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Celie is a poor black woman whose letters tell the story of 20 years of her life, beginning at age 14 when she is being abused and raped by her father and attempting to protect her sister from the same fate, and continuing over the course of her marriage to "Mister," a brutal man who terrorizes her. Celie eventually learns that her abusive husband has been keeping her sister's letters from her and the rage she feels, combined with an example of love and independence provided by her close friend Shug, pushes her finally toward an awakening of her creative and loving self.
The Color Purple is foremost the story of Celie, a poor, barely literate Southern black woman who struggles to escape the brutality and degradation of her treatment by men. The tale is told primarily through her own letters, which, out of isolation and despair, she initially addresses to God. . . . during the course of the novel, which begins in the early 1900's and ends in the mid-1940's, Celie frees herself from her husband's repressive control. The New York Times
Author biography courtesy of Random House, Inc.
You better not never tell nobody but God. It'd kill your mammy.
Dear God,
I am fourteen years old. I am I have always been a good girl. Maybe you can give me a sign letting me know what is happening to me.
Last spring after little Lucious come I heard them fussing. He was pulling on her arm. She say It too soon, Fonso, I ain't well. Finally he leave her alone. A week go by, he pulling on her arm again. She say Naw, I ain't gonna. Can't you see I'm already half dead, an all of these chilren.
She went to visit her sister doctor over Macon. Left me to see after the others. He never had a kine word to say to me. Just say You gonna do what your mammy wouldn't. First he put his thing up gainst my hip and sort of wiggle it around. Then he grab hold my titties. Then he push his thing inside my pussy. When that hurt, I cry. He start to choke me, saying You better shut up and git used to it.
But I don't never git used to it. And now I feels sick every time I be the one to cook. My mama she fuss at me an look at me. She happy, cause he good to her now. But too sick to last long.
Dear God,
Mr. ______ finally come right out an ast for Nettie hand in marriage. But He won't let her go. He say she too young, no experience. Say Mr. ______ got too many children already. Plus What about the scandal his wife cause when somebody kill her? And what about all this stuff he hear bout Shug Avery? What bout that?
I ast our new mammy bout Shug Avery. What it is? I ast. She don't know but she say she gon fine out.
She do more then that. She git a picture. The first one
of a real person I ever seen. She say Mr. ______ was taking somethin out his billfold to show Pa an it fell out an slid under the table. Shug Avery was a woman. The most beautiful woman I ever saw. She more pretty then my mama. She bout ten thousand times more prettier then me. I see her there in furs. Her face rouge. Her hair like somethin tail. She grinning with her foot up on somebody motocar. Her eyes serious tho. Sad some.
I ast her to give me the picture. An all night long I stare at it. An now when I dream, I dream of Shug Avery. She be dress to kill, whirling and laughing.
Dear God,
I ast him to take me instead of Nettie while our new mammy sick. But he just ast me what I'm talking bout. I tell him I can fix myself up for him. I duck into my room and come out wearing horsehair, feathers, and a pair of our new mammy high heel shoes. He beat me for dressing trampy but he do it to me anyway.
Mr. ______ come that evening. I'm in the bed crying. Nettie she finally see the light of day, clear. Our new mammy she see it too. She in her room crying. Nettie tend to first one, then the other. She so scared she go out doors and vomit. But not out front where the two mens is.
Mr. ______ say, Well Sir, I sure hope you done change your mind.
He say, Naw, Can't say I is.
Mr. ______ say, Well, you know, my poor little ones sure could use a mother.
Well, He say, real slow, I can't let you have Nettie. She too young. Don't know nothing but what you tell her. Sides, I want her to git some more schooling. Make a schoolteacher out of her. But I can let you have Celie. She the oldest anyway. She ought to marry first. She ain't fresh tho, but I spect you know that. She spoiled. Twice. But you don't need a fresh woman no how. I got a fresh one in there myself and she sick all the time. He spit, over the railing. The children git on her nerve, she not much of a cook. And she big already.
Mr. ______ he don't say nothing. I stop crying I'm so surprise.
She ugly. He say. But she ain't no stranger to hard work. And she clean. And God done fixed her. You can do everything just like you want to and she ain't gonna make you feed it or clothe it.
