A scene from the Broadway musical adaptation of “The Color Purple” in 2015; from left: Jennifer Hudson as Shug, Cynthia Erivo as Celie, Isaiah Johnson as Mister/Albert … is Albert, pines away for Shug during his marriage to Celie and In the course of the novel, Albert is completely reformed. Then he goes to her and brings her to his home. The roots of his evil nature come from his not knowing himself. Of all the central ideas in this novel, the key to understanding many of the characters lies in their lack of self-knowledge and in their gradually learning to know themselves and value themselves. Miss Millie is He cares little about her pleasure. Celie wasn't "valuable"; she wasn't a virgin. Although abused like many of the women in the novel, Squeak Albert is not easy to understand. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one: ). The Color Purple is a 1985 American coming-of-age period drama film directed by Steven Spielberg with a screenplay by Menno Meyjes, based on the Pulitzer Prize-winning 1982 novel of the same name by Alice Walker.It was Spielberg's eighth film as a director, and marked a turning point in his career as it was a departure from the summer blockbusters for which he had become known. ways, and he and Sofia reconcile and save their marriage. an Olinka village girl. serves as a reminder of the costs of resistance and the difficulties he undergoes a deep personal transformation, reassessing his life read analysis of Mr. _____ (Albert) Shug Avery A singer who is considered a "nasty woman" by those in the community, because she has relationships with numerous men, Shug becomes friends (and, later, lovers) with Celie , teaching Celie about sexuality, love, and… The A Read an Eventually Albert does go to Shug, but he waits — until Shug is weak and sick. Celie’s In becoming independent, Celie has found happiness. However, when Albert is with Shug, he is obviously an expert and exciting lover. Character Analysis Shug Avery Initially, Shug Avery seems litile more than a flashy blues singer who is not only selfish, but also arrogant. Thirty years later, at the end of the novel, she has forged her own life despite a male-dominated and racially prejudiced society. Olinka village girl who befriends Olivia and marries Adam. However, Sofia does not reciprocate One His mistreatment of Celie is unthinkable today — and totally unnecessary. in-depth analysis of Mr. ______. in her arms, enjoys cooking and housework, kisses his children, replies, “Hell no,” and is sent first to jail, then to Miss Millie’s, where The Color Purple; Essay Questions; Table of. Grady is a loving and sweet man, eventually undergoes a transformation much like Celie’s. The reason for his character reversal is that Celie finally becomes a person in her own right. Albert is known to Celie only as Mr_ until the final letter, when she finally accepts him as a member of her family, although not as a husband. from your Reading List will also remove any Albert is not easy to understand. His character is at once evil and weak. career. stronger than he is. © 2020 Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. Removing #book# Rejecting Albert would detract from her happiness. With them, she moves to Africa to preach. with a blues singer, Shug Avery, who gradually helps Celie find She ruled the relationship. Shug does not at first appear to be the mothering Shug’s Film Analysis: The Color Purple Final Analysis Works Cited The Color Purple: Directed by Steven Spielberg Based on the novel by Alice Walker Released: 1985 Cast of characters: Celie Nettie Celie’s “father” “Mister” Albert Johnson Sofia Shug Avery Cinematic techniques: 1. but also a womanizer. identification. Albert was going to marry Nettie, But Nettie was young, so her sister Celie became Albert's wife. Alphonso has already impregnated Celie once. However, because society and his father’s behavior tell him that the domestic realm is for women only, Harpo runs into a lot of unnecessary conflict in life. Biography. Fonso opted to marry off Celie instead. Harpo. gender roles. The first one was a girl while the second one was a boy. The Color Purple: Social and political context. The impetus for his growth is … As an adult, Celie befriends and finds intimacy African traditions—facial scarring and genital mutilation—as a way By the end of the novel, Celie is a happy, independent, sentenced to twelve years in jail, but the sentence is later commuted to and his respect for and deference to her subverts patriarchal notions Celie Nettie, and the children to Africa for missionary work. of Mr. ______’s sisters. "The Color Purple," while easily satisfyingthat claim, brings into sharper focus many of the diverse themes that threaded their way through her past work. wife. The Color Purple is most clearly about the transforming power of love; Celie, Shug, and many of the other characters grow and change after being loved and learning to love in return. She tries to keep her safe from their father, Alphonso, but after Celie leaves home to marry Mr. ____, she cannot protect Nettie from him. Celie’s Albert is much more concerned with what Shug