NATURAL ELEMENTS IN THE NOVEL

NATURAL ELEMENTS IN THE NOVEL

CHRISTINA  MANUEL – 1313224

Class : 2 BA PSEnglish 

                        Alice Walker’s The color Purple is an epistolary novel , which has many themes such as racial discrimination , sexual discrimination , gender inequality , internalized oppression , slavery , ignorance , role of education etc. . Jim Crow Laws suffocated Alice and she was denied a peaceful life, which is also reflected in her novel. The color Purple is on one hand the story of pain and triumph .On the other hand it is the allegory of forgiveness and reconciliation. It is the story of a group of people, how they learn to live, to love, to celebrate life to resist, to be happy, fulfilled, truthful and free. The color Purple is a novel where the shift to a brighter part of life from a darker past can be seen clearly. The story is set in a rural area  . Walker believes firmly in the ability of people to change and grow civil war movement .

                           The color Purple includes a lot of natural elements , which we can see form the very one line where Shug says , “My first step from the old white man was trees .Then air .Then birds .Then other people .But one day when I was sitting quite and feeling like a motherless child , which I was it come to me :that feeling of being part of everything , not separate at all .I knew that if I cut a tree my hand would bleed (pg:178)” . The novel is closely attached to the Nature and it shows how they get inspired and get solutions from the Nature .

                           While reading the novel , we come across the topic Animism , where those African tribal people worship to the roof leaves for rain and protection . The tree symbolism refers to this animistic view of the Olinka tribes , where they find the inhabitation of spirit in the roof leaf .Trees are given much importance in the novel where we can find quotes like “She look so stylish it look like the trees all around stand up for a better look (pg:50)” . Alice Walker explores the concept of God in her novel , when she speak about the African belief , that makes it possible to view all creature as living , as being inhabited by spirit .In existential terms , these are similar to essence .The major conflict becomes the struggle between an everything-ness and a nothingness , which is between optimism and chaos . The line “They wrapped the body in bark cloth and buried under a big fig tree in the forest” (pg :150) also shows us the image of the return to God .

                          The flower symbolism in walker’s work stem from her childhood memories of her mother’s talent for raising flowers , for creating beauty out of poverty .Towards the end of the novel , when cielie returns to her ‘ pa’ , we can see a bright situation , the spring , with lots of flowers such as , lilies , jonquils , roses and flowering trees . We can also see that Shug is being viewed as a big rose. All these clearly shows that flowers represents the peaceful and hopeful life . It provides a welcome road to reasoning and  encounter with truth . Flowers are sweet and fragrant , likewise here , the flowers bring in life and spirit to the novel . We can also see one line which says “ There is a fashion in Harlem for girls to wear garlands of flowers in their hair” (pg:121) which glorifies flowers as a symbol of identity and greatness .

                         Ocean is an another element which is used a lot . “And the Ocean ! Celie , more water than you can imagine in one place “ (pg:123) . This line shows how much ignorant and narrow minded were the Native Americans  . On the other hand we can say that water purifies everyone and everything by dirtying itself , which is explained here .  “I tore them into little pieces and dropped them into the water (pg:117)” .While analysing this line , we can say that , Nettie calls the miseries around her as ocean , into which the letter also belongs now . On the other hand we can say that , ocean is the part of nature which take can take her to a destination . And the letter being part of it now , is one of her another destination .

                    Again we can see the usage of words such as ‘woods’ and the ‘forest’ , which represents the evil or dark part of life . The life which includes uncertainty and chaos and  preventions and chains . The line “ And started to kiss me and drag me back in the woods (pg:114)” can be viewed in the light of American Civil War , where the native Americans strived to put an end to the  legal racial segregation . While comparing , we can see that even Native Americans were tempted by the capitalists or the rulers to which they turned their back . We can also see the destruction of forest and the urbanization which on a contradictory view shows how the Native Americans and their culture has been treated .At the same time , we can also see Celie calling herself a piece of wood , without emotions and feelings , but something which has spirit within. 

                        We can also see that the songs are also being symbolized here . This shows how the silenced women got her voices and started revolted against male dominance. The line “ As tired as they are , they sing” (pg:127) shows how important music is to them . That their only entertainment or way of releasing their stress is through singing . And they sung mostly during the field works , which can be considered as a prayer to the God or as a way to let their emotions flow out .

                       We can also find certain terms like ‘bugs’ and ‘creatures’ (pg:127) though it bites her , she still continue writing the letter and explains about even that bug in her letter . This can be viewed as a mutual understanding between every atoms in the American soil . It can be also viewed as the hazards she has to go through , probably the racial discriminations and slavery .

                      “Mosquito netting. Nails .Hammer and saw and pick - axe .Oil and Lamps” (pg:134) , this line which tells about the essential things given to the missionaries shows the ethnic life style lead by the native Americans . It includes Oil and Lamps which can be viewed as their quest for knowledge . Their main way of living by farming is also important , because , it is the way through which women are empowered . 

                                                  

References

1) Harris Abrams, Patricia (1985) "The Gift of Loneliness: Alice Walker's The Color Purple," Language Arts Journal of Michigan: Vol. 1: Iss.2 ,Article 8 .

2)Walker , Alice (1983) “The color Purple”

3) Pifer, Lynn; Slusser, Tricia  “Looking at the back of your head ; Mirroring scenes in Alice Walker’s The color purple and possessing the secret of joy” MELUS;Winter98, Vol. 23 Issue 4

4)" Alice Walker Biography" (2014) www.womenshistory.about.com

5)Tapia,Elena (2003) "Symmetry as conceptual Metaphor in Walker's The color Purple " University of Murcia :IJES Vol. 3