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All through the world, men have at all times been the upper gender since the start. Domestic violence is a vital problem that negatively affects women in the universe nowadays. The novel, The Color Purple involves the narrator Celie, who is a poor black lady and uneducated; Celie gets abused physically by both the husband and father. About 85% of females undergo domestic violence by family or friends. Sadly, domestic violence has had a huge responsibility in families, especially females, and has resulted in a lot of fatalities (Lee, 2020). Alice Walker, together with other female writers such as Toni Cade Bambara, and Gayl Jones, etc. intricate the idea of black revolution and union through elaborating that their ultimate ideals might not be attained in the absence of putting the focus on the association between black women and men and tackling the precise problem concerning black female lives. Violence, specifically on domestic grounds, hinders females’ growth and breaks their objectivity as it puts danger to women’s completeness and the creation of an entire African American nation.
In trailing the existence about one female, Celie, from early years of 1930s to around the middle 1940s, The Color Purple tells the embarrassment of brutality in the design of cruel social, financial and emotional calamity affecting the blacks, particularly females within the South rural in the early 20th century. Celie’s association with the husband and step-father is branded by sexual and psychological harassment in the male-controlled community in U.S. The epistolary type of description spoken to God in addition to the factual reporting tone looks like a stylistic method utilized by Alice to describe the vulnerability magnitude undergone by Celie to the extent of not even having the bravery to converse with her mom or other people the pain she was undergoing in life. The father to Celie is seen a “walking phallus” (Alice, 36) who attempts to get a replacement in her if the mom does not reply to his erotic desires. Thus Celie, only fourteen years old, is raped by the “father” recurrently. The rape’s explicit description makes the readers to completely oppose the hostility of child exploitation: “He never had a kind word to say to me. Just say you gonna do what your mammy would not. First, he put his thing up against my hip and sort of wiggle it around and grab hold my tithes. Then he pushes his thing around my pussy. When that hurt I cry. He starts to choke me saying you better shut up and get used to it.” (Alice, 19).
Similarly tragic is about the heartlessness with which “Pa” grabs Celie’s kids away and later organizes to get her wedded to an age-mate neighbor. Celie’s account of her marital sexual moment’s association with Albert is likewise desensitizing, whereby the conjugal deeds take the rape form. “Mr., come git me to take care of his rotten children. He never ast me nothing about myself. He clam on top of me and f**k and f**k, even when my head bandaged. Nobody ever love me. I say.” (Alice, 109). At a later date, Celie hears “Pa” is really not the genetic dad. However, the seeming incest that unlocks The Color Purple sets the atmosphere of sexual ferocity that pervades the book.
Celie bears a rape cruelty that makes her feel like her physique is scrappy and being controlled by the victimizers. The mixture of mental harassment and immediate bodily assault that Celie is put in on a daily basis leads to her some individuality loss and identity ( ). Her wedding to Mr. __ is seen as the close of ferocity on the side of her dad; however, it is a fresh start of brutality on the end of her spouse, whom she signifies as Mr. The male-controlled society offers the powers to a spouse that he may utilize his spouse however he needs. Celie comprehends the uselessness of her survival with his kids and Albert. Celie surrenders to his bad and agrees on all he does. Being called worthless and ugly mostly by the husband and “Pa”, she helplessly takes in their judgment.
She bears, only wanting to live, and to achieve that, she withdrawals into an emotionless state and severely limits her expressive existence. “It’s all I can do not to cry I make myself wood. I say to myself, Celle, you a tree. That how come I know trees fear man.” (Alice, 23). Celie, in times of severe bodily pain, converts into a “tree,” is an effective instance of “a woman’s” closeness to the inactive sorrow and nature pain (Mahalwar, 2019). In a similar manner, when persons praise her on just how moral she is to Mr. —-” s kids, Celie says, “I be good to them. But I don “t feel anything for them. Patting Harpo back not even like patting a dog. It is more like patting a piece of wood. Not a living tree, but a table, a chifforobe.”