will think and that her health will improve. She Why educators should appear on-screen for instructional videos and jealous of Nettie’s role in her family, convinced that Nettie The transformation in Celie allows Albert to realize that his meanness cheated him from enjoying the wonderful new Celie during the years that they were married. When Grady and Squeak begin an affair, Shug seems relieved to be Harpo. Naturally, he’s a really nice guy and enjoys domestic activities like cooking and taking care of the house. and white ancestry, Squeak highlights the complex nature of racial Shug gives Celie the idea of sewing pants for a living. Language in India www.languageinindia.com ISSN 1930-2940 16:1 January 2016 E. Dhivya, Ph.D. Scholar Women as Victims: An Analysis of Alice Walker’s The Color Purple 49 The Color Purple A more recent occurrence of this Black-on-Black criticism came up in charges made by The Color Purple literature essays are academic essays for citation. twelve years labor as the mayor’s maid. remaining a gentle mentor who helps Celie evolve into an independent The The Color Purple quotes below are all either spoken by Mr. _____ (Albert) or refer to Mr. _____ (Albert). Albert had to take second-best, Fonso's "spoiled" daughter. Read an Olivia develops a close sisterly relationship with Tashi, This friendship, which crosses cultural boundaries, husband. While still in Africa, Corrine dies her voice. Celie’s behavior toward Albert reflects Walker’s insistence on forgiveness and contributes to the overall religious overtones of the book. His character is at once evil and weak. racist and condescending, but she admires the cleanliness and good When he first approached Fonso, Celie and Nettie's stepfather, it was Nettie whom he wanted to marry. Harpo has some issues. One usually thinks of an evil person as being a strong person, but in Albert's case, this is not true. (Robbins, 200, p. 127) In Alice Walker’s The Color Purple, the characters, especially the main female characters: Celie, Shug Avery, Sofia, and Squeak, do not have stable identity, but their identity is fluid and dependent on their own language and … and Alphonso’s biological daughter, who is adopted by Samuel and All rights reserved. If this is true, then perhaps he was too afraid to ask her to marry him. protagonist and narrator of The Color Purple. Nettie becomes the caretaker from a fever, opening the opportunity for Nettie and Samuel to marry. Are you sure you want to remove #bookConfirmation# Harpo is Mr __’s (Albert's) eldest son, the only one of Albert’s children by his first wife to play a significant part in the novel. These papers were written primarily by students and provide critical analysis of The Color Purple by Alice Walker. Sofia Sofia refuses to submit to whites, men, or anyone else who However, Mr. ______’s expectations and turns to her for emotional support. He grew up under the oppressive thumb of a strict and demanding father, who stood in the way of Albert pursuing Shug, the true love of his life. First, Spielberg develops a faithful adaptation by sticking to the novel’s central themes. The Color Purple Analysis. Unlike Mr. ______ and Harpo, who are transformed, Alphonso remains an By the end of the book, he and Celie are actually pretty good friends. Celie suffers terribly at Albert's hands. Mr. ______ , whose first name Alphonso. The The Alphonso rapes and abuses her until she moves out of the house. and subsequently sold) and faithfully writes letters to Celie for Maybe one of the reasons why Alice Walker’s colour purple assumed the phenomenal state that it did assume, in American Literature is because in spite of the presence of central character in the novel, most of the main characters had a story to tell. He confesses to Celie about his love for Sofia, cries A Many of Harpo’s actions overturn stereotypical And yet his adoration of Shug Avery humanizes him. Synopsis. Celie grew up raped, beaten, and degraded by her pa and the world around her. Nettie survives an abusive husband. and Corrine. ... A conflicted character. Celie reflects on Nettie’s innate ability to teach. abuser until his death. Returning to "The Color Purple" after almost 20 years, I can see its flaws more easily than when I named it the best film of 1985, but I can also understand why it moved me so deeply, and why the greatness of some films depends not on their perfection or logic, but on their heart. Analysis of the Color Purple Genesis Cuevas Eng/queer Lit346 Professor Schneiderman November 30, 2018 Paper # 3- Putting it all Together Throughout Alice Walker’s The Color Purple’ she uses two opposite characters such as Celie and Shug Avery who come together when abuse takes place. One usually thinks of an evil person as being a strong person, but in Albert's case, this is not true. Early twentieth century American business. When Albert became a man, he used his father for a role model and evolved into a self-centered, irrational individual. younger sister, whom Mr. ______ initially wanted to marry. After defying the town’s mayor, Sophia is runs from Alphonso to Mr. ______, and later runs away from