Reunited And It Feels So Good!

Dear Nettie,

The only piece of mail Mr. ____ ever put directly in my hand is a telegram that come from the United States Department of Defense. It say the ship you and the children and you husband left Africa in was sunk by German mines of the coast of someplace called Gibralta. They think you all drowned. Plus, the same day, all the letters I wrote to you over the years come back unopened.

I sit here in this big house all by myself trying to sew, but what good is sewin gon do? What good is anything? Being alive seem to be an awful strain.

Your Sister, Celie (Walker 259)

This was the letter that Celie wrote to Nettie when she heard about her sister's death. From this point until the end, I did not enjoy the book as much, because Nettie died. Celie waited all her life to be reunited with her sister, only to hear that the ship she was in was blown up by a German mine, the beginning of WW II. It wasn't fair that Celie lived her whole live mistreated by those around her, and the first person that ever loved her was ripped out of her life by something that wasn't even her fault.

Despite this I thought that Alice Walker was able to conclude the book smoothly. Mr. ____ and Celie were able to come to terms, and although they still do not love each other, they have developed a strong, mutual respect for one another. After her "father," Alphonso, died, she moved back to her house since it was left to her and Nettie in the will. After this, though, her relationship with Shug Avery practically disintegrated. Although there is no doubt that Shug still loved Celie and vice versa, Shug wants a little bit of freedom in her life, meaning she wants to have a relationship with a man who is a third of her age and a member of her band, Germaine.

This is what brings Mr. ____ and Celie together. Even though Celie is financially independent and able to speak up for herself, the pain she feels by this blow is almost unbearable. The only one who understands this pain is Mr. ____ because he knows how it feels when Shug Avery leaves, like an empty hole in your heart. But this also shows how Celie has grown as a person, because she is able to survive from short lapses in Shug's attention. Like I mentioned before, a sort of cordial relationship forms between Celie and Mr. ____, and they begin to enjoy talking together about their friends, family, and their love for Shug Avery. Shug returns when Celie writes her that Nettie has died.

Surprise, though! In Celie's final letter, who should come to their house but NETTIE! Nettie, Samuel, Olivia, Adam, and Tashi are alive, and Celie introduces them to her "family" meaning Harpo, Sofia, Shug, and finally Albert. Yes, she is calling Mr. ____ Albert now, showing her remarkable transformation from a young, abused child, into a woman still growing and being nurtured in a loving community. I liked the ending of this book, because Walker was able to solve almost every conflict featured in the book. Some concern was voiced about this before, but Nettie was smoothly integrated back into Celie's life, without any conflict with Shug Avery. This is all revealed to the reader during the reunion picnic featuring Celie, Nettie, and the rest of the main characters. Mistreated all of her life, Celie was finally reunited with her sister, and her somewhat pessimistic narration has turned around to an optimistic flair.

I'm Leaving ... To Make Some Pants!

Celie finally did it. She finally spoke her mind to Mr. ____, and she, Squeak, Shug Avery, and Grady have left for Memphis for good. It shocked me almost as much as it shocked Mr. ____, because Celie is not outspoken, but when he tried to stop her, she said, "Until you do right by me, everything you touch will crumble. Until you do right by me, everything you dream about will fail. Every lick you hit me you will suffer twice. The jail you plan for me is the one in which you will rot," (Walker 206). I thought that this was such a powerful speech because it contrasts with Celie's former silence. She brings all of her past pent up anger that she had from living with Mr. ____ for all of those years. Although he tries to strip her of her self worth by saying that she is poor, black, ugly, and a woman, Celie's sense of self is too strong to be battered by what he says. Even though it angers him, Celie's speech does inspire Mr. ____ to rebuild his life.

When she, Squeak, Grady, and Shug Avery first arrive at Shug's house, Celie is not sure what she should do with herself. I think this is because she is used to being ordered and pushed around, that she is unsure what she should do with her newfound freedom. Shug is rich because of her singing, and buys Celie material when she wants to start making pants. At first, all she does is sew and sew, but when Shug and Squeak see pairs of pants that they like, Miss Celie's Folkspants Unlimited is born. Not only is it a form of self-expression (these are some pretty wild pants, folks!), but the money that she makes gives her economic self-sufficiency. Celie has always relied on someone for everything, not because she is lazy, but she just didn't know how. Now she has taken something that is usually considered a domestic chore and has turned it into means of independence. Go Celie! If these were real, I would probably buy a pair myself.

I think that this Scrapblog that I made reflects Celie's growth and decisions throughout the course of this section. At the beginnning of the passage, she starts writing to Nettie instead of to God, so this Scrapblog is sort of a visual letter to Nettie.


