lker 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 …show more content…
With a facial extremity removed, it was as if Walker had a new lease on life as she reflected on her injury stating that during that period of time she learned to “ ...really see people and things, really to notice relationships and to learn to be patient enough to care about how they turned out.” This may be why her novels were so highly regarded; her ability to read people stemmed from her years in supposed solitude and elevated her thinking, allowing her to create characters whose lives one could truly feel. Walker graduated in 1961, and with a new sense of self-awareness, she attended Spelman College in Atlanta on a full scholarship. At Spelman, she became interested in the Civil Rights Movement because of her professor, Howard Zinn. She becomes reinvigorated into Civil Rights when she met Martin Luther King on campus, crediting her return to the American South to Dr. King. Later on, Alice traveled to New York to attend school at Sarah Lawrence College. Before her final year, Alice became pregnant and had an abortion that left her mentally crippled. Following these events, Walker spiraled into a deep depression leading to an attempted suicide. Once again, she turned to her writing to cope with her circumstances, and produced her first book of poetry titled Once while she was studying abroad in East Africa. . The same year,
When Alice Walker was eight years old, her brother accidentally shot her with a BB gun in her right eye. She lost the use of that eye and was left with scar tissue that was noticeable. Other kids would ridicule and laugh at her. This caused her to become very withdrawn. She became more of an observer and she started composing poetry in her head. She was afraid to put them on paper because she thought that her siblings would find her writings and tear them up.
Alice Walker grew up in rural Georgia in the mid 1900s as the daughter of two poor sharecroppers. Throughout her life, she has been forced to face and overcome arduous lessons of life. Once she managed to transfer the struggles of her life into a book, she instantaneously became a world-renowned author and Pulitzer Prize winner. The Color Purple is a riveting novel about the struggle between redemption and revenge according to Dinitia Smith. The novel takes place rural Georgia, starting in the early 1900s over a period of 30 years. Albert, also known as Mr._____, and his son Harpo must prevail over their evil acts towards other people, especially women. Albert and Harpo wrong many people
Walker discovered her personal identity when she got into an accident that left a scar not only in her physical but into her life, she was insisted on a fight, and she even lost her self confidence and same as Cofer’s she faced discrimination and was disrespected. It was stressed in Walker’s, “after months, of torture at the school, my parents decide to send me back to our old community, to my old school.”(444) and also when she said that she beat a child at her old school who continually calls her ”one-eyed bitch” (445). On the other hand, Walker’s discovery differs from Staples’ because she was not feared nor misjudged. The epiphanies the three writers experienced, led them into their discovery of their personal knowledge and identity.
Many African-American quilts that were made after the Civil War and emancipation were made from scraps of clothing and other like materials. Born in 1944 in Eatonton, Georgia, Alice Walker grew up as the youngest sibling in a poor family. As a Civil Rights activist, Walker fought for the equality of all African-Americans. She is best known for her novel The Color Purple which was published in 1982. In 1973, she released the story collection In Love and Trouble which included the short story “Everyday Use.” Alice Walker’s “Everyday Use” displays the theme of the meaning of heritage through irony and symbolism.
An interesting note which I will bring up later to give proof to my claim, is that when Walker was 8 years old, she was shot in the eye with a BB gun. After the incident, she became very self-conscience and felt like she did not fit in with the world around her. This helped her find her calling in writing.
