The Color Purple Character Analysis

Another important woman in Celie’s life was Harpo’s wife Sofia. Sofia wasn’t as important to Celie as Shug Avery or her sister Nettie, but it was Sofia’s actions that I believe helped inspire Celie. For when Harpo tried to beat Sofia, thanks to Celie’s advice to Harpo to beat his wife, Sofia would always fight back. Not only emotionally but physically as well, for one day when Celie was going to Harpo’s house she saw Harpo and Sofia fighting like twos mens (P. 44). And I think Celie was really shocked when Sofia confronted her on why Celie told Harpo to beat Sofia. I say it cause I’m a fool, I say it cause I’m jealous of you. I say it cause you do what I can’t. What that? She say. Fight I say. … She say all my life I had to fight. I had to fight my daddy. I had to fight my brothers … cousins … uncles. A girl child ain’t safe in a family of men. But I never thought I’d have

Celie practically struggled for happiness her whole existence. Her father sold her to a man who had no intent of loving or caring for her. Celies’ husband whom she refers to as Mr. physically and verbally abused her. Mr. felt that the only way to keep a woman in check was to beat her and he did just that throughout the movie. Like any woman would though the abuse Celie lost herself and respect for herself. Living with Mr. was a life full of darkness and hatred. Life with her husband was no better life than life with her stepfather. It took years for Celie to become brave enough to fight back for what she accept as true and gain understanding of how to convey amusement and have little outlook on life. After years of abuse, Celie no longer was afraid of Mr. She no longer cared for her husband or the

At the end of the novel Celie has finally created a permanent life for herself.  The way she interacts with the other characters and attitude towards things has

There are numerous works of literature that recount a story- a story from which inspiration flourishes, providing a source of liberating motivation to its audience, or a story that simply aspires to touch the hearts and souls of all of those who read it. One of the most prevalent themes in historical types of these kinds of literature is racism. In America specifically, African Americans endured racism heavily, especially in the South, and did not gain equal rights until the 1960s. In her renowned book The Color Purple, Alice Walker narrates the journey of an African American woman, Celie Johnson (Harris), who experiences racism, sexism, and enduring hardships throughout the course of her life; nonetheless, through the help of friends and

“You gonna do what your mammy wouldn’t” (Walker 1) stated Celie’s step father in The Color Purple. The first letter written by Alice Walker's character Celie in The Color Purple gives a brief light on how mistreated, the protagonists, Celie has been. Celie suffered through many forms of abuse and trauma. Since an early age her supposed father, Pa, sexually abused her. Celie’s husband also beat her into submission, and worked her constantly. But never the less Celie revolts against her oppressors with the help of Shug, Nettie, and life changing events. In Alice Walker’s The Color Purple the protagonists Celie is analysed through emotional and physical abuse, and hardships throughout the novel, but after many personal trials she has become a very independent character.

Pretty in Pink and Some Kind of Wonderful are two films both written by John Hughes and directed by Howard Deutch. They depict themes similar to that of The Breakfast Club. Central themes such as class and popularity along with secondary themes of angst, love, self-discovery, fitting in, and the need to connect with others are prevalent throughout both of these films. Pretty in Pink is a prime example for the depiction of class and popularity. Its strong main characters, Andie and Blane, contrast in both of these categories and they develop into deeper story lines as the movie progresses. Class is a strong theme throughout the entire film and is presented in unforgettable scenes. Everyone is nervous walking into their first big high school house party, but the look on Andies face as her and Blane walk through the door is unforgettable. Clearly someone of a different social status, Andie, a true fashion icon, dresses how she desires but sticks out like a sore thumb amongst the upper-class teens. No one can forget the iconic line, “Nice pearls. This isn’t a dinner party, honey”, uttered at Andie in this scene. The clear and evident vulnerability of Andie shows just how uncomfortable she is in this setting along with the guiltiness of Blane for having brought her there. Class divides their two worlds and creates conflict throughout the film. A secondary theme that is very popular and might be controversial in the ending is love. Notable with John Hughes films are

Celie is inspired by her sister’s independence, determination and perseverance in Africa among foreign people whom Nettie cares about deeply. Celie saw the impact that a woman could have on others and felt

As Nettie receives opportunities Celie could never fathom, their relationship comes to a halt. Celie stops receiving letters from her sister and is left to take care of her husband’s obnoxious children from a previous marriage, and is verbally/physically abused on a daily basis by both her husband and his children. Celie’s husband has a torrent affair with Shug Avery, a blues singer with a practical mentality who does not endure any mistreatment from anyone, regardless of their gender. When Shug Avery falls into Celie’s care, Shug Avery teaches Celie a thing or two about self-confidence and the strength she must find within herself to stand up to her husband. Towards the end of the novel, Shug Avery encourages Celie to leave her husband and move with her to Memphis, where she can escape the pain of her past and for once in her life be happy.

