The Struggle In Alice Walker's Color Purple

The Color Purple by Alice Walker is the story of a poor black woman living in the south between World War 1 and World War 2. This was at a time when, although slavery had ended,many women were still virtually in bondage, and had to put up with many conditions that was reminiscent of the days of slavery. The problem was that they had to endure being treated like an inferior being by their own families sometimes, as well as from the white people that lived there. It was a life that was filled with misery for many black women, and they felt helpless to do anything about their situations.

            Harpo’s redemption comes about much more quickly than Albert’s does.  Perhaps this is because Harpo is not as stubborn or awful as his father, or perhaps because there was always love between him and his wife, Sofia; however, he still does great wrongs towards Sofia and women and general.  He has been taught that a man should be above all women in every aspect.  Harpo eventually learns that he cannot control Sofia, he tries to beat her at first; but she ends up hurting him badly.  Harpo’s first step towards redemption is concluding that he and Sofia truly love each other, and that he needs to treat her well if he wants to keep her (Walker 38).  Even after understanding this, he does not truly learn how much Sofia means to him until she is taken from him (Walker 89).

Celie, in The Color Purple, goes through certain events in her life in which she finds hope. Although she has a terrible life, Celie manages to escape from all of the evil. When she was younger she was emotionally scarred by her father after her mother had passed due to being very ill (James Web). Her father would brutally rape and slap her to mourn the loss of his wife. Celie’s father then sells her to a man named Mister,

Celie in The Color Purple has struggled since the very beginning because of the poor treatment she has received by men. Being raped by her father Fonso, Celie becomes pregnant and

In the novel The Color Purple, the main character, Celie, is in a rough position. She is in this position, because she has no power. She did not have any power, because she did not have a support group. There was no one around her to help her out as she was growing and to show her that she is worth something. Some of the women in this book who do have power are women who had support groups. For example, Sophia has her sisters and Nettie has has Celie. Celie had no one. She was at the point where her feelings did not have any importance, all that mattered was staying alive. She did not have any wants or desires, other than not dying. She is stuck with Mr.___ and forced to do everything he orders. She had no option other than to do what he said, or else things would be even worse. There is a time where

Abuse is like a circle you don’t just become an abuser there is always something behind it, in Celie’s case, it was her step father and Albert abusing her throughout the novel, Celie couldn’t escape the cycle because there were factors in her life that held her back. Celie was always blaming herself for the abuse Albert and her stepfather put upon her. If only she was to tell Albert and her stepfather that what he was doing was wrong, maybe there would have been a relationship in the end of the novel The Color Purple. Celie, Albert, and Celie’s step father were the reasons for his entrapment, he needed someone to tell and show him what he was doing was wrong to escape, which in the end he could have if he had therapy, and could

Celie in The Color Purple has struggled since the very beginning because of the poor treatment she has received by men. Being raped by her father Fonso, Celie becomes pregnant and

she helps the white girl is because she's "on parole. . . . Got to act nice"

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.

“Celie is coming with us, say Shug… You a lowdown dog is what’s wrong, [Celie] say. It’s time to leave you and enter into creation” (199). Celie and Albert’s roles have switched at this point because Celie is the one with the upper hand leaving Albert speechless. She has developed her sense of power and authority through Shug’s help. Celie voices her beliefs and rages at Albert for all he has ever done to her, which show her development as a character. From her quiet and fearful personality, Celie has now found her sense of self and authority. She completely knocks Albert over and does not allow any room for him to talk. Her power is shown as she expresses her feelings about when he took Nettie away from her, and of how he treated her all these years. The friendship of Celie and Shug develop the character of Celie. Shug helps Celie to shape her character from guiding her through her beliefs, retrieving what is most important to her, and helping her to gain confidence and power against Mr. Albert.

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 found her independence with the help of Shug Avery and Sofia by watching and learning to see how they were independent. When Celie found her independence, she told Albert she was leaving him and was leaving with Shug Avery and her husband. However, Albert did not believe her and tried to get her to stay but instead Celie cursed him by saying to him “Everything you done me, already been done to you.” This means that with everything Albert has done to Celie and has already experienced or will experience sometime in his lifetime. Furthermore, Celie went from wearing rags for clothes to wearing pants with a blouse to help show how she is independent as well.

In the novel, it was said that “women work (28);” Mr. ___ and his son Harpo view women as objects, just there for the duration, while the men go out and enjoy themselves. Mr.___ abuses her because as he states she is “my wife” and he “beat[s Celie] like he beat the children” although he does not beat them as often. Celie allows for the men in her life to take control because that is all she is used to doing. Ironically, Celie allows for others care for her like a child; despite her meek character she realizes that she should have been treated better than what Mr.___, her step-father, and even Harpo granted her.

She has never known anyone else who could appear as God, therefore, her mind tells her that her father is God. This clears up some confusion for the reader; Celie respects her father not only due to physical fear but because she believes he is god. Later in the book, Celie encounters more men in her life this changes how she refers to her father. She no longer calls him god, but Pa. The more she experiences, the more her perspective shifts.

We come in terms with the gravest realities of Celie,a fourteen year old alienated and disillusioned girl being raped by her father and Pa holds Celie in his capitivity and bondage by doing so. Most feminist critics consider the family as the focal repercussion of male powers and therefore as patriarchy’s supreme model and institution. In the family, Pa has the ultimate power to control the family, so he insists his wife to have an unwanted intercourse although she has just given birth to a new one. In Pa’s home, Celie also works like a slave. She mentions in her letter how she carries out her work as if she is a domesticated animal. She subject to the physical violence and repeatedly raped but she dared not tell this to anybody but God or else he'll kill his mammy, so this is why all her letters are subjected to God. According to Jansen and et al “women who have experienced life in rape and hardship often carry their abuse in silence”.Even if she was raped on regular basis, she was impregnated twice, both of her children were secretly taken away from her by Alphonso[one of them was killed other one sold] still she chooses to maintain