Alice Walkers The Color Purple Essay - 2478 Words

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, â€Å"The Color Purple.† Each one of these aspects had a lasting impression upon the ideals and notions of the time. Walkers writings helped to break the racial barrier that existed in some peoples minds. One way that the barrier was destroyed was through Walkers depiction of an imperfect black person. If a white person wrote about a less than perfect black person than it was considered racist. Now that a black person is writing about other blacks that are foretaking in acts that are, in their eyes, immoral and corrupt, the†¦show more content†¦For example, many authors of the time, black or white, would address the idea of either inter-racial or same-sex relations. Walker was an active feminist and her voice and opinions show through in many of her novels. The Color Purple includes many dynamic characters throughout. Mr._____ is a good example of one such character. In the beginning of the novel he is a mean, strange old man who only marries Celie because he needs somebody to look after his kids. Mr.______ is really in love with her sister, but their father decides that her sister Nettie is too young for marriage so he settles for Celie. This shows how unfeeling Mr.____ is in the first portion of the novel. He beats his wife and overworks her and rapes her and abuses her. He is an all around bad guy. First he put this thing up gainst my hip and sort of wiggle it around. Then he grab hold my titties. Then he push his thing inside my *censored*. When that hurt, I cry. He start to choke me, saying you better shut up and git used to it. (Walker, pg. 1,2) However, Mr.____ comes upon a big change in his life when Celie finally leaves him. Mr.____ is left all by himself and forced to survive and maintain himself on his own. Here is where he runs into some problems. Here is where the big ch ange takes place. Mr.____ changes his evil ways and begins to show some compassionShow MoreRelatedColors And Independence In Alice Walkers The Color Purple1555 Words   |  7 Pages Alice Walker’s masterpiece, The Color Purple, uses ordinary things such as clothes, colors, jobs, and money as strong symbolism. In this book, pants symbolize independence. Pants change the way society views and treats a person. They also convey that a person is strong, confident, free, and equal to others. Alice Walker shows the reader how wearing pants can have a big effect on a person’s life, especially if that person is a woman in the early twentieth century. From the beginning of time to lessRead MoreAnalysis Of Alice Walkers The Color Purple2079 Words   |  9 Pages In Alice Walkers The Color Purple, she explores the thin grey line that stands between survival and living. 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As far as becoming author, Alice walker herself was faced with many struggles throughout her life. After a childhood accident blinded her in one eye, she went on to become valedictorian of her local school, and attend Spelman College and Sarah Lawrence College on scholarships, graduating in 1965(Janet Witalec). Her biggest turning point/ motivation was an author named Zora Neale Hurston, who made a great influence onRead More Celies Pain in Alice Walkers Color Purple Essay1473 Words   |  6 PagesCelies Pain in The Color Purple Molestation is a topic that is painful to think about, and even more difficult to write about. Yet Alice Walker chose this as the central theme of her novel The Color Purple. Walkers work centers around a poor African American girl Celie. Celie keeps a diary, and the first section of the novel is an excerpt from her diary. After reading the excerpt, the reader comes to realize that Celie is a fourteen-year-old girl who has been molested by her father. ThroughRead MoreEssay on Struggle and Growth in Alice Walkers Color Purple836 Words   |  4 PagesStruggle and Growth in Alice Walkers The Color Purple The Color Purple depicts the struggle and growth of Celie, an uneducated slave of the South who became a victim of racism, sexual roles, men, and social injustices, in numerous letters that she writes as a diary. Walker uses Celies uneducated grammar to help the reader perceive the pain that she thinks and feels in order to become a mature, twentieth-century woman.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   As Celie writes to God for guidance and strength asking