This kind of contrasts with nature propose departure from emotion, dehumanization, a mindful coldness of a person from emotions, a mindful aloofness of a person from environs as an outcome of deficiency of self-esteem and self-worth. That is attested through Celie’s elimination of the words “I am” on the novels the first page. Likewise, her reception of her spouse’s cherished Avery Shug, which leads to a huge deal of mental ferocity on her, is additionally enough proof of the truth that she holds no individuality sense in her own appreciations. Mr. — gets the ill Shug for her treatment and commands Celie to remain in the chamber every time with her. Sofia’s queries concerning her endurance prompt Celie, and she puts out anger concerning every kinds of torment she underwent throughout her lifespan. Celie says that she cannot even recall when she last was mad, “I used to get mad at my mammy because she put a lot of work on me. Then I see how sick she is, I couldn’t stay mad at her. Could not be mad my daddy cause he, my daddy. Bible says Honor father and mother no matter what …. Sometimes Mr. _ get on me pretty hard….. But he, my husband. I shrug my shoulder. This life soon be over. I say. Heaven last all ways.”(Alice, 47). The harassment that she underwent, lead to the absence of direction and purpose in her existence. The lack of determined activity makes an opening in female’s lives. This has been debated by a lot critic, who had stated that with no drive, women misplace their real sense of who they are reason, being the drive is what provides the human outline to one’s existence (Dehghani, 2017). Gender repression is another key aspect functioning in the cruel paternal philosophy in which the father is the governor of the assets in the family, successfully giving him the authorization to disrespect his women. The term “domestic” suggests the feeling of protection, luxury, and the somewhere anyone may feel their own individuality. Though the many kinds of cruel violence such as rape and incest committed inside homes show the way, the associations of daughter, mother, sister, or wife have misplaced their significance for the male gender.
Celie’s search and drive for her self-identity is very lengthy. Her understanding of self-worth and self-identity rises with her acceptance of her body truth and past of her existence. She acquires backing from the ladies like Sofia, Shug, and Nettie that offer spiritual, material, financial and mental funding, whereas she is being exposed to the world by her marriage
. Celie’s realizes her life truth and reality with the assistance of Shug, after which she is conscious of her personality and individuality, studies to fight on her own, and acquire the inner voice skill. This Shug characteristic is a classic one inside the African-American societies that are racial. Nettie is the first individual to put some degree of sureness in Celie, whereas Shug trains her to believe in herself, which is essential for her mental liberty from colonization of Albert’s to her body and mind. Consequently, Alice Walker displays the capability of black females to rise out of direct submission to masculine oppression and authority to a situation of becoming an independent lady.
Alice Walker notes that domestic violence is dedicated to the wholeness and survival of a whole people, both female and male, by challenging oppressive powers. It’s seen that Celie studies about her body’s mystery, how to get economic liberty by permitting victimization and abuse from patriarch household. She studies from Nettie that for existence, struggle and resistance are required, although she is unaware of the procedure to use. She assumes contesting back may lead to issues, thus succumbs to masculine subjugation and authority to husband and father. Alice Walker confirms that the main to completeness is forgiveness. Celie forgives herself and her husband after the bad acts done to her.
Conclusion
The main themes of The Color Purple is to increase consciousness of the way black women face domestic violence, not just by being victimized for their skin color moreover by being mistreated by the males in their society. Women of color are and were victims of all types of violence, comprising of sexual violence in many places. In a male -conquered society, females find strength, joy, liberty away from harassment, and autonomy only if they back up each other. Alice walker forms women’s societal empowerment, a key focus of her book: as Celie’s tight link with Shug allows Celie to go free from harassment and grow a self-sense. Celie progressively recognizes that the culture of patriarchy that she underwent in the South is offensive to all women. Though, Shug teaches her that the ladies may be equivalent to males in knowledge, power, and in issues of finance and love. At the novel’s conclusion, Celie goes back to stay in Georgia; Celie is not prey of suffering and violence any longer, but a capable, Self-confident lady that understands she is independent and self-sufficient.
Works Cited
Dehghani, Mehdi. “Cultural imperialism and identity in Alice Walker’s Possessing the Secret of Joy.” The 14th International Culture & Power Conference: Identity and Identification, Cuenca, 22 a 24 de marzo de 2010. Ediciones de la Universidad de Castilla-La Mancha, 2017.
Lee, Toni. “Sexual Violence Against the Outsiders of Society in The Round House, Bitter in the Mouth, and The Color Purple.” (2020).
Mahalwar, Ms Gauri. “Human Emotions portrays “Violence” with reference to Alice Walker’s the Color Purple.” Lucknow, India 01 st September, 2019 (2019).
Walker, A (1982). The Color Purple. New York: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.