The Color Purple Thesis

In The Color Purple, Alice Walker’s lead character Celie is the voice the injustice of women abused by men. Providing a deep insight to the lack of equality of women throughout American society up to the middle of the 20th century’s the civil rights movement. The silence of woman from that era screams loud and clear in writings of Walker, as she uses Celie past to display that through abuse and mistreatment she holds true to her dignity as she awaits the time in which she is vindicated and rebirthed into and independent free human.

Alice Walker begins Celie’s story with looking back to the beginning of her abuse and mistreatment to help developed her character. The narration started in Celie youth as she describes her rape and abuse conducted by her father and mother. These atrocities of horror and pain are not truly realized or perceived by the victim, Celie. Celie’s re-accounting of the happenings of her

When Albert comes to attempt to view Celie for purchase of marriage, she is paraded on the porch “turn around, Pa say. I turn around” (Walker). Simple buying her time until the tide turns. She continues to defy a normal woman’s response to life situations until the opportune time as seen when she is in town with Albert and sees her long thought dead daughter, with the preacher’s wife. Instead of fighting for her daughter, Celie simple converses asking the child’s name, Preacher’s wife responds “we calls her Pauline. My heart knock” (Walker), is the one of the few times we see that Celie responds. Yet, she leaves it as is, no attempt to reinstate her parental rights with Oliva/Pauline. Such restraint and dignity as she continues to bid her