Mr. ______ still don't say nothing. I take out the picture of Shug Avery. I look into her eyes. Her eyes say Yeah, it bees that way sometime.
Fact is, he say, I got to git rid of her. She too old to be living here at home. And she a bad influence on my other girls. She'd come with her own linen. She can take that cow she raise down there back of the crib. But Nettie you flat out can't have. Not now. Not never.
Mr. ______ finally speak. Clearing his throat. I ain't never really look at that one, he say.
Well, next time you come you can look at her. She ugly. Don't even look like she kin to Nettie. But she'll make the better wife. She ain't smart either, and I'll just be fair, you have to watch her or she'll give away everything you own. But she can work like a man.
Mr. ______ say How old she is?
He say, She near twenty. And another thing-She tell lies.
Dear God,
It took him the whole spring, from March to June, to make up his mind to take me. All I thought about was Nettie. How she could come to me if I marry him and he be so love struck with her I could figure out a way for us to run away. Us both be hitting Nettie's schoolbooks pretty hard, cause us know we got to be smart to git away. I know I'm not as pretty or as smart as Nettie, but she say I ain't dumb.
The way you know who discover America, Nettie say, is think bout cucumbers. That what Columbus sound like. I learned all about Columbus in first grade, but look like he the first thing I forgot. She say Columbus come here in boats call the Neater, the Peter, and the Santomareater. Indians so nice to him he force a bunch of 'em back home with him to wait on the queen.
But it hard to think with gitting married to Mr. ______ hanging over my head.
The first time I got big Pa took me out of school. He never care that I love it. Nettie stood there at the gate holding tight to my hand. I was all dress for first day. You too dumb to keep going to school, Pa say. Nettie the clever one in this bunch.
But Pa, Nettie say, crying, Celie smart too. Even Miss Beasley say so. Nettie dote on Miss Beasley. Think nobody like her in the world.
Pa say, Whoever listen to anything Addie Beasley have to say. She run off at the mouth so much no man would have her. That how come she have to teach school. He never look up from cleaning his gun. Pretty soon a bunch of white mens come walking cross the yard. They have guns too.
Pa git up and follow 'em. The rest of the week I vomit and dress wild game.
But Nettie never give up. Next thing I know Miss Beasley at our house trying to talk to Pa. She say long as she been a teacher she never know nobody want to learn bad as Nettie and me. But when Pa call me out and she see how tight my dress is, she stop talking and go.
Nettie still don't understand. I don't neither. All us notice is I'm all the time sick and fat.
I feel bad sometime Nettie done pass me in learnin. But look like nothing she say can git in my brain and stay. She try to tell me something bout the ground not being flat. I just say, Yeah, like I know it. I never tell her how flat it look to me.
Mr. ______ come finally one day looking all drug out. The woman he had helping him done quit. His mammy done said No More.
He say, Let me see her again.
Pa call me. Celie, he say. Like it wasn't nothing. Mr. ______ want another look at you.
I go stand in the door. The sun shine in my eyes. He's still up on his horse. He look me up and down.
Pa rattle his newspaper. Move up, he won't bite, he say.
I go closer to the steps, but not too close cause I'm a little scared of his horse.
Turn round, Pa say.
I turn round. One of my little brothers come up. I think it was Lucious. He fat and playful, all the time munching on something.
He say, What you doing that for?
Pa say, Your sister thinking bout marriage.
Didn't mean nothing to him. He pull my dresstail and ast can he have some blackberry jam out the safe.
I say, Yeah.
She good with children, Pa say, rattling his paper open more. Never heard her say a hard word to nary one of them. Just give 'em everything they ast for, is the only problem.
Mr. ______ say, That cow still coming?
He say, Her cow.
