The Color Purple
"This life soon be over, I say. Heaven last all ways." These words, spoken by the main character Celie, show her view of life. The novel The Color Purple depicts the life of an African American girl growing up during the early nineteen hundreds. It shows the hard ships and happiness that she experienced, while portraying her ideas of how to live life through letters she wrote to god. Celie started writing these letters at an age of fourteen. Growing up she had a rough childhood. Her mother died when she first started writing her letters and this led to her father turning to her for sexual gratification. Her father impregnated her twice and told her that he killed her children, when in actuality they were sent to live with a priest and his wife. Celie had no knowledge of her children's whereabouts until later in her life. While growing up, Celie loved her sister Nettie more than anything else. When Celie turned twenty she was married to Mr. _____. She went to live with him and raised his children. Mr._____ sent Nettie away and she found refuge with the very same priest that raised her sister's children. Celie continues to write in her letters to god about how Mr._____ treats her and how his children treat her.
Besides love and family, people also need to believe in a higher being like god. Through about half of The Color Purple Celie wrote her letters to god. She felt closer to god if she wrote to him. Everything in the story could be tied together with the characters' beliefs in god and religion. Celie believed in god and wrote to him. She saw him as an old man with a gray beard towering in the sky. Shug did not have much faith but she believed that god took the form of space or of an everyday object. Nettie went all the way to Africa in the name of god. As a missionary she educated others about her beliefs in her god and the bible. All three of these characters believed in something, and that belief almost inspired them to live. At one point in time, Celie lost that faith she had in god. She stopped writing her letters to him and started writing to Nettie. She could not be whole again until she started believing in god, which eventually happened. Through this story, the reader can see the different perspectives of religion. To understand one's own ideas they may need to understand someone else's. This novel opens the door to learning about others and respecting those beliefs. While reading a great story, someone could also learn about the value of love and family, they could learn to live life by one's own standards, and learn that religion plays an important role in one's life. Overall this book could easily belong on a classic reading list. Along with a different style of writing, this book covered ideas that people do not often stop to think about. That bond with family and the love they give helps to live life completely and to love others the same way. The book illustrates that people should set goals and values and to live by them. People should follow their dreams and someday they will achieve that happiness that everyone searches for. A belief in religion almost give
Some common words found in the essay are:
Nettie Africa, African American, Nettie Celie, Characters Celie, Shug Celie, Harpo Sophia, Purple Celie, Shug Avery, Nettie Mr_____, Independent Reading, one's own, living life, family love, one's own standards, shug celie, life love, shug avery, celie's life, live life, own standards, love family, life one's own, novel color purple, living life one's, letters nettie told,
Approximate Word count = 1272
Approximate Pages = 5 (250 words per page double spaced)
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