Throughout these past generations, women were the victims of sexism, aggravated assault and verbal and domestic abuse by men and male partners in their lives. In today’s society women still continue to face these unfortunate complications. The novel “The Color Purple” by Alice Walker, focuses on the point of view of the African American women who face these problems. The African American women are symbolized as victims of sexism, domestic and verbal abuse as they learn to overcome the submissive behavior and gain their independence and equality.

Celie, the narrator of The Color Purple, is an uneducated, submissive, 14-year old black girl who lives in Georgia. Celie is constantly being abused and raped by her father, Alphonso. He has already impregnated Celie twice. The first one was a girl while the second one was a boy. All her children were taken away by her father after they were born. Her father told her that she better not tell anybody about their relationship but God, which explains why every letter she write begins with “Dear God”. Celie’s mother is happy because Alphonso doesn’t bother her anymore, but the truth is that Alphonso has been raping Celie as a substitute for her mother to gratify his sexual needs. Celie’s mother becomes seriously sick and eventually dies. Alphonso brings home another woman but continues to sexually

Characters throughout Alice Walker’s The Color Purple can be evaluated and analyzed using Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs, a five-stage model consisting of fundamental needs and growth needs. His theory states that the basic, lower tiered needs have to be met before the growth, higher tiered needs can be met, to ultimately reach the top tier, self-actualization. In The Color Purple, Walker shows the eventual progress to self-actualization through the protagonist, Celie. Celie’s growth is shown through her letters to both God and her sister Nettie. Celie fulfills her basic physiological needs when she gets married to Mr._ because she is finally able to escape her father’s abuse, beatings, and rape. It takes a while, but Celie gains safety and security when Shug Avery tells her, “I won’t leave… until I know Albert won’t even think about beating you” (Walker 76). The relationship that Celie forms with Shug helps Celie satisfy her belonging and intimacy needs. Their love for each other can be shown when Shug states, “cause she [Nettie] the only one you ever love… sides me” (120). As Celie begins her life in Memphis, she meets the respect/self-respect needs when she opens her own business making and selling pants. Celie feels so pleased and shows her character development when she says, “I got love, I got work, I got money, friends, and time” (218). Celie finally reaches self-actualization by the end of the novel. She has a successful business, is able to be independent in her own house, and realizes that she can bring herself happiness and that through every situation she needs to see the bright side. This is evidently shown when Celie is talking to Mr._ and says, “If she [Shug] come, I be happy. If she don’t I be content” (288). Celie’s evolution to reach self-actualization is clearly displayed in The Color Purple as Celie faces and overcomes hardships and learns to be confident in herself.

While the film is not an exact replica of the novel, Mel Watkins, a book editor and writer, also criticizes the choices of Alice Walker and other writers similar to her in his 1986 article “Sex, Racism, and Black Women Writers”. Because Watkins wrote the article a mere four years after The Color Purple’s release, Watkins’ belief that “black women writers who have chosen black men as a target have set themselves outside a tradition that is nearly as old as black American literature itself” is a direct window into the mindset of the people reading Alice Walker’s novel at the time. In this way, Watkins defines Alice Walker as an author who is more controversial and therefore less likely to be accepted. Watkins goes on to write that “in almost every instance throughout the history of black American literature there has been agreement on the basic underlying desire to present positive images of blacks”. With Celie’s blatant abuse and rape from “Mr. ______”, a black man, The Color Purple was rapidly criticized and rejected at the time of its release.

Since the beginning of Celie’s childhood years, she has endured immense physical and mental abuse from the men in her life including her father, Pa, and her husband, Mister. She has been raped more times than one could count and has been verbally abused to the point where her self esteem and way of thinking has completely diminished. Along with rape and verbal abuse, the disconnection with her beloved sister Nettie caused her to think life had no purpose. Though Celie has thought that her life would be this way forever, that all changed when a woman by the name of Shug Avery stepped foot into her life, though Shug

It wasn’t until her sister Nettie came to live with her that things began to change. Unlike Celie, Nettie was pretty, educated, and independent of all men and she was more of a mother figure to Celie than a sister. While staying with Celie, she was always interested in sharing her newfound knowledge with her sister teaching her everything she could. In doing so it ignited a spark of confidence in Celie as she learned to read and the eyes of her understanding were being enlightened. That light however grew dim after Mister threw Nettie out for rejecting his advances despite

Walker introduces the reader to the protagonist, Celie, through a series of letters. In these letters the reader finds Celie amidst her mother’s death. The author chooses to address her letters to God, giving Celie a greater willpower to survive. Celie’s upbringing gave her maternal authority; as seen through the multiple maternal roles she played through the novel. Her mother’s death forces her to step up and fill a, painful role revealing her inner strength and ability to remain optimistic.The full