Dear God,
I spend my wedding day running from the oldest boy. He twelve. His mama died in his arms and he don't want to hear nothing bout no new one. He pick up a rock and laid my head open. The blood run all down tween my breasts. His daddy say Don't do that! But that's all he say. He got four children, instead of three, two boys and two girls. The girls hair ain't been comb since their mammy died. I tell him I'll just have to shave it off. Start fresh. He say bad luck to cut a woman hair. So after I bandage my head best I can and cook dinner-they have a spring, not a well, and a wood stove look like a truck-I start trying to untangle hair. They only six and eight and they cry. They scream. They cuse me of murder. By ten o'clock I'm done. They cry theirselves to sleep. But I don't cry. I lay there thinking bout Nettie while he on top of me, wonder if she safe. And then I think bout Shug Avery. I know what he doing to me he done to Shug Avery and maybe she like it. I put my arm around him.
Copyright © 1982 by Alice Walker
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopy, recording, or any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.
Requests for permission to make copies of any part of the work should be mailed to the following address: Permissions Department, Harcourt, Inc., 6277 Sea Harbor Drive, Orlando, Florida 32887-6777.
First published by Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, 1970
Darsey_spudnick
Posted September 2, 2009
I Also Recommend:
Probably one of the most impressive accomplishments of the Color Purple is the slow pace Alice Walker employed to lay out Celie's letters. With the exception of a few jolts and shocks, the letters unfold themselves leisurely, over many years, with a few shifts of focus and orientation and character, but overall the same in quality and tone. (Of course, as Celie's world expands, so does her world view and vocabulary, and the "outside" gradually becomes a part of her ever expanding horizon.) This makes The Color Purple, a rather mid-sized book by novelistic standards, feel much longer. The epistolary format of the novel, used to great effect, gives the sense that time is unfolding in a far greater sweep than the 295 pages in the paperback edition. But this is only one of the masterful elements of this novel. Walker has complete command of the art of writing a work such as this, and has fully realized its potential in nearly every area of writing: character development, plot, language, style, the presentation of conflict and its resolution. Reading the Color Purple, for those who write, provides ample opportunities to show how well a novel can work when a writer exercises complete command over her materials. Alice Walker, the master of wordsmithing.
5 out of 5 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted September 9, 2010
The color purple is about two sisters named Celie and Nettie who struggle in life. The setting was in Georgia. Their mom died when they were younger. This meant Celie who was the oldest had to take care of the children. They lived with their Stepfather Alfonso who takes advantage of Celie and abuses her physically, mentally, and verbally. He killed Celie's and his baby she had and sold the second baby. After awhile a man named Mr._____ wants to marry Nettie Celie's younger sister but Alfonso doesn't allow it instead offers Celie as a bride. Mr.______ accepts Celie and they get married. Their marriage is horrible he does the same to her as her father Alphonso did. Mr.______ Celie's husband has a lover named Shug Avery a singer. Nettie Celie's younger sister runs away to a missionary in Africa. Shug Avery Celie's husband's lover gets sick and Celie has to take care of her. Shug Avery treats Celie horrifically. Then Shug Avery finds out that Mr._____ beats Celie. She cares for Celie and they become friends. Celie then starts to be attracted to Shug. Nettie and Celie stayed contact they sent each other letters. Celie then finds that the children of the couple Nettie are with adopted to children that were hers. Celie later moves out and lives with Shug Avery. Nettie and Celie reunite and Celie gets to meet her children. This story inspired me to be grateful of my life because others in this world have it a lot more worse then you. What I loved about this book is that anybody can over come problems and you shouldn't let anyone put you down or treat you like you're nothing because you're someone and you have a heart. Everyone should be treated with respect. What other books I would love to read about Alice Walker In Love and Trouble because its inspiring its about African American woman who share a bond not because of their background its because of what they share in common and life experience they had that the other women did to.
3 out of 4 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.HazelSR
Posted May 28, 2010
This epistolary novel is an endearing story about the life and heartache of Celie. This story shows the terrible treatment Celie received from the men in her life. It wasn't until she had an experience with a woman that she began to understand love and acceptance. The Color Purple has some plot elements that are perhaps far-fetched, but it adds to the overall beauty and point of the story. This is a fantastic novel that every student of American literature should read at least once.
2 out of 2 people found this review helpful.
