Analysis Of The Color Purple By Alice Walker

In ultimately finding herself at the end of the novel, Celie had to overcome the internal prejudices against herself. With the use of Shug Avery in the novel, Walker displays the hardships Celie must face with her new found sexuality. Because this relationship uses different and new feelings it “evokes so profound an erotic awakening that Celie believes she was "still a virgin" prior to it” (Hankinson). When Celie begins to have feelings for Shug, they start out innocent and then become more serious. She describes a night that they spent together when she says, “Me and Shug sound asleep. Her back to me, my arms round her waist” (Walker 116). Celie begins to allow her feelings with Shug to become reality and shows that she does not have the shy personality that everyone thinks she does. Celie breaks out of her inner prejudices again when she confides in her sister, Nettie. Celie begins to yell at the dinner table one night when she could no longer take

When I picked up The Color Purple, I didn’t think I’d immediately learn that Celie, as a fourteen year old, was raped routinely by who she thought was her father, had had two children who were taken from her overnight, and was made to believe that they were killed in the woods. These horrifying facts were declared in the first two pages and instantly incited my anger towards her father, Alphonso, and sympathy towards Celie. Her sexual assault was described so vividly that I felt as if I were present at the scene, yet unable to do anything to help. Besides suffering physical abuse, Celie is verbally abused, being constantly told, “You ugly. You skinny. You shape funny, You too scared to open your mouth to people…You not that good a cook

Commonly known as the author behind the epistolary novel, The Color Purple, Alice Walker is a native Georgian who considerably influenced the culture of the state. Her legacy begun February 9th, 1944 in Putnam County, Georgia when she was born to proud African American parents as the youngest of eight children. Her father, Willie Lee Walker, was a sharecropper blessed with a mind adept in mathematics, but cursed with substandard farming skills, and therefore was not a good source of income for his sizable family. Alice’s mother, Minnie Lou Tallulah Grant, was a hardworking woman who made up for her husband’s low income by working as a maid. Walker’s mother was also a woman who valued and recognized the importance of education. Jim

The Color Purple, by Alice Walker is narrated by a woman named Celie. Celie brings a young African-American women who was unable to have the proper education or treatment she desired for a majority of her life time. Throughout the story Celie searches for freedom and power through the abuse, love, and challenges that she endures.

The Color Purple by Alice Walker is an epistolary novel criticized for its immoral and sensitive issues, such as incest, rape, and physical abuse. The story takes place in the early 1900's in the South, and symbolizes the unmerciful social, emotional, and economic hardships that African American women faced. The protagonist of the story is Celie, a woman who has been abused since her youth and documents her struggles through letters written to God and eventually to her sister Nettie, who is a missionary in Africa. Her sister’s experiences in Africa are a direct correlation to Celie’s life in America and emphasizes key themes in the novel, such as sexism, racism and power struggle, and the importance of women working together to overcome

The book is basically a collection of letters that is for the first half of the book, addressed to God. In the very beginning of the book, Celie’s father says, “You better not never tell nobody but God. It’d kill your mammy” (Walker 1). Celie’s father has her convinced that her only confidant is God, and that telling anyone else of her abuse would only cause unwanted trouble and pain. Celie believes this and starts writing letters to God, telling him of all that goes on in her everyday life. Walker has Celie write letters to God to demonstrate how the abuse that she endures not only affects her physically but also mentally. She has succumbed to the beliefs of her father, which forces her to believe that her only purpose is to be an obedient wife and mother. He breaks her down by abusing her and persuading her not to tell anyone or her mother’s death would be her fault. He then shapes her into a submissive woman who thinks that the abuse is normal. Her father is able to brainwash Celie to think that she is “…a nonentity, merely a receptacle through which he can fulfill his sexual desires” (Huskey 102). She is nothing more than an object in her father’s eyes. He has abused her so much that she believes what he says, which affects her relationship with men. The abuse has tore Celie down, but she doesn’t fully realize it. She thinks that it is completely

1. The Color Purple by Alice Walker; The color purple is commonly used to symbolize royalty and a deep connection spiritually. Celie, the main character in the novel, writes many of her very personal letters and thoughts that she has never shared with to anyone else to God. She deeply connects spiritually with God. She knows that, unlike everyone else present around her in society, God will neither discriminate or judge her. In addition, when Celie finds herself in a time of need, she calls on the help of God as the only “man” she knows.