Nettie begins to have a conflict with Samuel's wife, Corrine. The members of the Olinka tribe think that Adam and Olivia, being Celie's children, look more like Nettie than they do Corrine, and think that Nettie is Samuel's "other wife." Because she has become uncomfortable with the situation, Corrine told Nettie that she can no longer invite Samuel over, let the children call her "Mama Nettie," and share clothes with each other. At first, Nettie and Corrine were like sisters, but now their damaged relationship and Olinka gossip has ruined the friendship between them.

Nettie also learned sickening news from Samuel. Their father, Alphonso, is not their real father. Their real father was a successful farmer, so he purchased a dry-goods store, which did better than the white-owned stores, because he took all of the black business away from them. Their father was lynched, and shortly after his death she gave birth to Nettie. Their mother then married Alphonso, and she continued to give birth to more and more children until the day she died. Samuel also reveals that he knew Alphonso in his pre-preacher days. One night, Alphonso shows up at Samuel's house, and tells them that his wife was unable to take care of their two youngest children (really Celie's chidren). Corrine and Samuel were unable to have children, so they adopted them naming them Olivia and Adam.

Nettie reveals in her last letter in this section that Corrine died from what began as a simple fever. I think that part of what lead to her death was the feeling of resentment and bitterness that she had toward Nettie after she told Corrine and Samuel she was their children's aunts. Corrine becomes convinced that Samuel and Nettie are lying to her and that the two of them knew each other before they agreed to help Nettie. But eventually, Nettie is able to come to terms with Corrine before Corrine dies by stimulating the memory Corrine has of meeting Celie in the fabric store. She forgives Nettie right before she dies.

Jail and Cars and Africa, Oh My!

This section of The Color Purple was better than the last part, especially because Nettie is alive! Celie and Shug Avery found the letters that Nettie had written her in the bottom of Mr. ____'s chest. Nettie explains that when Mr. ____ was walking her off the property, he was making advances on her and she completely blew him off which severly angered him. She said in her letter to Celie, "He said because of what I'd done I'd never hear from you again, and you would never hear from me," (Walker 126). Celie and Shug start reading some of Nettie's letters, but have to stop because Mr. ____ and Shug's husband, Grady, come home from Mr. ____'s driving lesson. They replace the letters, but vow to read more and Celie says to Shug, "How I gon keep from from killing him?" (Walker 144).

I like how the author chose to develop a friendship between Celie and Shug Avery. At first, Shug had nothing nice to say to Celie, and the first time she saw her, she said, "You sure is ugly," (Walker 46). But, they begin to form a relationship after she sings to Celie in Harpo's jukejoint. I think that this is an important part of the novel's progression because Nettie was the only person who ever loved Celie and thought she was someone. But Mr. ____ sent Nettie away and Celie was back on her own. Then Shug Avery came along, and finally someone else thought that Celie was special. In the song, Shug refers to Celie as her "Sister" and sings, "I hope that you think you're something too." Here is the video of Shug singing to Celie that began their friendship:




Most of the book has been devoted to Celie, but now Alice Walker has brought Nettie back into the story through letters that Mr. ____ kept hidden from Celie. After Nettie escaped from Mr. ____, she arrived in town, and someone pointed her in the direction of the Reverend Mr. ____'s house. The Reverend's name is Samuel, his wife's name is Corrine, and they have two adopted children named Olivia and Adam. Although Nettie does not know it yet, the two children are Celie's. They take her in, and soon they leave the United States to become missionaries in Africa. Here is a website that they probably would have visited if they lived in the present: http://www.missionariesofafrica.org/. The group set up a school for the Olinka tribe in which Adam and Olivia, Olivia being the only girl, attend.

The reader can obviously tell by the difference in narration that Nettie is far more intelligent and sophisticated than Celie. For example, her grammar is perfect compared to Celie's and her use of language is much more complex. Even though the Olinka tribe is being oppressed by the white colonists, Nettie can sense the fact that there is oppression in the Olinka community also. Olivia befriends a girl named Tashi and wants her to be able to attend the school also, but the Olinka tribe disagrees. Through this, I think Walker is trying to convey that suffrage is universal, especially oppression in women, because after Tashi's father dies, the persecution of her mother parallels that of Celie. Lastly, I find it interesting that the Olinka tribe doesn't seem to care that slavery occured in the United States. They even sold some of their own people to slavery. Even though it's fictional, I still wonder why they acted that way towards their fellow tribesman.