Best known for her Pulitzer Prize-winning novel The Color Purple, Alice Walker portrays black women struggling for sexual as well as racial equality and emerging as strong, creative individuals. Walker was born on February 9, 1944, in Eatonton, Georgia, the eighth child of Willie Lee and Minnie Grant Walker. When Walker was eight, her right eye was injured by one of her brothers, resulting in permanent damage to her eye and facial disfigurement that isolated her as a child. This is where her feminine point of view first emerged in a household where girls were forced to do the domestic chores unaided by the brothers. Throughout her writing career, Alice Walker has been involved in the black movement and displays strong feelings towards
The Color Purple, is a novel written by the American author Alice Walker. The novel won the 1983 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction and is also regarded to be her most successful piece of work. It has developed into an award winning film and was recently made into a Broadway play. The story continues to impress readers throughout the decades due to its brutal honesty. The novel successfully and truthfully demonstrates what life was like for black women during the early twentieth century. The book discusses the major struggles that women endured throughout history in the South. After the Civil War, racism towards black American’s hit it’s all time peak. Both black men and women had to live with the constant hatred and brutal abuse from members of the white society. Not only were women viewed as less important by black men, they were also oppressed by white men. This sadly caused black women to become highly unprivileged. In the novel, discrimination towards women is very prevalent. Women discrimination is a motif throughout the novel and it is also the most significant theme. The women in the novel form bonds that are important to the development of the plot and the theme. The women in the novel grow as a whole and give each other strength, power, and hope. Since Walker had to live with the torture and abuse, she does not hide from the harsh reality of how women are treated in the African American culture. Walker has written this novel to show how women have been able to gain rights
Alice Walker is an award winning author, most famously recognized for her novel The Color Purple ;aside from being a novelist Walker is also a poet,essayist and activist .Her writing explores various social aspects as it concerns women and also celebrates political as well as social revolution. Walker has gained the reputation of being a prominent spokesperson and a symbolic figure for black feminism. Proper analyzation of Walker 's work comes from the knowledge on her early life, educational background and position in black literature.
Alice Walker usually puts herself into characters that she writes about in her stories. However, you don’t understand this unless you know about her. Staring with this let us find out about who she is and where she came from. When recounting the life of Alice Walker, you find out that she was born to sharecroppers in Eatonton, Georgia in 1944 and was the baby of eight children. She lost one of her eyes when her brother shot her with a BB gun by accident. She was valedictorian of her class in high school and with that and receiving a scholarship; she went to Spelman, a college for black women, in Atlanta. She then transferred to Sarah Lawrence College in New York and during her time there went Africa as an exchange
Have you ever heard of or wonder whom the activist and author Alice Walker is? Alice Malsenior Walker was born in 1944, in Eatonton, Georgia. She is the youngest of eight children and her parents were sharecroppers. Walker lost the sight in her right eye when she was eight due to her brother having shot her eye with a BB gun. Even though she lost the sight in her eye it never stopped her, Walker published over 30 books, including novels and short stories, poetry, non-fiction books, and essays. Walker was also selected for many awards and honors, but the most notable one is the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction for her novel The Color Purple. While Walker is well known for her works in literature she is also known for being an activist. Walker’s early family life and the people she met played an important role in her becoming an activist.
Alice went on to graduate as valedictorian of her high school and attended Spelman College and Sarah Lawrence College on scholarships. She graduated in 1965; this was the same year her first short story was published. Walker volunteered in the voter registration drives of the 1960s and
After that Alice Walker became stilled. Finally she found what she enjoyed doing which is writing poetry and reading. She was able to attend Spelman College and Sarah Lawrence College where she where she published her first short story called In Love, and Trouble where she discusses many lives about the inner beauty in African American woman. Walker’s third novel is called The Color Purple where she discusses the experiences and struggles of African Americans. It then became a Broadway show.
Alice Walker was born in Eatonton, Georgia to sharecroppers. At a very young age, Walker suffered an eye injury that had a major impact on her self-esteem. The injury affected the way she carried herself, causing her to shy away from others. Believing that her appearances didn’t meet the expectations, she turned to writing as an escape. The Color Purple exemplifies an uneducated black woman, Celie, who endures abuse and struggles with the effects it has on her. Throughout the novel, Walker imbeds character development, style, and an empowering message that allow Celie to finally “give voice to the traumatic experiences to which she has been subjected” (LaGrone 11).
At times, there is a necessity for an outlet to express and cope with day to day struggles in life. Some use recreational activities or others might take a more religious approach using prayer. Then there are writers, those who express themselves through the delicacy of their words. One writer in particular who effectively express herself through writing is Alice Walker. Throughout her early life Walker held various influential jobs such as teaching, lecturing, social work and even played a role in the Civil Rights Movement in Mississippi. Growing up, Walker was the youngest of eight children. Her parents worked as sharecroppers and her mother also worked as a maid in order to provide for the sizeable family. Even with these jobs, Walker grew
was how Alice Walker grew up. She has written stories about her life, and stories that have had