The Color Purple – Alice Walker
23 Mar 2009 2 Comments
in Book Reviews
“The color purple stands for the beauty of the fields and flowers
surrounding these poor people.” (206)
In life, everyone has experiences where someone’s words reach them in a place beyond comprehension. Frequently these words are few in number and rare in occasion, but every so often, these words amount to novel-like lengths. The Color Purple is an effectively written, heart-wrenching story that is hard to put down.
Alice Walker begins this inspiring journey with two simple words, “Dear God,” and as you read on, you learn they mean a lot more than you ever thought they could.
This narrative is told from the point of view of Celie, the protagonist in this account. The structure of this novel was interesting. It was written as a series of unanswered letters from Celie, first to God and then to her absent sister Nettie. This results in the story being told in a fragmentary fashion, with short pieces of narrative somewhat connected. The novel is also written in Celie’s dialect, which contributes to the understanding of her way of life. This unusual writing style truly opens your eyes to the hearts and the experiences of the characters.
Being near the same age, but living in a completely different world, I can relate to Celie on one level, but on another, I can barely imagine what she has to go through. Celie is about fourteen years of age, and faces a life of emotional, physical, and sexual abuse by just about every man she encounters. She faces many hardships but along her journey she is able to overcome these mountains and bloom into the most beautiful purple flower. She is forced to confide in “God” because she lost her mother to an illness, and her father abuses and rapes her. She was also separated from her intelligent younger sister, Nettie, when she was forced to marry Mr. , and only able to communicate with her through letters which were often confiscated and not read until much later.
Nettie’s letters also help Celie see the outside world and that blacks in Africa are also oppressed and dominated. Nettie’s letters also speak of free blacks prospering in the north. The idea of economically successful and independent blacks is new to Nettie and Celie, who are accustomed only to denigration, denial, and subservience at the hands of both whites and black men. Nettie’s descriptions empower Celie.
Celie is living in a time where being black was considered the worst fate (for white people) and where being a black woman was even worse. The connections between characters in this book make it striking. Celie married a man who loved her sister Nettie and vice versa, and Nettie ends up finding Celie’s children in Africa. If it were not for Mr., and his love for a night club/jazz singer, she never would have met Shug, the woman who set her free.
Together the women grow and learn to resist oppression and dominance. They attempt independence when Celie is renamed. Shug declares Celie a virgin and renames her Miss Celie, giving Celie a new identity in both a figurative and a literal sense. Shug’s pronouncement of Celie as a virgin and the new name Shug gives Celie are critical to Celie’s empowerment to tell her own story and to her sense of self. The women also decide to let go of the men, and move away. Celie’s crucial moment is her speech to Mr. ______. This contrasts with her previous silence. She finally lets out years of built up emotion and hurt. Mr. ______ tries to tell her that as a poor, black, and ugly woman, she is “nothing at all.” But Celie’s sense of self is strong enough that she is no longer a helpless object, so she resists Mr. ______’s proclamation, reinterpreting his words: “I’m pore, I’m black, I may be ugly and can’t cook . . . But I’m here.” (227)
Celie’s new name and identity are a very important part of Walker’s story, these pieces of the puzzle express the Celie is finally telling her own story. This drastic change in Celie’s life is an inspiration to anyone who reads this book. It’s Celie’s true heart that reaches souls beyond understanding.