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Posted February 1, 2012
Alice Walker’s, The Color Purple, focused on life challenges of a black woman and how she persevered. The main character Celie was raped by her father at the young age of fourteen, by these traumas she acquired two children that were taken from her right at birth. Since this tragedy she has been writing letters to God about her misfortunes. Also about the only thing she loved in her life but was taken away from her, her younger sister, Nettie. Celie wrote about the differences in her and her sisters new lives. Celie was forced to marry an abusive husband named “Mister” while Nettie still attended school then went on a missionary to Africa. On the contrary, Celie lived an abusive life and was compelled to raise “Mister’s” children. As his children grew up Celie was fond of Harpo, “Mister’s” eldest son, and his new wife, Sofia, a bold woman that did what she wanted. Later on in Celie’s letters she writes about one other person she has met and believes she loves, “Mister’s” mistress, Shug. Who befriends Celie while staying at “Mister’s” house. Shug also is a main factor in Celie’s outcome of new a character at the end of the book. I suggest that all young-adult readers should read, The Color Purple. It is an inspiring, page turner that I never wanted to put down. I enjoyed that this book was not the typical novel; it was split up into letters instead of chapters which for me made it easier to read. Since this book did not use proper grammar and spelling was the not main priority it made it very unique. This aspect also helped me understand the narrator’s characteristics quicker and the way she talks. Most novels are often written in third person but this one was written in first person which also helped me get a better feel of the main character and understand her fight for independence and courage throughout her letters.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted January 31, 2012
In The Color Purple by Alice Walker, Celie is a young African American woman who is being obligated to marry an older man, Mr.____. However, Mr.____ has already fallen in love with Celie’s younger sister Nettie, but since Nettie is smart and pretty she is able to stay in school while Celie is forced to marry. Unfortunately for Celie she was forced to marry Mr.____. Nettie and Celie had a very close and open relationship with each other and they were devastated when they were separated. Mr.____ is a selfish and cruel man who treated Celie very poorly and all she does is obey him and treat him well. Then, Harpo, who is Mr.____’s son, ends up marrying Sofia, who is a good friend of Celie’s. Once they marry though, Harpo becomes just like his father and beats Sofia. Luckily Sofia is tough and fights back. Sofia and Celie become closer. Sofia tries to console Celie to fight back also, but Celie is just too delicate. Celie likes having Sofia around because she reminds her so much of Nettie. Then there is Shug. She is Mr.____’s ex girlfriend, who he is still in love with but they never got married because she refused. Shug is very tenacious and independent. She also travels a lot because she is a famous singer. When Shug becomes sick she moves into the house with Celie and Mr.____, and then Celie is forced to take care of her. After months and months of nursing Shug, they become like almost sisters to eachother. Celie was finally happy being around Shug. The characters in the book were interesting to me; they made you want to keep reading. However, I did not really like that the book was written in letters and in a southern dialect. I did not like Harpo because he was a mini-version of his father. I did not like Mr.____ at all. He was so mean to Celie, he hid all of Nettie’s letters from her for so many years and he beat her for no reason at all. I liked how Nettie and Celie still maintained their close relationship even though they did not get to see each other. I would recommend this book to others because it is a page turner and teaches you a lot about what we should be thankful for and not take for granted.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted January 30, 2012
In The Color Purple by Alice Walker Celie is a young African American who is being forced to marry an older man, Mr.____. Mr.____ is in love with Celie’s younger sister Nettie but since Nettie is smart and pretty she is able to stay in school while Celie is forced to marry. Nettie and Celie had a very close relationship and they were devastated to have to be separated from one and other. Mr.____ is a mean and violent man who treats Celie very poorly and she is very obedient and quiet. Harpo is Mr.___ son and marries Sofia. Once they marry, Harpo becomes like his father and beats Sofia, but Sofia is tough and fights back. Sofia and Celie become close and Sofia tries to encourage Celie to stick up for herself, but Celie is just too weak. Celie especially likes Sofia because she reminds her of Nettie. Shug is Mr.____ ex girlfriend who he is in love with but never got married because she refused. Shug is very tough and not afraid to speak her mind. She is very independent and a free speaker. She is also a famous singer and travels most of the time. When Shug becomes sick she moves into the house with Celie and Mr.___ and Celie is forced to take care of her. After months of nursing Shug back to health, Celie and Shug become more than just best friends, almost sisters. For the first time in her life Celie is truly happy being with Shug. I liked the people in the book and it made you want to keep reading and find out what was going to happen, but I did not like that the book is written in a series of letters and that it is written in a southern dialect because it got confusing. I disliked Mr.____ very much because he was so mean to Celie, such as hiding Nettie’s letters from her for all those years and beating her for almost no reason. I also disliked Harpo because he was another version of his father, but I do think that he deserved it when Sofia fought back and hurt him because she was just standing up for herself. I did like how even though Nettie and Celie didn’t get to see each other they still had a close relationship and did not forget about one and other. I would recommend this book to others because it is a good book once you finish it, but it is confusing and boring in the beginning.
