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Summary: A potent exploration of spirituality and sexuality
Review: Alice Walker's novel "The Color Purple" has had an interesting "life," as far as books go. It's been the subject of controversy over her portrayal of black men and her use of black vernacular language; it's been adapted by director Steven Spielberg into a motion picture that's inspired its own controversy; it's had a whole other life as a text used in college courses. But, so many years after its original publication, and after all of the accolades and debates, "The Color Purple" still holds its own as a compelling piece of fiction."The Color Purple" is written in the form of letters. It opens with a letter to God from Celie, a rural African-American girl who, as she reveals on the first page, is a victim of sexual abuse. As Celie grows into womanhood, Walker paints a fascinating portrait of the community of people who make up Celie's world. "The Color Purple" is, ultimately, about liberation and redemption. Those who believe that this book attacks black men are wrong. This book attacks violence and abuse, and celebrates those--whether victim or victimizer--who are able to break the cycle of abuse and truly grow as human beings. This novel is bold in its exploration of sexuality--in particular, lesbian sexuality--as a potentially liberating force. And Walker also explores the possibility of an alternative spirituality and alternative family structures to heal those who have been damaged by the racist, sexist paradigms of United States society. "The Color Purple" is also about the power of writing. In her long career, Alice Walker has distinguished herself as a writer of poetry, essays, short fiction, and novels. "The Color Purple" is among the best of her many fine literary achievements, and this novel continues to have a vibrant life of its own.
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Summary: My Thoughts
Review: The Color Purple: The novel The Color Purple is a very interesting book. After reading the first few journal entries that Celie has written to God, the author Alice Walker has the reader hooked. In this novel she uses the characters to show the contrast between the blacks and whites, men and women, and how they were separated in the early years of the 20th century. In this novel the reader is even shown how a woman's husband can be her husband whether she loves him or not, and how he has the capability to keep her from having any contact with her sister for almost her whole life. In this case that is when Celie is not even allowed to receive the letters her sister has been writing her for years, because Mr. ______ is keeping them from her. This novel can be difficult to read at certain points due to the way Alice Walker uses a certain dialect with Celie, and everything isn't grammatically correct. Also the way that she uses proper grammar whenever there is a letter from Nettie, to show how well educated she is, although she's a black woman. The way that the author switches back and forth using the two different ways of speaking in the letters they are writing, it can get confusing. But this makes the book interesting to read, because she (Alice Walker) has incorporated everything very well, it's the way it actually would be, and it keeps the reader hooked, and not wanting to put the book down. Everything in the book is believable, although when trying to make it believable, some parts can be a bit disturbing, such as the scenes between Celie and Shug, and when Celie is describing things to God that happened between her father and her. The events that occur in the book show how Celie can go from being a woman and being put through so many bad things in her life, and towards the end of the book, with everything she's gone through, she has become a strong woman who can now stand up for herself and what she believes in. If you want to know more about what happens to the characters, you'll just have to go get the book yourself and read it, because I would recommend it to anyone. This is one very good book, that expresses some problems with discrimination that we still experience in our society today. It's worth it.
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Summary: The Color Purple
Review: I had to read the book in the English-lessons and it was hard for me to understand the black-english-slang because I am a German student.The story is quite interesting also it seems to me a little bit unbelievable.
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Summary: The Color Purple: By Alice Walker. [Review]
Review: "You better not never tell nobody but God." And that's exactly what Celie did. This riveting account of a woman's life keeps you from not wanting to but the book down. Throughout the whole book you feel what Celie feels, from the pain on the very first page to the joy on the last. Celie goes through her life in this book, from the lowest, hardest times of being wedded to a man she does not love to finding feelings within her that she only thought she could feel for her sister, Nellie. Not only does this story give you the feelings that must have been felt by Celie herself, and give you the feeling that You Know what will happen, but it stores the opposite reality by surprising you with each diary entry; just as life itself does. The whole story preserves the feel of malice by adding the touch of never even revealing the name of the most hated characters. The feel of a real diary is always there as if Celie fears that one of the "Mr. ________'s" will stumble upon her writings. This book was everything But my usual style of text, yet I would recommend this book to Anyone and Everyone; for it is, indeed, a great novel.
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Summary: A great novel
Review: This novel is simply beautiful. Actually, it's not my favorite by Alice Walker - I like Possessing the Secret of Joy even more - but the Color Purple is also a must-read for everyone. I cannot reccomend it highly enough.
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Summary: The Color Purple
Review: This novel is a very interesting and sad kind of novel. This book is about a young African American woman that is fighting for her independance. Alice writes about problems she has faced between her and her husband, and problems between Black and White people. But it is hard to read this novel, because it has a lot of grammatical errors, because the woman how wrote this book named Celie, was not well educated. This story takes place in the South, back then the men would order their wives around. This story is fiction but it still happens to women every where.
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Summary: Worthwhile Reading!
Review: It's a very nice novel and interesting to read it. Alice Walker writes about the problems between the Blacks and the Whites, between men and women. But you always have to know that this story plays at the beginning of the last century! It isn't easy to read this story, Alice Walker writes with a lot of grammatical "mistakes" because the story is told by an uneducated woman named Celie. The story shows how people lived in the South at that time. The man was the boss in the house and the wife had to what he said. But there were a few women who resisted. Walker also shows that the Blacks people are usually not accepted by the Whites. The story is fictional but the themes (Black-White, Man-Woman,...) did really exist and they still exist today! That makes the story so interesting and I recommend to everyone to read it! It is worthwhile reading it!
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Summary: Entrancing
Review: When I first saw the movie, directed by Speilberg, I was taken aback with the beauty of the movie. When I read the book, I believe I truly understood what Alice Walker was trying to explain about her personal philosophy on life through telling the story through the eyes and heart of Celie. In doing so, she also gives a very enlightening historical perspective into the peril of the gold coast of Africa during the pre WWII era, when Africa was victimized by the colinists who came in for business hundreds of years before. Studying African history is one thing, but to hear it discussed as a part of life, living in the colonialist times of the early 20th century is a perspective that, once it is gained, is one that will not be forgotten. I could go on, but instead, I will sum this book up in one word: spellbinding. This is a truly wonderful book, and there are many lessons to be learned when you read this book.
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Summary: Reading the color purple changed my life
Review: Reading 'The Color Purple' has been a enticing experience for me, before this i did not really understand the meaning of discrimination and the power of male dominance. I feel this novel is of excellant standards and feel i can really identify with Celie myself. Being from an ethnic background i did myself experience the power of male dominance and like celie i did not speak up, as for me it became my own normal lifestlye. Now after reading this novel it has encouraged me to speak up in my own rights and has changed my life compleatly. I greatly recommend viewers to read this novel as it may bring hope into your life or maybe just give you an insight of the real harsh life of people fronm ethnic backgrounds.
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Summary: Even better the second time
Review: It's because of this book that most people know Alice Walker. That must be a double edged sword for her, because there is so much more to her than one novel, and it would be a shame to overlook any of them. At the same time, this is a wonderful way to become acquainted with Alice Walker. I first read the book in 1986, right when the movie was peaking. I was 14, and had already experienced "adult" themes in novels..I had read Jean Auel's books a few months earlier. At the time, I was so young that while a lot of the novel didn't go over my head, I didn't appreciate it as much. Half of my life later, almost to the day, I reread the novel again. This time, the experience was that much richer. This is a great novel, and a great tale about self acceptance and healing, and love. The best part is that Celie does not become a beautiful princess at the end, she just stays Celie, and that's the best part (and biggest truth) of all. Read this and enjoy it. It's worth the read.
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