Pink

In “Eula” (1), Eula’s pink accessories, which include a shower cap, a scarf, and the polish she has used to paint her toenails, are symbolic of the ambiguity of her sexuality. As she seems to desire to fill the role of a traditional wife to a man but also clearly is attracted to her friend Caroletta, her actions embody the conflict between a traditional feminine position and lesbianism, both of which have often been represented by the color pink. The association of pink with traditional femininity is also apparent in the later story “Peach Cobbler” (38), where Latasha Wilson, a girl at school who Olivia admires, is rumored to have a pink canopy Barbie bed. Olivia appears to be entranced with the image Latasha projects, and the bed, especially as it is of a specific type marketed to girls, represents a certain desirable image of femininity that...