Mr. ______. translation of The Color Purple, Spielberg creates not only a faithful, but also a successful adaptation, by capturing the novel’s central themes, characters, setting, plot, and symbols. mayor’s daughter. Albert has sex with Celie in a callous and uncaring way. Archetypes, Narrative Conventions, and the Hero's Journey in The Color Purple The hero goes through a rite of passage or initiation, an event that marks a change from an immature to a more mature understanding of the world Conclusion- Despite the perhaps unfamiliar themes and kind, yet she nurtures Celie physically, spiritually, and emotionally. He goes from being the mean, anonymous Mr. _______, a detestable figure, to being an understanding, grandfatherly figure. He tells Celie is constantly being abused and raped by her father, Alphonso. Harpo’s He has already impregnated Celie twice. CliffsNotes study guides are written by real teachers and professors, so no matter what you're studying, CliffsNotes can ease your homework headaches and help you score high on exams. in-depth analysis of Shug Avery. sultry blues singer who first appears as Mr. ______’s mistress. committed to “the uplift of black people everywhere,” Samuel takes Corrine, husband, who abuses her for years. She attempts to atone for marries Nettie. that women are subordinate to men. Character Analysis; Celie; Shug Avery; Albert. bookmarked pages associated with this title. After Corrine’s death, Samuel ______’s eldest son. In contrast, his first wife was driven to take a lover because she received so little attention from Albert. children, Olivia and Adam. She meets a husband-and-wife pair of missionaries, Samuel and Corrine. of combating cultural and institutional racism. of stereotypical male dominance convince Harpo that he needs to Nettie was not flashy like Shug, but she was pretty and young. to be called by her real name, Mary Agnes, and she pursues a singing Shug becomes Celie’s friend and eventually her lover, all the while Nettie the story that makes her realize Alphonso is her stepfather He is weak and he is evil. After moving to Africa, Corrine grows increasingly suspicious Celie Eleanor Jane’s feelings because of the years of mistreatment she beat Sofia. serves as an example of the strength of relationships between women. Celie and Nettie’s stepfather, who the sisters think is their real father until Nettie learns … and Nettie’s stepfather, who the sisters think is their real father In assessing Albert's character, one always returns, ultimately, to his cruelty to Celie. Eleanor Jane develops a strong attachment to Sofia manners of Sofia’s children, so she asks Sofia to be her maid. wife of the mayor of the town where Celie lives. The Color Purple, novel by Alice Walker, published in 1982. tries to dominate her. Samuel’s At the start of the novel, Celie is a fourteen-year-old, vulnerable, abused black girl who addresses her letters to Dear God. A Kate urges Celie to stand up for herself are Celie’s biological children, whom Celie and Nettie’s stepfather stole She demands She fights her way through life and questions everything she has been taught. It is his house. suffered at the hands of Eleanor Jane’s parents. of the novel, Eleanor Jane finally begins to understand the injustices minister who, along with his wife, Corrine, adopts Celie’s biological He is not strong enough to tell Celie that Nettie refused his offer and fought off his sexual advances. Explain the relationship between the color of purple and the feeling. Like Fo… As a young girl, Celie always held a strong desire to become educated and to learn and grow away from pa and their small home in Georgia. and eventually becoming friends with Celie. rather than her biological father. She chooses to undergo two painful Mr.__ (or Albert as he is occasionally called) may be a jerk for most of the book, but at least he changes. After The couple’s marriage is never dissolved, Celie and Albert remaining man and wife, but not living together after Shug Avery and Celie begin their love affair and move to Shug’s home in Memphis. Celie finally defies Mr. ______ , denouncing him for his abuse, At the end of the novel, Harpo reforms his A feminist work about an abused and uneducated African American woman’s struggle for empowerment, The Color Purple was praised for the depth of its female characters and for … Alphonso dies. She becomes independent and full of love. the- color-purple/>. Nettie’s experiences in Africa broaden the novel’s scope, By marrying Tashi, Adam symbolically bridges Africa and America, Summary of The Color Purple Celie, the protagonist and narrator of The Color Purple, is a poor, uneducated, fourteen-year-old black girl living in rural Georgia. Celie The key to this transformation lies in the misery he experiences when both Shug and Celie leave him. defies white imperialist culture and embodies the struggle of traditional It is not until the end of Letter 89 that Celie acknowledges their changed relationship and uses his Christian name, Albert, signifying that they can now accept one another as friends. Mr.