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Posted January 24, 2012
Is this the book to the movie the color purple let me know i'll be on and.off to see think you hooop you injoy it
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Posted January 17, 2012
GOOD JOB! THIS WAS YOUR FINAL CLUE! THE NEW CLAN WILL BE UNDER PURPLE PEOPLE EATER!!!!(my fave song)
Briarstar
Anonymous
Posted January 15, 2012
This bookis about a girl who wants her children back but someone owns her
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Posted January 1, 2012
Feathermoon you here yet?
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Posted December 27, 2011
Wonderful heart felt story that will have the reader on the edge of their seat
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Posted November 25, 2011
I think this book is very iterusting
0 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
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Posted October 4, 2011
I am 11, and I have to say, I am very drawn to this book.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.astreckenbach
Posted May 2, 2011
The author wrote this book knowing it would be timeless and for any reader. People learn about slavery starting at a young age, so I believe people around the age of twenty could read this book and get a real and powerful perspective, but also an old lady could read it and feel deeply impacted. I believe that my age, a sixteen year old girl, is perfect for this book because Celie is around my age. Therefore, I can best relate to her.
The title was well thought out. In the book, Shug Avery and Celie are walking through a path of purple flowers talking about God and Shug says: "God gets pissed off if people walk by the color purple and don't notice it". I believe this title can be interpreted any way, but purple represents violence and pain so I think she is trying to make a point that people are ignorant and don't recognize something so beautiful, like flowers, or African Americans in this metaphor, and what they are doing to them. It's hard to explain but kind of explains my interpretation of the title. It was obviously well thought out and makes me wonder.
I do not want to give the end of the story away! But I will say that it was fulfilling and wrapped the novel up beautifully since as a whole it was so moving and powerful.
The most interesting part of the book is in the structure. Celie writes "Dear God," but he is a distant figure. It seems as if she recognizes his existence but he never real comes to play. Although she tells only him all of her thoughts and feelings, she never goes deeper to explain any relationship with God.
The most exciting part of the book was when Shug Avery was going to live with Celie. It was toward the beginning of the book, so talk of her abusive past was fresh in the reader's mind. The only light in Celie's letters was her amazement in Shug Avery. She looked up to her dearly so it was very exciting that a foreshadowing of Shug
influencing Celie was near. It made me love Celie as a character and want to help her in any way so I felt happy for her.
The author's style is very much trying to get lost in the character. She is Celie. As stated before, it is in first person and Celie writes in the dialect of her time period and setting. This makes the book even more realistic and meaningful because it makes the reader feel like it's all happening as they read. I loved it personally.
Megan_Matheny
Posted May 2, 2011
The Color Purple is a story of continuous struggle and stereotypical images. The main character Celie struggles with being raped by her father at a young age then going and living with a man who truly does not love her. While this book is said to be an amazing story for African Americans I think it serves little purpose for them. The title of the book confuses me since purple is mentioned very little within the novel. Celie falls in love with another woman which in this time is not accepted. The main focus of this novel should be for African American rights and how poorly their treatment was but I find this taking a back seat to other details in the novel. When we learn that Mr.________ took the letter it is not climatic from a reader's standpoint. Reading I almost expected this. This book was written years ago where this may have been a more interesting and debated topic. Today all I received from the novel was how spineless Celie is for herself and how messed up she must be for putting up with her husbands abuse and falling in love with a women at the same time. While Celie might find happiness when Nettie returns and she leaves Shrug this novel was nothing like I expected and it's not one I would recommend others to read. If it was not a choice for a school reading list I don't believe I would have ever read this novel
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.G6CHERNEYM
Posted May 1, 2011
The Color Purple is a story about a young black girl named Celie. She lives in the American South in the 1920s and starts writing letters to God about her life. She has a rough life: raped at age 14 and has two children that disappear, being married off to another man who loves her sister Nettie, being abused, loses touch with her sister, and falling in love with someone who later breaks her heart. This story tells the reader how life was for blacks during this time period in Southern America.