Throughout these chapters it was shocking for me to discover that Olivia and Adam were in fact Celie’s biological children. But it was even more surprising how Alphonso lied to Samuel claiming that his wife was too ill to take care of the children. Because Samuel’s wife, Corrine, was not able to conceive a child, they couldn’t turn down Alphonso’s offer to raise Olivia and Adam as their own. Moreover, I felt sympathy for Celie after discovering from Alphonso that her biological father was lynched to death. After learning about her true family background, Celie begins to lose her faith with God. Rather than writing to God like she has done previously, she writes letters to Nettie instead. When Nettie confesses that she is Adam and Olivia’s aunt, Corrine becomes defensive

Dramatic Impact of The Color Purple by Alice Walker The film, ‘The Color Purple’, was released in 1985 and it is based on the novel published in 1983 by Alice Walker. ‘The Color Purple’ won nine Oscar nominations and was directed by Steven Spielberg. The film, ‘The Color Purple’, tells the story of Celie from the age of 13 through to womanhood.

Celie and Mr. ____ also develop a new relationship, now as friends. There is no more abuse, only respect. Celie manages to help cultivate her individualism through the experiences of mistreatment she has dealt with, and rises above it thanks to the aid from three influential women in her life, Nettie, Sophia and Shug. These women all play roles of importance throughout different parts of Celie’s life and while Celie might have survived on her own, these women really taught her that she could control and manage her life the way she wanted to. Conquering adversity in order to live life to the fullest is something anyone can do, and in a way Celie can be seen as an inspiration to people who feel helpless and can't find a way to live their life the way they want

Rape, incest, sex, forced labor, and a little reefer on the side. These are all of the components of a novel by Alice Walker. All of these views are illustrated proficiently in Alice Walker’s third novel, “The Color Purple.” Each one of these aspects had a lasting impression upon the ideals and notions of the time. Walker's writing's helped to break the racial barrier that existed in some people's minds.

In the beginning of The Color Purple, Celie’s inability to combat the abuse from her father and Albert demonstrates her passive nature. The very first words on the first page of the book show the cruel treatment and forceful silencing Celie received from her father: “You better not tell nobody but God. It’d kill your mammy” (1). This

Jasmine Yoo Summer Reading Assignment English 11 Honors The Color Purple by Alice Walker Literary Log Letters 1-10 1. Alice Walker successfully captures the emotions of protagonist Celie. I felt heartbroken while reading the first few letters. Celie plays different roles such as a wife, mother and sister.

Celie is the main character in Walker’s novel. Throughout the course of the book, she developes from a meek, flighty, low self-esteemed fourteen year-old girl, inflicted by the abuse from her stepfather and arranged husband, into a confident, fighty, high self- esteemed age woman with the help of other women characters -- most prominently Shug Avery and Celie’s sister, Nettie. During the earlier years of her life, Celie had a “flight” versus fight mentality. This is because women during this time period were expected to listen, be dependent, and be married off. If not, they were frowned upon, such as Miss Beasley, a teacher; “She run off at the mouth so much no man would have her. That is how come she have to teach school” (10). Also, Celie learned she had to be flighty as a survival

Alice Walker is a phenomenal novelist who is best known for her stupendous, award-winning piece on the Color Purple. This book not only appealed to the readers emotional sense, but provided an unforgettable impact to listeners across the nation. This novel provided me with a new perception concerning relationships and how to know my worth. It also allowed me to be more cognizant and appreciative the materialistic things I possess that others would love to have. The Color Purple is also a very graphic novel that displays depression, violence, intimacy, poverty, and discrimination. Within the Color Purple, Walker gives various scenarios that can be applied to real life situations and later provides solutions on how to overcome these scenarios.