1313221 Angela Melanie Rego- Celie's Search For Identity In 'The Colour Purple' By Alice Walker

Angela Melanie Rego

1313221

II PSEnglish

Submitted to: Professor Arya Aiyappan
CIA 3- American Literature

Celie's Search For Identity In 'The Colour Purple' By Alice Walker

                        The phenomenal growth of Alice Walker’s protagonist, Celie, in her book “The Color Purple” has served to become a treatise for all women subject to brutal violence; whether emotional, physical or verbal. Celie shows that it is possible to break out of the cycle of oppression, free your identity and as Shug puts it, ‘get on your feet’ (Walker 191). This essay traces Celie’s metamorphosis into an individual leading a healthy emotional life by analyzing her relationship with Shug Avery and events that compel her to emote.

With the death of her biological father at the age of two, Celie’s childhood is spent in a state of constant despair and overwhelming torture. In a single day, Celie experiences catastrophic losses. She loses a caring father and a mother who sinks into psychological depression. She also loses an environment to nurture and grow safely as her mother is no longer able to provide her with love or for that matter, with the basic need of food. “her [Celie’s mother’s] mind was never the same.... she kept waiting for her husband to finish the meal she’d cooked for him and go to the fields himself... she and her small children grubbed around in the yard as best as they could.” (Walker 158). Celie receives no respite after her mother remarries. Her barbaric step-father repeatedly rapes her as a substitute for her mother. Her mother’s mental health does not improve either. Under such conditions, Celie’s developmental growth stagnates. She can no longer express emotions and this becomes her defense mechanism against the abuse she receives from her step father and then later on from Mr.___, the man she is forced to marry. Unable to feel “nothing at all” (Walker 40), Celie becomes like wood, silently bearing her trauma.

From such a state, Celie gradually learns to emote, primarily through female bonding and then later on with Shug’s help, develops a self identity. When Kate, Mr. ___’s sister, gives Celie her first dress, Celie cannot express her gratitude but does, for the first time, feel it. Further on, she gives a much stronger reaction of jealousy when she sees Sophie happily married to Harpo. In addition, she feels shame and remorse for telling Harpo to beat Sophie.

With the arrival of Shug, Celie’s notion of ‘self’ begins to manifest. She starts noticing her appearance and is so beside herself because of her inability to look good. Celie also shows anger by spitting into Old Mr.___’s glass of water when he taunts Shug. When Shug reciprocates Celie’s affection, there is a steady surge in Celie’s once dormant developmental processes. “Miss Celie”, the new name Shug gives her, further empowers Celie by strengthening the bond between the two. She can now see the difference between herself and others and so, is able to tell Shug that Mr.___ beats her.

By insuring that Celie is no longer abused, Shug provides Celie with a safe environment to grow. Once Celie learns to ‘push her button’ from Shug, Celie, for the first time, experiences sexual pleasure; something foreign to her, as apart from being a victim of rape, Mr.__ never sought to fulfil her sexual needs. Moreover, under this safe haven, Celie is finally able to articulate her suffering and experience a catharsis of emotions. This frees Celie’s traumatized mind and destroyed emotional self.

Celie’s final catalyst to break away from the thumb of oppression is Nettie. On finding out that Mr.___ intercepted Nettie’s letters, Celie’s rage pushes her constantly to pick up a razor and kill him. Again, Shug helps Celie to mature by pacifying her anger and placing “A needle and not a razor in my [Celie’s] hand” (Walker 132). Nettie’s letters continue to educate her with accounts on New York, England and Africa. When Celie learns from Nettie that “Pa is not our pa!” (Walker 159), she is able to question her strongest belief which is God. This pushes Celie to retaliate against Mr.___ and leave him despite the conditioning she received, religiously and socially, to place her husband above all else.

Celie achieves economic independence when Shug furnishes her with the opportunity to sew pants. She sews pants not only for money but also out of passion. From having nothing but a cow given to Mr.___ as dowry, Celie has her own business and a house to her name. This economic independence stands as a marker to the remarkable change she undergoes in her identity.

Celie’s final step to forming her personality is when she is able to obtain closure. From hating Mr.___, she forgives him and moves on to becoming friends with him. Her ability to place Shug’s interests before hers and stating “I be so calm” (Walker 257) at the end of the novel shows that Celie finally obtains this closure and develops her self identity.

Works Cited

1.      Proudfit, Charles L. “Celie's Search for Identity: A Psychoanalytic Developmental Reading of Alice Walker's "The Color Purple".” Contemporary Literature 32.1 (1991): 12-37.

2.      Walker, Alice. The Color Purple. London: Phoenix, 2004.