Ntozake Shange's For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide

Many women; such as the women in Ntozake Shange’s play; still feel oppressed by the racist and male-dominated society we live in today. For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide gives a voice to the voiceless and articulated the realities of modern life form some black women. Shange presented the black woman in moments of weakness, sorrow, or shame; honestly, and without apologies. Specifically, Shange established that women of color deserve to be heard and her voice never stifled. In doing this, she sets a strong theme for her play that is composed of, Black feminism, the emotions of growing up, breakdown of communication between men and women, and empowerment through sisterhood.
It is said that Shange writes the body of the female in

her story, in other words, she is a woman for women. In doing this, she addresses touchy topics such as physical harm and violence done to the female body, such as rape. Shange is insistent that the body must speak and write about rape, otherwise the oppressive and violent aspects of the act will not be heard. Specifically, Shange emphasizes that rape does oppress the black woman; a woman is not only raped, but more often than not, will need an abortion to get out of the hegemonic male discourse in a society that tells her that rape is an abomination and a sin. Shange is concerned with the victimization of woman and helping the young black woman find her voice and self, advocates for the black woman’s voices.
Ntozake Shange uniquely spoke of women’s emotional maturity during the transformation from child to woman.

The characters of the story spoke of their “rites of passage”. An example of this is when the Lady In Yellow says; “Bobby started lookin at me/yeah/he started looking at me real strange/like I was a woman or somthin/started talkin real soft/in the backseat of that ol Buick/WOW” (Shange 24). This quote explains how she lost her virginity to one of her friends on the night of her graduation. Both the graduation and loss of virginity are significant rites of passage in a young girl’s life, signifying her transition from child to adult. Unlike many of the other sexual encounters throughout the story, this moment is sweet, simple, and a treasured memory. However, as the ladies get older, Shange presents their sexuality as becoming increasingly

complicated.
In Shange’s story, there appears to be a breakdown of communication between the black man and the black woman.

Most of the men in For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide that the women in the story are involved with are shallow, inconsiderate, and either incapable of communicating or unwilling to communicate except through sex, violence, and verbal abuse. Although, the man is not all to blame for this, the woman allows the man to treat her this way, and whether right, wrong, or indifferent, she does not leave him although she has the opportunity to do so. The issue of communication between the man and woman is that the woman believes this is what she deserves, and the man plays his part by acting indecent and

unkind.
Another dominant theme of For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide is the theme of possibility and development of women supporting one another; the power of sisterhood. By the end of the story the women narrating have been through various trials and tribulations stemming from growing up, falling in love, racial identity, and much more. Although the play is sad, the women display unsurpassable strength and fortitude as they work their way through their hardships. By overcoming their struggles they learn to appreciate their race, gender, and unique beauty, and turn to each other for support. In the very last poem in the story, the women open themselves up to the power of female spirituality, allowing this god to fill them and provide them with a sense of empowerment and solidarity. The shared experiences allow the women to grow as human beings and finally embrace who they are together. “I found god in myself and I loved her; I loved her fiercely” (Shange 87)
Over time, the message of this story does not fade. The uniqueness of the writing style and individual stories allow for a large diversity of readers to relate to the story. Therefore, revisiting this text in 2015 does not distract from the original meaning of the story. Shange’s voice for women will always open the eyes of society to the oppression of black women as well as any other woman. For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide will continue to demand that women of color deserve to be heard and her voice will never be hushed.