I think the author of this book, Alice Walker, intended to have people oblivious to oppression read this book. I think this because this was a time period that teaches people about that lifestyle. Many people during this time period, especially blacks, had it rough and it is still an issue today with racism. Educating people about oppression and this time period was her main goal.
The ending of the story was a relief to me. Celie has worked so hard and gone through so much. Shug broke Celie's heart and it seemed her world was falling apart. Then Nettie returned home from Africa and Europe. Celie got so excited and emotional. I felt so happy for her to finally get to see Nettie again. She also gets to meet her children and Nettie's husband. Her life turned around and she found the love she has been wanting all along: the love of her sister and family. I think the ending was a perfect way to end this novel.
The most exciting part of this novel was when Celie moved away from the life she hated with Shug. Although everyone was shocked and angry, she kept up with her decision to move to Tennessee. She loves Shug and she had the opportunity to start a new life. She pursued a career in something she loved to do: sewing pants. She found happiness for a while and it made me excited for her.
The most interesting part of this novel is when Celie and Albert became civil. Celie came back to Albert's house to visit the kids. Celie looking better than ever, Albert started to have respect for her. They talked for hours without fighting and talking about life. It was interesting to me because I thought Celie and Albert would never get along.
The book is titled The Color Purple for two reasons. One, the color purple is often a reference to black people, which is the race that the story focuses on. The title derives from a discussion between Celie and Shug about faith. Describing what God does to please people, Shug says, "I think it pisses God off if you walk by the color purple in a field somewhere and don't notice it." After Celie asks what God does in response to this obliviousness, Shug replies that he creates something else people will see, because God just wants to be loved. The discussion leads to the rekindling of Celie's spirituality, despite years of abuse and neglect.
This novels style falls into classifications of novels called epistolary, meaning it is told through a medium of letters written by one or more of the characters. Alice Walker begins the novel by Celie writing letters to God. Then Nettie writes letters to Celie and when Celie finds the letters she writes to Celie. An interesting characteristic of the style Alice Walker uses is calling Albert and other characters by either Mr. or Mrs. _____. It gets confusing if she is talking about more than one person.
Anonymous
Posted May 1, 2011
*SPOILER ALERT*
After spending several months within the pages of The Color Purple, I have learned to enjoy a completely different genre and style of writing. Alice Walker emphasizes throughout the novel the power of descriptive writing and voice in order to create a fully developed and interesting character. I think her letters to God are the most unique part of the story, in which she begins to pour out her story, God becomes her only outlet. Then eventually she finds a way to connect with Celie, and through the same letters she is able to reunite with her sister after many years. Walker did an amazing job making Celie appear as an object, an entirely passive party who has no power all her life. I think because of the different conversation topics, and some of the subjects that were often common in that time period, this book is designed to be read by an older audience. At least High School and beyond. There's a point towards the beginning of the book that hits at the reasoning for the title; where Celie discusses her religious awakening, she marvels how she never noticed the wonders that God has made, such as "the color purple." I loved the way the story ended, Celie is finally reunited with her long lost sister, and she strangely finds herself at a friendly relationship with a man she used to hate. For once in her life she appears to be happy and content with her life. I'm very glad I chose to read The Color Purple for my LA303 outside reading assignment.
