color, and Intraracial Politics in Toni
Morrison's Paradise. Modern Fiction Studies 52.2 (2006): 270-296. Print.
Morrison, Toni. Paradise. New York: A.A. Knopf, 1998. Print.
Schur, Richard. Locating Paradise in the Post-Civil Rights Era: Toni Morrison and Critical
Race Theory. Contemporary Literature 45 (2004): 27699. Print.