FREE ESSAY ON COLOR PURPLE

COLOR PURPLE

At the tender age of fifteen, Celie, the main character in Alice Walker's The Color Purple
is raped by whom she knows as her Pa. Pa forces himself upon Celie and she gets "big" or
pregnant, not once, but twice. When Pa takes the children away, the first a boy and the
second a girl, Celie believes that he kills them. The reader gathers from her letters to
God, that she is not very educated, and she seems a little on the dumb side. She does not
like, or fully understand the idea of her children being taken away from her, but knows
that there is nothing she can do about it. This realization is a crucial point in the
development of Celie's character. She seems to understand that her life will always be
rough, and adapts to it by learning to ignore things she doesn't like. She slips into her
own world, a happy place, where no harm can enter and she is safe. This adaptation will
help her to get through life, since it turns out to be a constant struggle. Celie's
mother died not too long after she had her children. Her mother cursed at her, in her
final words, after she was told what her husband had done to Celie. She had thought that
Celie was sleeping around, but when she found that the children were her husband's, it
killed her. She was not happy about that and instantly blamed Celie. After her mother
died, the rape continued and began for Nettie, Celie's younger sister. Celie didn't want
it to happen to Nettie, for she loved her too much. Celie told Nettie to run far away,
and never come back. Fonso (their stepfather) then sold Celie to Mr. _____. He had no
need for her anymore, for he thought she was ugly and dumb, while he wanted to keep
Nettie, whom he believed to be pretty all to himself. He wouldn't let Mr._____ have
Nettie. Mr.______ needed someone to take care of his children and his home, and Celie was
dumb, ugly, and helpful around the house. (in his eyes) The conflict between Fonso and
Celie, lies behind his feelings toward her. He thought she was ugly and stupid, when in
reality she was not. He raped her, and in turn she hated him for it. This conflict made
the relationship between them sour. She hated him for his disrespect and abuse he
administered to her. 
Bibliography
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