List po przeczytaniu "The color purple" by Alice Walker

1 North Oak Dr.
North Heaven
N.Y 11867
Monday 11th June 2002
Dear Maggie,

Thanks very much for your letter. It was lovely to hear from you. I’m glad you have found a new passion: books. I think you will find my letter quite interesting then.

I read a really fascinating book couple weeks ago. I t was Alice Walker’s novel “The Color Purple”. It tells a story of Celie, a Black woman in the South of the U.S.A. Celie writes letters to God in which she tells about her life—her roles as daughter, wife, sister, and mother. In the course of the story, Celie meets a series of other Black women who shape her life: Nettie, Celie’s sister, who becomes a missionary teacher in Africa; Shug Avery, the Blues singer her husband Mr.___ is in love with, and who becomes Celie’s salvation; Sofia, the strong-willed daughter-in-law whose strength and courage inspire Celie; and Squeak, who goes through awakenings of her own. Throughout the story, though, Celie is in the center of this community of women, the one who knows how to survive.

It is remarkable novel, because it is written entirely in the form of letters. Each letter gives the reader greater insight into Celie’s life, and serves as her way of communicating with the world. Thus the reader can track Celie’s growth and maturity through the letters.

Walker uses a lot of symbols and concepts, like, for example, the symbol of color purple. It exemplifies the endless possibilities available to Celie and other Black women if they stand up for their rights. It is the color of pain and bruises. Celie has them. Her whole life is a test of pain after another. Purple is also the color of royalty. All serve Mr.___. Royalty and revolution go hand-to-hand and Celie rebels against her husband.

Celie is the protagonist and the narrator of the story. Though at first she is submissive to the abusive men around her, due to the positive influence of strong women around her, she grow into a strong, independent Black women who stands up for herself. Celie is a dynamic character and changes from an insecure character to a secure one. She learns to love and fights for the things she wants unlike she did in the beginning of the book. Most importantly, she fights back against her oppression by Mr.___.

Celie exerts influence on Mr.___. In the beginning he is a horrible husband who constantly beats Celie and is responsible for her low self-esteem and grim outlook on life. Celie leaves him, when she gets up the courage to do it. That changed him, and when Celie returns she finds out they can communicate on the same level. We are shown that they sew together; it exemplifies that he has matured and is able to get past Celie’s outer ugliness and see her inner beautiness. Celie doesn’t call her husband Mr.___ anymore, because she learned that his name is Albert. This shows how she is starting to get together with him, and is starting to recognize him as a human being.

My favorite part is when there is a large family gathering at Odessa’s house. Celie announces that she is leaving Mr.____, and coming with Shug to Memphis. Albert says that Celie will leave over his dead body, at which point Celie seems inclined to make his words come true. When Albert reaches to slap Celie, she sticks her fork into his hand and yells at him for the way he kept Nettie’s letter a secret for so long. Albert can only manage to stutter a small protest. Then Squeak speaks up and tells Celie’s stepson—Harpo, that she is leaving as well. Harpo is against her leaving, but she tells him she is going to start singing and there is nothing he can do about it. I like this part, because it is a double victory of women. For now on the whole novel is going to change, for better of course.

This novel is worth reading, because it is an example of a “woman’s novel.” This means not just it is about women and was written by a woman, but that it carries on an identified tradition of women’s writing, in terms of narrative strategies, themes addressed, and voice. Like many other novels devoted to the mistreatment of Blacks and Black women especially, “The Color Purple” is dedicated to Black women’s right. It is interesting that most of narrative in Alice Walker’s novel is derived from her own personal experience, growing up in the rural South as an uneducated and abused child. The goal of this book is to inspire and motivate Black women to stand up for their rights and, like Celie, undergo an inner transformation, from submissive, abused to an unabashedly confident and independent Black women, and even businesswomen.

There is one but: that novel is written in a “Black” language, so it is tough to read. Bit I think you, Maggie, won’t have any problems. If I read it—you will too. You can find that novel almost brutal, because you are a very sensitive girl. I’m telling you that, because there are some rough scenes, like rapes, and if you would like to read that novel, remember, I warned you about it.

I recommend that novel, because I found it very interesting. I met a new world for me: world of Black people. That novel can inspire not only Black, but also all the abused women of the world. “The Color Purple” gave me also an image of God from other view than the traditional, Christian, “White-men’s” position. I like that interpretation of God that is everywhere: in the nature, stars and people.

Well, no more news for the moment, but I will write as soon as I receive a letter from you. I hope you will read that book. Maybe you will recommend an interesting book to me.

Love
Anna