Anonymous
Posted May 1, 2011
"Spoiler Alert"
This novel is like no other novel I have read in the past, starting at the author's style to the detail and personality shared by the characters. With each "chapter" starting out with a letter to God captured my attention right away, as I knew the protagonist was going to release the most intimate of feelings to the audience, but what I did not know was what the letters to God were going to turn in to. The sister bond shared between Nettie and Celie through writing is extraordinary and breath-taking and had me empathizing with each occurance throughout the novel, but especially at the end of the novel. As Celie and Nettie reunited and Celie finally met her children, my heart skipped a couple beats and a smile shaped my lips. I thought this was the perfect ending to this particular story, that and how Mr. ________ and Celie were experiencing a friendly relationship. I also think the title of this book suits it perfectly as the color purple has connotations most of the world overlooks. This novel allowed me to see how each thing should be treasured and how blessed I truly am. If I were to have one criticism, though, it is that it was hard for me to keep track of the characters due to the lack of titles. However, it expressed some dialect and the lifestyle of the time. I would, beyond a shadow of a doubt, recommend this book for anyone mature enough to read it. Due to some detailed and touchy matters, I would say the intended audiance would be high school and up. There are several life lessons and secrets hidden in between the lines if the reader looks for them, and I believe a certain amount of maturity is needed to do so. I am elated I chose to read this book as my independent novel for Language Arts 303, and I would recommend it to those wanting to learn the life's stories as expressed through the work of Alice Walker.
McKenna28
Posted April 30, 2011
The Color Purple was a book based on the terribly hard times of Celie and the challenges that she faced on her way to becoming free of abuse. She had started out with abuse by the man that she thought was her father until she finds out that he is in fact of no relation to her. She is then shoved off to go and basically serve for Mr.____ while secretly yearning for Shug Avery the entire time. She had always had a problem of speaking her mind and sticking up for herself and she loved the fact that Shug taught her to stick up for herself and to enjoy her time with Mr.____ more than dread it. She eventually finds out that Mr.____ had hidden all of her letters from her sister Nettie who was thought to be dead. Celie then finds relief in the fact that her sister is not dead and that she now knows about her real family and life. Things eventually smooth out between Celie and Mr.____ and Celie is finally able to be happy which is what she had wanted all along for herself. I believe that this book was intended to be read by and older group of people. The book does have a little bit more of mature material in it and I think a mid teen would find it and interesting book with a story that should be told.
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Posted April 28, 2011
I think the author, Alice Walker, intended to reach all people through her novel. It explores the importance of recognizing everyone's feelings. Slightly mistreating someone, even by mistake, can ruin the victims' self esteem and ultimately control every aspect of their lives. The Color Purple puts on exhibit the importance of getting to know a person prior to making a final decision about them. I really enjoyed the ending as well as the education about treating people with respect. The end was fanominal because it was unexpected. I thought Nettie was killed in a ship wreck, and Celie was just being optimistic because she obviously wants nothing more than to reunite with her sister. Nettie showed up at Celie's house, with the family she had acquired while being a missionary to the Olika people. I also loved the ending because good presided over evil, and Celie became successful thorugh her talent of making all types of pants. The most interesting part of the book is when Celie and Mr.___ become friends! This was very unlikely and unexpected after the long years of abuse he put her through. They begin sewing together, and he realizes what a great companion Celie can be. He is interested in marrying her again, but Celie's heart yearns for Shug only. The most exciting part of the book is when Shug discovers that Mr.__ has been hiding Nettie's letters from Celie. These letters made it possible for Celie to discover that her real Pa was dead, and the man she had always known to be her father was not of relation. She discovers that she has more children and siblings; these discoveries gave her the courage to leave Mr.___. The author's style is mysterious and detailed. The character's feelings are deeply explored and the story progresses slowly, but with continuous activity. I would recommend The Color Purple to everyone of age 16 and older.
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Overview
Celie is a poor black woman whose letters tell the story of 20 years of her life, beginning at age 14 when she is being abused and raped by her father and attempting to protect her sister from the same fate, and continuing over the course of her marriage to "Mister," a brutal man who terrorizes her. Celie eventually learns that her abusive husband has been keeping her sister's letters from her and the rage she feels, combined with an example of love and independence provided by her close friend Shug, pushes her finally toward an awakening of her creative and loving self.
The Color Purple is foremost the story of Celie, a poor, ...