The Color Purple by Alice Walker, Research Paper Example

Alice Walker’s The Color Purple is an emotional and sincere tale exemplifying various life aspects like friendships, respect, love, trust, and the bond among sisters. The novel was published in 1982. Alice Walker is one of the greatest activists who participated in the Civil Rights Movements in Mississippi during the 1960s. The Colour Purple demonstrates the struggles of black people in the white-ruled society. It constructs colorful personalities that would free the blacks, particularly women. The novel has supported the efforts to fight against racism, violence against women, and imperialism. It has also supported the black sexual equality and independence of women. Walker effectively uses rhetorical appeals of ethos, pathos, and logos to convince her audience that the oppressive patriarchal system must be successfully destroyed. She also employs other literal devices such as imagery, symbolism, and diction.

Literal Analysis

Alice Walker employs ethos, pathos, and logos intending to convince the reader about the oppressive patriarchal system that should be eliminated in society. Throughout the novel, Walker employs excellent rhetoric to express her strong emotions. For instance, she employs ethos to show the audience how violence causes harm, logos to instill confidence in the character, and pathos to convey pain. In addition, she skillfully uses logos and pathos to create a powerful argument for the liberation movement.

Walker lays the storyline by introducing the audience to Celie’s letter to God. She skillfully uses pathos to make the reader feel the melancholy of Celie, the protagonist, which was caused by her traumatic experience of being raped by her stepfather, Alphonso. Celie cannot accept repeated insults or abuse from the stepfather. This is why she entrusted his secret to God because her perpetrators warned her about reveal the secret to anyone, “you better not never tell anybody but God. It’d kill your mammy” (Walker 9). Walker manages to frighten the audience by explaining the two protracted acts of violence that cause physical and psychological harm. Alphonso kept putting emotional pressure on Celie by treating her inhumanly and completely ignoring her feelings.

Adding to the existing ethos, Walker makes the girl’s abuser an individual she regards as her father. This reveals the author is not afraid to use heavy persuasive ammunition to convince her audience. The end of the novel provides a striking example of pathos. Nettie’s return brings Celie’s family together, which allows her to write to God, despite being fair. This allows the audience to make an indirect journey through the character’s life better to understand the pain and significance of her journey.

When it comes to originality, Walker uses the best persuasive power. She goes through a long-term development process before writing interesting sentences. For instance, she uses an elegant and simple phrase that describes Celie’s fear of a man. Walker carefully looks for new ways to convince the readers and introduce them to the terrible marginalization experience. Hence, her rhetoric approach is consistent with the present invention, which is a classic of traditional rhetoric. Walker insists on the classic style in her works. She also uses an open and unscrupulous tone to express the character’s concerns and wishes. This style has led to writing a series of unpublished ideas from young African-American women seeking to escape various oppressions.

This passage in The Color Purple reveals the tribulations and trials faced by black women during the early 20th century. The themes of this passage are particularly focused on transforming the protagonist Celie into a powerful and independent African-American. The women around her, like Nettie, play a very important role in her character development. They also give strength and support through their love and friendship.

Celie and Nettie are sisters who face adversity in their lives. Nettie is regarded as Celie’s only family, whom she loves very much. Celie admires her Nettie because she is stronger, most beautiful, and educated than her. After Celie’s abusive husband, “Mr._____,” kicks Nettie out of their house, the two sisters are forced to part ways. Netti moves to Africa accompanied by the two missionaries she met in the city. Over the years, she wrote numerous letters to Celie, but her husband intercepts them each time. As a result, Celie assumes her sister is dead since she never receives any letter from her. She utters, “I don’t say nothing. I think bout Nettie, dead. She fight, she run away. What good it do? I don’t fight, I stay where I’m told. But I’m alive.” (Walker 21). Although, in the end, Celie realizes that her husband hinds the letters, she is filled with hope and encouragement. She later leaves “Mr. ___” after learning that Nettie and her children were still alive. After living in this abusive relationship, these letters gave her hope and expectation.

This passage conveys its main message through Nettie’s letters to Celie. One might argue that Walker’s purpose in writing the novel is to provide an individual perspective on sexual oppression. Walker uses the narrator Celie to exemplify her ignorance of worldly concerns, highlighting her tendency to think personally rather than politically. Given that the novel was written during the Civil Rights Movement, it can be said that it assumes that its audience is familiar with the political and social background of the time. However, if the reader is mature enough, they can understand the pain and suffering that the protagonist is experiencing.

In addressing the issue of individual liberation using post-slavery attitudes in American society, Walker uses the passage to appeal values ??shared by her readers. These values are embodied in the desire to transform today’s society into an equal society without discriminating against any race or gender. In particular, Walker raises a campaign to raise awareness of the disadvantaged rights of black women. In addition, Walker uses letter writing in the passage to express her character’s desire to escape her oppressive environment. Although logos are rarely mentioned in the passage, organizational work can help the audience keep track of the plot. Hence, this passage proves that The Colour Purple should be included in the evolving literary canon.

Throughout the passage, the author skillfully uses rhetoric to express sadness and ethics and tries to persuade her readers that the oppressive system of patriarchalism must be successfully abolished. The use of literal devices is particularly effective in allowing readers to think from a personal perspective rather than a political perspective. Walker’s main idea here is to show how the text becomes part of the ongoing cultural discourse. The selections are wide-ranging as the novel is extremely wide in terms of its criticism selection.

Works Cited

Walker, Alice. “The Colour Purple.” Winner, National Book Awards 1983. (1983)