Dear God

The Color Purple begins with the main character, fourteen year old Celie,'s memory of her father's command that she stays quiet about his abuse of her. He says, "You better not tell nobody but God. It'd kill your mammy," (Walker 1). Celie is the main narrator of the story, and she tells what happens in her life through letters to God. Being a poor African-American woman in the 1930s, Celie has no voice, but she finds one in her letters to God. At the beginning, the main conflict is between Celie, her sister Nettie, and her father because the father sexually abuses Celie, impregnating her twice, and wants to do the same to Nettie, but Celie won't let him. She knows that Nettie is smart and will make something out of herself someday. Her father also gets rid of her two children.

Next thing Celie knows, her father marries her off to a man that she refers to only as Mr. ____, and he treats her the same way that her father did. Celie also has to take care of Mr. ____'s children, who resent her because she is not their mother, especially the oldest one, a boy named Harpo. Nettie runs away from home and stays with Celie, and things are better because Mr. ____ likes Nettie more, so he doesn't beat Celie while she is staying with them. When Nettie refuses Mr. ____'s sexual advances, though, she is forced out and life returns to normal.

Celie manages to befriend Harpo, who confides in her that he got his girlfriend, Sofia, pregnant and he wishes to marry her against her parents' will. Sofia is the exact opposite of Celie; Sofia is broad in body type and outspoken whereas Celie is frail and submissive. Sofia also has an extremely spunky spirit that cannot be subdued. She helps Harpo and Sofia get married and fix up a small shack on the edge of Mr. ____'s property. A conflict between Sofia and Celie develops when Celie tells Harpo that he should beat his wife like Mr. ____ does to her in order to make her more passive.

Shug Avery, Mr. ____'s lover, becomes sick (most likely because of a sexually transmitted disease) and no one will help her. One day, Mr. ____ brings her home in his wagon and tells Celie to take care of her. Celie is fascinated with Shug Avery, but does not express her feelings because she is used to being passive. There is some initial tension between Shug and Celie, because even though she is weak and feverish, Shug's tongue is still sharp as nails and insults Celie almost immediately saying, "You sure is ugly," (Walker 46). Celie doesn't mind, though, because she is fascinated by the sexy nightclub singer. When Shug Avery begins to feel better and is back to her old self, they become friends, but Celie feels a little resentment toward Shug, because Mr. ____ obviously loves her more.

The final piece of drama in this section is once again between Harpo and Sofia. Harpo starts overeating in an attempt to become bigger than Sofia (Harpo is extremely skinny) so he can beat her and put her in her place. All he succeeds in doing is giving himself a potbelly making him look like a fool. Eventually Sofia decides to take her children and move to her sisters's house away from Harpo. He tries not to show any emotion, but does wipe his face with one of the baby's articles of clothes.

I liked how Shug Avery has made Celie's life better. While she is there, Mr. ____ doesn't beat Celie and even orders Mr. ____ around saying, "I don't want to smell no stinking blankety-blank pipe, you hear me, Albert?" (Walker 47). I also like how Shug speaks her mind, unlike Celie, who has become accustomed to having no voice therefore she often doesn't say anything. Shug Avery has a sharp tongue, which I think is part of what makes her attractive in Mr. ____ eyes. I find it slightly ironic that Celie befriends Shug Avery, especially when she is the mother of three of her husband's children.

I predict that the author will bring Nettie back into the story in the next section that I read. Nettie has been gone from Celie's life ever since she left her house, and Celie believes her to be dead. Nettie not being in her life has taken away from Celie's soul leaving her slightly depressed. Nettie is too important a character, to the story line and to Celie, to be completely taken out of the text, so I think that she will eventually return with her own life and her own stories.

The Color Purple Introduction

The Color Purple by Alice Walker is about two African American sisters, Celie and Nettie. The main voice of the story is Celie, who writes letters to God about what is going on in her life. Celie was raped and impregnated by her father, giving birth to two children who are taken away from her almost immediately. Then to give her sister a chance to escape this life, Celie, instead of Nettie is married to a man that she hates. She refuses to name in her letters and refers to him as Mr. _____. Nettie tries to communicate with her sister, but the letters she sends to Celie never reach her. They live in ignorance of each other's situations because they are separated for thirty years feeling as if the other no longer loves them.

Based on the first couple of letters, I feel that this book is something like I have never read before. After being married off to Mr. ____, Celie's life seems like it couldn't get any worse, and she does absolutely nothing to fix it. I predict that Celie will become more outspoken and actually try to stick up for herself instead of letting her husband and father beat her and order her around. Although we haven't heard from Nettie since she ran away, but I predict that since she is so intelligent, Nettie will be able to rise above and make a name for herself. Given the time period, though, I don't think Nettie will be able to attend college, but I believe she will be self sufficient and won't have to depend on a husband like Mr. ____.

Reading Schedule:
1. Pg. 1-73 (3/4)
2. Pg. 74-145 (3/11)
3. 146-221 (3/18)
4. 222-288 (3/25)