Topic > Celie's Transformation in "The Color Purple" man," (23 ) uttered the protagonist of The Color Purple by Alice Walker. Such words of meekness were characteristic of Celie's speech, that is, at the beginning of the novel. As the novel progressed, however, Celie's acquiescent behavior transformed into resilience and dignity. By incorporating the literary techniques of tone, symbolism, and juxtaposition into her novel, Alice Walker was able to develop the character of Celie, emphasizing her progression from submission to independence. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay Tone serves as an important tool in personifying the character of a novel. This is the case with The Color Purple. In her submissive state, Celie responded little, if at all, to the abuse she was exposed to. For example, Celie despondently stated that whenever she was forced to have sexual intercourse, she apathetically gave in, allowing her father or Mr. ______ to "get up there and have fun anyway. It doesn't matter what I'm thinking It doesn't matter what I feel. It's just him. (69) Celia's continued surrender is marked by desperation. She believed the resistance would only do to her what she thought it had done to her sister Nettie: "I think of Nettie, dead. She fights, she runs. What's the point? I don't fight, I stay where I am." I was told. But I'm alive." (22) Apparently, Celie believed that hoping for a life of passionate affection would only lead to her own death. Thus, she irremediably chose to live a life of indifference and agony. "I can't even remember the last time I felt angry... terrible feeling. Then I didn't feel anything anymore,” (44) Celie recalls, talking about how he felt he had entered into apathy. This apathy, however, disintegrated towards the end of the novel when he received Nettie's letters. For the first time in his life felt a feeling of resentment. This emotion was boldly expressed when Celie responded to Mr. ______, “You are a dishonest dog, you are what is wrong… It is time to leave you and enter Creation. And your corpse is just the welcome mat I need." (207) His tone in articulating this statement was clearly not coy. On the contrary, it was exceptionally vindictive. A spiteful tone was once again emitted by Celie when, in response to Mr. ______'s verbal abuse, he uttered, "I curse you. Until you do right by me, everything you touch will fall... everything you dream will fail. For every blow you strike me, you will suffer twice. The prison you have designed for me is the one in which you will rot..." (213) The fact that Celie opposed Mr. ______'s abuse instead of simply accepting it justified Celie's entry into independence. .Often, the authors use the linguistic tool of symbolism to develop certain concepts within their characters. Pants, for example, illustrate a direct application of symbolism. Pants usually denote masculinity; symbolizes his achievement of masculinity and why most men in the novel are depicted as having this dominance. However, the pants not only allowed Celie to gain self-confidence, but also to become self-sufficient trouser factory that Celie was able to gain independence from the financial assistance of Shug and Mr. _____, despite theMr. ______'s discouragements: "You won't get a dime of my money...not even a dime. No more North for nobody like you...All you can do in Memphis is be Shug's waitress...you ain't really Nothing." (208, 212-213) To break out of submission, it was necessary for Celie to gain a sense of self-worth. Celie was able to achieve this through Shug's religious notions. Shug managed to instill in Celie the concept that God is an internal force that gives meaning to everything that exists in nature, including the unobtrusive color purple. Since the color purple is often unnoticed and overlooked in the fields, it symbolizes Celie in her submissive state. After adopting Shug's religious ideals, Celie was able to fully appreciate nature. Furthermore, Celie was so convinced that she possessed a connection to the earth that she believed she could "curse" Mr. ______ through the power of nature's "trees, "air," and "earth." Celie's newfound appreciation for nature was Celie's appreciation of the color purple and, therefore, of her very existence. This affection was evident in Celie's account of her room: "Everything in my room was purple and red except the floor, painted bright yellow. ". 291) Symbolism also resonates in how particular characters in The Color Purple are identified. Celie's male counterparts, Alphonso and Albert, both establish their positions as the "king" of the family, having the women and children as their inferior designations of "King", the titles of "Pa" and "Mr. ______" were born, respectively. Being called by name by their "inferiors" would be considered an act of disobedience. Therefore, the fact that Celie calls Mr. ______ "Albert" and recognizes Pa as "Alphonso" signifies the eradication of their supremacy about her. Juxtaposition works as an effective tool to emphasize the similarities, or lack thereof, between two or more individuals. In The Color Purple, Walker used this literary element to compare and contrast Celie's personality with those of others characters The individual who is parallel to the subordinate Celie is Mr. ______'s son, Harpo Although "Harpo is almost as big as his father, [he] weak-willed." physicals by Mr. ______ was forced to work in the field all day, “[sweating], chopping, and plowing.” (29) Celie even acknowledged their similarity when she said “Harpo is no better at fighting than me her father,” (29) admitting the passivity of both Harpo and herself. Harpo's wife Sofia, however, completely contrasted Celie's character. Celie admitted this when she wrote, "I like Sofia, but she doesn't act like me at all." (38) While Celie struggled under the beatings of Mr. ______ and Daddy, Sofia chose to "fight [her] Daddy... [her] brothers... [and her] cousins and uncles." (42) It was she, not the male Harpo, who maintained the upper hand in her marriage. Because she, in effect, had the authority in the relationship between herself and Harpo, she represented the woman Celie desired to be a woman who "can't be beaten." (66) Like Sofia, Shug was a direct contrast to Celie's character. She possessed talent, beauty and, above all, authority over Mr. _______. As the novel progressed, the resemblance between Celie and Harpo diminished, while the contrast between Celie and Shug and Sofia became less stark. With Shug and Sofia's encouragement, Celie was able to avoid the submissive lifestyle she and Harpo once lived. “You should smash Mr. _____'s head,” (44) Sofia urged, wanting Celie to snap out of her passivity. At the same time, Shug inspired Celie to see love, life, and God with a new perspective, a perspective that pushed her to be "at peace with,.
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