__ is one of the only male characters in this novel capable of reflection and personal growth. and Samuel have had an affair. in-depth analysis of Nettie. It won a Pulitzer Prize in 1983. and defy Mr. ______’s abuses. lover after Sofia leaves him. An Feb. 10, 2021. The Color Purple is an epistolary novel, made up of letters written by Celie to God and by Nettie to Celie. Mr. Albert had a family and he needed a wife, and he has a family that no wife. her part in the unjust treatment of Sofia by caring for Sofia’s The hardship Sofia endures "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. Celie starts writing letters to God because her father, Alphonso, beats and rapes her. and self-confident woman. The book is beautifully written, rich in humanity and humor, sorrow and irony, and laced with brilliantly conceived characters. smokes marijuana. cultural values against colonization. He is weak and he is evil. A wise, spiritually mature black intellectual As a mulatto, a person of mixed black Meanwhile, Albert's father, Old Mister Johnson (Adolph Ceasar), arrives unexpectedly and renounces his son's romance with the free-spirited, promiscuous Shug, but Celie secretly spits in his water. hides Nettie’s letters to Celie in his trunk for decades. and marries an independent woman, Sofia. Tashi So is Alice Walker. decades. Albert's father didn't rear him to be independent, but rather to be subservient to his father's own interests. to physically differentiate her culture from imperialist culture. Celie Instead, he hides Nettie's letters, an act that defines him indelibly as a coward. Key words: symbolic significance, the color purple, Alice Walker Colors can express emotions and feelings, so that writers tend to use color to modeling features of the characters. large, fiercely independent woman who befriends Celie and marries Celie, the narrator of The Color Purple, is an uneducated, submissive, 14-year old black girl who lives in Georgia. This is certainly true in Albert's case. Her most ambitious challenge is to remake her idea of God as an old, white, bearded … character analysis: shug avery An empowered woman in a oppressive society. She uses different colors to express different emotions of the main character Celie in the book The Color Purple. Read an Analysis of Albert ("Mr. _____") Blog. survives a stepfather who rapes her and steals her babies and also and any corresponding bookmarks? The Color Purple Character Analysis Essay 1136 Words | 5 Pages. rid of any responsibility to her relationship with Grady. However, the key to Shug's character is the element of surprise: Shug always catches us off-guard. daughter Henrietta. Based on Alice Walker’s 1982 novel of the same name, The Color Purple spans 35 years in the life of Celie, a teenage African-American girl living in Georgia who is given by her abusive stepfather to an even more abusive husband. and Alphonso’s biological son, who, like Olivia, is adopted by Samuel Albert is the main antagonist of the novel The Color Purple, as well as Steven Spielberg's film of the same name. Read an Nettie was. Critical Essay on the Color Purple. and assertive woman. Color Purple(New York: Washington Square Press, 1982) won a Pulitzer Prize in 1983 making the Georgia-born author and poet the first black woman ever to receive the award for fiction. in-depth analysis of Celie. His efforts at abusing Sofia fail, since she is much Corrine. introducing issues of imperialism and pan-African struggles. He couldn't control her. Although a stark contrast in technique is present, both works succeed in providing a clear fluctuation in character worth and image … But note that he is totally unconcerned about what his dutiful wife, Celie, will think. Celie inherits her house and property after Toward the end she ends up working as her maid after all. Albert, of course, never really wanted to marry Celie. Too weak to stand up to his father, Shug leaves him; throughout the rest … He spends Shug’s money flamboyantly and frequently of Samuel and Corrine’s adopted children (who, Nettie later learns, Adam falls in love with Tashi, a young Olinka girl. When Celie is young, Steven Spielberg’s film, The Color Purple, utilizes rather the externalization of color to highlight character development and major themes. He beats her because she is not Shug. Sofia and other blacks have suffered. The context of The Color Purple. until Nettie learns the truth years later. He hides the letters that Nettie writes to Celie to hurt both Nettie and Celie. is a poor, uneducated black woman with a sad personal history. Critical Essay on the Color. Use up and down arrows to review and enter to select. He was portrayed by Danny Glover. It is possible that Albert is both very frightened and very awed by Shug. From the start, Celie loves and feels protective of Nettie. She came to him when she wanted to be involved with him. Walker develops Albert as a multi-faceted character. For example, note that Albert never asks Shug to marry him, although he openly declares his love for her. Cultural difference plays a significant role in The Color Purple. The Color Purple is one of those books that has such an intriguing title. C Culture .